2009-2010 Indoor Recap
Returning for the indoor season after the most accomplished outdoor season ever for our girls team, Morris Estate Girl’s Athletics (MEGA) went back to work on the goal of expanding its recent successes. During the fall several of the girls competed in the Philadelphia Express Cross Country series while others tended to their other sport specialties such as swimming, soccer, gymnastics, and dance. By late November most of the birdies were back in the nest ready to be fed and strengthened for the busy indoor campaign.
As in the two proceeding indoor seasons we began our season in New Jersey at the Toms River facility. This facility has a fast track for fast times and also allows for our field event athletes to practice their specialty. Our girls quickly dusted off any cobwebs and went right back to doing what they do best which is competing to win. In this first meet notice was served that it was indeed again track season and that we were a force to be reckoned with.
The schedule was revamped a bit this year as we elected not to compete in New York at the Colgate Woman’s Games. Instead we concentrated on meets closer to home that were less taxing on the athletes and their parents than the 5am start that that series requires. The United Age Group development meets were used to sharpen our blades as they do in the outdoor season. Two meets at Widener provided plenty of opportunity to determine where everyone was in the individual development. The UAG, the association to which Morris Estate is a member club and competes in annually, has been adding more meets to its indoor schedule which complement their outdoor meet opportunities. These meets are perfect for the developing runner and offer exactly what the developing competitor needs which is a non-threatening atmosphere to try new things. MEGA didn’t disappoint and in the first meet we finished first in overall points by a score of 125.5 over the second place and always competitive Jaguar Track Club of New Jersey. Our effort were lead by bantam Dajai Broaster, who won the 200m and by her efforts in leading a four girl MEGA sweep (Dajai Broaster, Shynera Dorin, Ciani Kensey, & Jordan Wilson) in the bantam girls 800m!
Meet two of the UAG series went much like the first meet. Again, the mighty girls of Morris Estate outscored every girls team in attendance only this time by a not so close 26 point margin. The bantam girls set a meet record in the 4x176 relay. However, this meet saw a slight shift in where the majority of points were coming from as Isabel Mobley flexed her muscles and won the 1500m before leading the midget girls (Mobley, Deondra Martin, & Sydni Stovall) on a three girl 800m sweep! The midgets also won the 4x176 relay. MEGA again showed its versatility by being able to come at other teams from a lot of different angles and from almost any age group.
The team next traveled back to Toms River, NJ in between snowstorms to run in the second of the Tommy Burns meets. New Jersey consistently has strong teams, much like Philadelphia, and the competition is always strong.
February brought on the beginning of the indoor championship meets. First up the First State! MEGA rolled into the Indoor Track Classic as the defending champs and even with only two Intermediate girls or higher competing, as opposed to six the previous year, we were primed to defend our title. Led by Dominique Mosley’s 18 points (55, 200, & 4x200) our girls amassed 92 total points only to be bettered by one point by the equally stoked Firebirds team of Maryland. Morris Estate manhandled all competitors on the boys side by generating a whopping 160 total points. Together as a complete program no other team was even close to our combined scores!
Next up was our UAG championship at Lehigh University. This meet was unique in that it was the first meet that we’ve ever competed in that started in the evening. The coaches, parents, and athletes all expressed concerns over the late start, but the meet ended up being a good one for our team. We finished second in overall scoring to our neighbor, the talented Mt. Airy track club, even though MEGA didn’t contest any relays. Our boys again ruled the roost while resoundingly outscoring everyone in the building.
Our final indoor meet is the meet everyone circles on their calendar as the most competitive meet of the indoor campaign. The Prince George (Maryland) 14 & Under Youth Invitational is a jewel of a meet and a great way to end the season. There are teams that compete from up and down the eastern seaboard. MEGA came prepared and made a wonderful showing for itself. Led again by midget Dominique Mosley, our girls ran personal best after personal best while winning 4 gold watches. Dominique won a fast 55 meter dash and a rare air high jump both of which earned her watches. Sydni Stovall, for the second year in a row, won the 1600 meters to earn her a new time piece. Jordan Wilson again proved to be the best thrower on the coast as she won the shot put and more wrist jewelry.
With the indoor season complete MEGA is busy readying itself for the outdoor season. Highlights for the outdoor season will be the UAGTCA development series, the UAG Invitational, possibly the Russell Blunt East Coast invitational, and finally the AAU Junior Olympics national Championship in Norfolk, Virginia the first week of August 2010.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2009 Outdoor Recap
The 2009 outdoor season was a very successful one for Morris Estate Girls Athletics. The season followed a strong indoor campaign and featured many personal best and first for the girls program.
The outdoor season began with the United Age Group series of meets. The United Age Group Track Coaches Association (UAGTCA) is the league to which Morris Estate belongs and is an original member club. The first meet was held at Marcus Foster Stadium in Philadelphia. For many of our athletes this was their first ever track meet. With close to 1000 athletes competing MEGA made its mark as we established ourselves as a team to beat in the city. It was at this early season meet that the girls displayed their sprinting prowess which would be evident throughout the season. Also, at this meet the newer girls and their parents got accustomed to the all day track meets, while the veterans settled in for the long road ahead by recording good marks.
As the UAGTCA series evolved our girls started to strut their stuff and post very good marks. When MEGA participated in the UAGTCA championship expectations were high for many top finishes. As it turned out the Sub-Bantam girls, headed by Dajai Broaster, Olabisi Adams, and Shynera Dorin, were the best of the bunch in the region claiming top honors as a team in that age group. The Bantam girls were a very competitive 4th place at the championship while the Midget, Youth and Intermediate age-groups all finished 6th. Combined through the five age groups in which we compete, MEGA finished second in overall points of girls teams at the championship. The team showed its great diversity, competitiveness, and sportsmanship.
Next up were a couple of meets designed to keep the team razor sharp as we approached the AAU championship time of the season. The team competed in the all relay meet sponsored by the UAG. Relays were a bright spot for MEGA this year. By season’s end 7 relays would be ranked in the top 50 in the nation in their respective categories. The bantam girls, Ciani Kensey, Jordan Wilson, Mikaela Mosley, and Sydni Stovall recorded a time that was second best in the country in the 4X800 relay. Their all-America effort would stand throughout the outdoor season. The mighty Midgets consisting of Deondra Martin, Kayla Foster, Dominique Mosley, and Turquoise Lee-Claxton would establish themselves as the first Morris Estate girls 4X100 relay team ever with legitimate national medal possibilities. Three of this foursome, combined with eventual 1500m and 3000m all-American Isabel Mobley, also starred in the 4x400 relay. The Youth girls of Meghan Forsythe, Shante Dorin, Jada Wilson, and Rohwanna Smith had already set their own mark by running top ten national times in the 4X400 and 4X800 relays. The girls went on the road in late June to visit our friends in North Jersey at the Transy East Invitational and, braving the elements, put a licking on all teams in attendance. MEGA scored a lopsided team victory and took home a 3 ½ foot trophy for our efforts.
As is always the case the AAU series is the highlight of the season. In 2008 MEGA qualified 13 athletes to compete in the Junior Olympics. This year’s national qualifying was different than in previous years. There was a district meet which ended up being less competitive than the UAGTCA development meets. The custom had been that you had to place in the top 6 to move on to the second round. This season all one had to do was compete and have a valid mark to compete in the regional, or newly named, National Qualifier meet. Obviously 100% of the girls competing in the district meet qualified for the 2nd round. Lead in part by the performances of perennial all-American Essence Williams and the welcome contribution of our late season new members, Alexandria Kitchell and Sophia Heck, along with the revised strength of Intermediate runners Shamira Sweets, Tian Smith, Jalen Pinnock, and Alisa Fornwald, MEGA rolled into the National Qualifier meet firing on all cylinders. In 2009 twenty-three girls qualified and twenty-one represented Morris Estate in 6 relays and 30 individual events at the National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa! This is no small feat for a team that five years earlier had no representatives at the national level.
Morris Estate Girls Athletics finished the season with two individual all-Americans, Youth Essence Williams (discus, shot put) and Midget Isabel Mobley (800, 1500) by virtue of their top 8 finishes at the National Championship. Isabel earned this status in the 3000m as well finishing the season with a top 20 performance nationally. We also celebrated National Elite Youth (www.eliteyouth.com) Honor Roll status for 9 other top performers and they are: Sub-Bantams Dajai Broaster (100, 200, 400) & Shynera Dorin (200,400), Bantams Sydni Stovall (800, 1500) & Alexandria Kitchell (400), Midgets Dominique Mosley (Pentathlon) & Kayla Foster (400), Youth Shante Dorin (800), and wily Intermediate veteran Alisa Fornwald (triple jump). Congratulations to all!
We look forward to the 2009/2010 Indoor/Outdoor season with much anticipation as our girls grow and realize their goals.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~