June 10, 2021 –
In Day Two competition the focus for Philly schools was on women’s track semifinals. Four runners representing Villanova, Temple, La Salle and Penn took to the track. Emma Gee of Temple ran a personal best time in the 3000 Meters Steeplechase, but did not qualify for the final. Gee finished just ahead of La Salle’s Grace Mancini in the race. Isabella Whitaker of Penn and McKenna Keegan from Villanova did not advance to the final in their events. Let’s recap the races.
Women’s 3000 Meter Steeplechase
Emma Gee and Grace Mancini took part in the second heat of the semifinal round. The top five in each heat plus the next two best times advance to the final on Saturday. Gee and Mancini did not finish in the qualifying group. The duo ran close together. Gee recorded a personal best and school record time of 9:56.19 finishing just ahead of Mancini placing 10th in the heat and 17th overall. Mancini was 11th in the heat and 18th overall posting a 9:56.46. Roughly a half a second separated the local rivals. At the start both runners settled into the back of the pack running in proximity to one another at the first water jump. With 2 laps to go the top five began to separate, then at the bell lap it became a two person race between Courtney Wayment of BYU, the top qualifier, and Oregon’s Aneta Konieczek. Wayment won it covering the distance in 9:32.52. Konieczek set a personal-best time of 9:34.57. Twelve of the top overall thirteen ran a personal best. Of those who ran 14 set a personal mark, 8 from heat 2.
Women’s 400 Meters
Wearing the stripes of the Red and Blue Isabella Whitaker took to the starting line in lane 3. Whitaker fell behind early and could not make up the distance in the heat. She finished with a time of 53.42 and did not qualify for the final. Talita Diggs of Florida won the heat in 51.46. The top two finishers in each heat plus the next three best times advance to the final. The top three qualifying times in the final are all personal best times. Nicole Yeargin of USC has the fastest time of 50.96 edging out teammate Bailey Lear who ran a 51.02. Florida’s Taylor Manson has the third best qualifying time of 51.04. The final is scheduled for Saturday for the nine runners who advanced.
Women’s 800 Meters
McKenna Keegan of Villanova ran in the third heat from lane 4. Her time of 2:04.48 and fifth place finish did not advance her to the final. Keegan’s time was 13th overall. The top two finishers would advance to the final. Keegan was 4th after the break on the rail, and was a close third at the bell. Coming around the last turn Keegan tried to make a sprint along the rail, but did not make up the ground and was passed by two more runners in the stretch. Gabrielle Wilkinson of Florida won the heat in 2:03.50 and Michaela Meyer from Virginia was second hitting the finish line in 2:03.63. They advanced, but no other runner in the heat moved as a time qualifier. Amber Tanner of Georgia is the top qualifier running a 2:0182. Clemson’s Laurie Barton is second at 2:02.25. The third top qualifier BYU’s Claire Seymour posted a personal best 2:02.58. The final is on Saturday with 9 runners in the race.
Written By: Glenn Papazian
Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com
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