The Dover Senators came to town April 26 to join Cape and Sussex Academy in Henlopen Conference track & field action at Legends Stadium. When the dust settled, the Vikings boys topped Dover 97-42 and Sussex Academy 116-21, while the Vikings girls topped Dover 107-24 and Sussex Academy 100-41. The Cape boys move to 4-3, while the Cape girls improve to 7-0. The Riders of Caesar Rodney will visit Cape Monday, May 3, for the final dual meet of the season, beginning at 3:30 p.m. The next big test for the Vikings will be the Henlopen Conference Championships set for Thursday and Friday, May 13 and 14.
Senior Aya Daisey scored 16.25 points as the meet’s high scorer on the girls’ side. She won the long jump in 15-feet-4.5-inches, the 200-meter dash in 27.4 seconds, the high jump in 4-feet-8-inches, and anchored a come-from-behind win in the 400 relay. The Vikings won the 800 relay with the team of Mehkia Applewhite, Amaya Daisey, Kiki Johnson, and Hannah “Money” Maney in 1:52.9.
Two of the better races of the day appeared in the 1,600 meters and the 800 meters, both close finishes by quality kids. In the 1,600 meters, Sussex Academy senior Emily Trout led through the opening three laps before first-year runner Emma Duffield made a move at the 300-meter mark and pulled away for a seven-second win. In the 800 meters, veteran Alyssa Swann of Sussex Academy led through 600 meters before Maney, running her very first 800 meters, took the lead. Swann had other ideas, as she charged back and was even with 50 meters to go. Both runners leaned at the line, with Swann awarded the win in 2:38.
Cape hurdler Taylor Johnson ran a personal-best 48.9 in the 300 hurdles to open some eyes, while Applewhite also set a season best in the shot put in 34-feet-3-inches. Haley Archambault won the discus in 83-feet-1-inch, while Lexi Dougherty set a season best in the triple jump in 31-feet-7-inches.
Dover sprinter and hurdler Jamyla Davis won two events, taking the 100 meters in 13.1 and the hurdles in 16.9. Sussex Academy won the 3,200 relay in 10:48.0, while Cape took the 400 relay in 53.4 and the 1,600 relay in 4:57.
The Cape boys had little trouble with the team win and seemed to back off with its A team, allowing the younger backup athletes to compete and spread out over the 18 events. Nate Loucks won the long jump in 17-feet-10-inches, while Trey Leggins was second in 16-11. Loucks came back for his second win of the day in the triple jump with a personal best of 40-feet-2.5-inches. Josiah Miller was second in the discus in 126-feet-6-inches, while Dover’s Ethan Roth had the best throw of the day in 139-feet-11-inches. In the shot put, it was all Miller, as he won the event in 48-feet-10-inches, nearly 10 feet farther than the next athlete. Jakob Hayes had a good day in the pole vault, winning the event in a new season best of 9-feet-6-inches.
Both Cape teams were scheduled to take part in the Panther Invitational hosted by Polytech on Thursday, April 29, in Woodside.
Track & field clinics
The Cape Henlopen girls’ track & field team will host the second session of Clinic II this Sunday, May 2, with 80 elementary, middle and high school athletes taking part at Legends Stadium. All athletes received a custom-printed string backpack for participating in the camp. Registration info for the third and final clinic can be found at seashorestriders.com or by contacting me at timothy.bamforth@cape.k12.de.us. The final clinic will be May 16 and 23.
