Red Raiders edge close to section showdown with LH
Uniontown's Dion Ricks takes the baton for teammate Doug Lewis during the 400-meter relay during their meet against Connellsville at Bill Power Stadium Thursday.
John F. Brothers/HeraldStandard.com
Connellsville’s Colby Nicholson throws the shot during the Falcons’ meet with Uniontown at Bill Power Stadium in Uniontown Thursday.
Uniontown's Nate Edenfield takes a comanding lead durng the 1,600-meter run during their meet with Connellsville at Bill Power Stadium Thursday.
One week remains in the Section 2-AAA track & field schedule, and the Red Raiders positioned themselves for a shot at the title after Uniontown defeated visiting Connellsville, 104-46, Thursday afternoon.
Uniontown improves to 4-0 in the section with the victory. The Red Raiders close the season with a road meet at Albert Gallatin next Tuesday and a home meet two days later against Laurel Highlands.
The Mustangs are also undefeated, so the season finale will likely be for the section crown.
Nate Edenfield sparked the Red Raiders with first-place finishes in the 1,600 (4:43) and 3,200 (11:10.19), and he also ran the anchor leg of the winning 3,200 relay (8:56.65). His victory in the 3,200 came in his first attempt at the distance.
The temperatures, as they have been for most of the season, were warmer than usual. Warmth is generally welcomed by speed athletes, but not so by distance runners.
“We you get to the line, you feel the sweat. At first, it feels great,” said Edenfield. “I wasn’t going to do the 3,200, but at the last minute we (Nathan Edenfield) switched.”
His strategy was simple, no matter the distance.
“I want to get away from (the field) as soon as possible,” explained Edenfield.
The Red Raiders’ Deion Ricks had a strong day in the jumping pits, winning the high jump (5-8), long jump (20-½), and triple jump (40-8). Bru Martin (110 high hurdles, 15.44), Dom Gibson (300 intermediate hurdles, 40.85), Jake Cahn (800, 2:06.53), Chris Hall (shot put, 43-0), and Marcus Thomas (javelin, 164-0) also had first-place finishes for Uniontown.
Connellsville’s Jeremy Basinger ran only one individual event, but it was a first-place finish in the 400 with a winning time of 52.60 seconds.
With the Falcons out of the Section 2-AAA playoff race and big individual meets on the horizon, Basinger said the meet against the Red Raiders was an opportunity to prepare for the future.
“We still wanted to compete, and get a good workout in,” said Basinger, who will compete in the Tri-State Coaches Invitational on Saturday. “I didn’t want to overdo. I’m just really getting in shape. I’ll run the 200 and 400. (The sprints) help running the other.”
Devin Colon gave the Falcons a sweep of the first-place finishes in the sprints, winning the 100 (11.58) and 200 (23.78). He also ran the opening leg of the winning 400 relay, joining Mitchell Kersey, Stetson Keedy and Christian Williams to a first-place finish in 45.84 seconds. Jake Nichelson won the discus (130-0), and Jeremy Welsh cleared 11-6 to win the pole vault.
The Falcons (1-3, 1-6) close the section schedule next Thursday at Albert Gallatin.