REIGNING KINGS Burger King Lester Vaughan are being chased by Queen’s College and Christ Church Foundation for the boys’ title in this year’s Powerade Barbados Secondary Schools Athletic Championships (BSSAC) at the National Stadium.
After yesterday’s first day of finals, Lester Vaughan (133) hold a narrow two-point lead over Queen’s College (131), entering today’s final day with Foundation threatening in third position on 113 points.
Foundation made a late run, winning the junior boys’ 3000 metres with Jafari Taylor surprising the Coleridge & Parry’s front-running pair of Trevair Alleyne (11:04.83) and R’Mario Maxwell (11:05.22) to come from way behind in eighth position to win in 11:02.92 minutes.
That victory was followed by the Under-20 boys’ 4×100 relay victory in 42.14 seconds with Kevin Briggs on the anchor leg after Lester Vaughan dropped the baton on the second handover.
One of the most amazing runs of the day came from Queen’s College’s Antoni Hoyte-Small, who shattered Wilan Louis’ 1999 Under-17 boys’ 400 metres record of 48.00 seconds.
Running out of lane three, Hoyte-Small covered the field going up the back straight and sped around the bend by the 200 metres mark and came off the turn, heading into the straight for a commanding win.
Hoyte-Small (11.08) returned to finish second in the 100 behind Combermere’s Matthew Clarke (10.90) and later ran a swift leg on the back straight to help Queen’s College win the Under-17 boys’ 4×100 relay in 42.72 seconds.
St Michael’s Darian Clarke obliterated Lodge’s Tramaine Smith’s record of 22.34 seconds in the Under-15 200 metres, speeding around the bend and sprinting home in a blistering 22.13 seconds.
Lester Vaughan were dominant in the jumps and hurdles with new acquisition Anderson Greaves leaping 7.42 metres to win the Under-20 long jump. The distance was farther than his brother Charles Greaves’ record of 7.32 metres but won’t count as a new mark because of negative 2.1 wind reading. Ondre Callender also won the Under-17 long jump with a leap of 6.52 metres.
The hurdles also proved to be rewarding for the Cane Garden, St Thomas school as Tyal Antoine set a new record of 14.55 seconds in the junior boys’ 100 metres event. Foundation’s Nathan Crawford-Wallis (14.78) finished second, also inside the previous record.
Hasani Lowe won the Under-17 100 metres event for Lester Vaughan from Combermere’s Nathan Fergusson and Queen’s College’s Tre Hollingsworth in a blanket finish as all three crossed the line together in 14.69 seconds.
Juwan Augustin-Mayers made it a clean hurdles’ sweep for Lester Vaughan, winning the Under-20 110-metre race in 14.82 seconds.
Nathan Crawford-Wallace won the junior discus with a toss of 37.61 metres from Queen’s College’s Zico Riley (36.38).
Foundation gained a one-two in the Under-20 400 through Josiah Atkins, who won in 49.42 and Deshon Trent (49.49).
St Leonard’s Jaquone Hoyte proved to be the fastest schoolboy in the land, overcoming a sluggish start to pip Lester Vaughan’s Kentoine Browne (10.66) and Briggs (10.74) on the line to win in 10.60 seconds.
Queen’s College gained important points in the junior 800 metres with Under-13 boys Peter Gibbs (2:29.03) and John Clarke (2:32.67) taking the two first positions. Samuel Alkins also won the Under-15 race in 2:12.53 minutes.
Coleridge & Parry’s Jonathan Jones easily won the Under-20 1500 in 4:02.82 minutes from the Marshall twin brothers Romario (4:08.16) and Akeem (4:08.38). Another CARIFTA athlete Triston Gibbons won the Under-20 discus with a distance of 46.59 metres.
Grantley Adams’ Roneldo Rock (4:19.76) won his showdown with HC’s Kai Alleyne (4:23.48) in the Under-17 1500.
