Jumpers lift GA over Springside in track opener

by TOM UTESCHER

Kim Ashby’s winning effort in the 400 meters highlighted a home track meet for the Lions of Springside School on April 12, but a broad-based effort by visiting Germantown Academy lifted the Patriots to an easy victory, 87-31. GA placed first in all of the other individual events (there was no pole vault competition), and in the two relays.

The contest was the 2005 Girls Inter-Ac League opener for both schools. GA, the 2004 runner-up, arrived at Springside with two dual-meet wins under its belt, while the Lions had lost one dual and had finished second in a quad meet prior to facing the Patriots.

Springside’s Ashby, a sophomore, ran in the 4 x 100 meter and 4 x 400 meter relays for the Lions, as well as the open 400. Junior Kristy Caltabiano scored in three events for the host school, coming in second in the 100 meters, the 100 meter hurdles, and the triple jump. Her classmate Elspeth Lodge also scored in multiple events, taking second in the 1600 meters and third in the 3200, and eighth-grader Tija Bross was third in both the 100 hurdles and the triple jump.

For Germantown Academy, sophomore point-machine Caitlin DeFusco racked up 20 points for the Pats, winning both hurdling races, and sailing to superancy in the long jump and triple jump. Another GA tenth grader, Jen Kopenitz, is the defending league champ in the 1600 and 3200, and not surprisingly she won both events in the Springside meet.

Freshman Caroline Doty placed second in the 400 and the long jump, and in winning the high jump at five feet even she set a new Germantown Academy record and matched the first-place jump at last year’s league championships. Sophomore Devon Blount won the 100 meters and senior Kris Guynn was first in the 200, and they ran together on the victorious 4 x 100 relay team.

Even the longest race of the day, the eight-lap 3200, provided some drama at the end as a finishing kick carried the Patriots’ Alexandra Beautyman past Springside’s Lodge in a battle for second place. In the 4 x 400 relay at the end of the meet, Ashby and Kelly Parks established a lead for Springside over the first half of the race, but Alexandra Stein closed the gap for GA on the third circuit and then Doty moved the Patriots ahead for good on the anchor lap.

Results

100 meters

1. GA Devon Blount 12.79

2. SS Kristy Caltabiano 13.39

3. GA Jleah Ray 13:39

200 meters

1. GA Kris Guynn 26.95

2. GA Jleah Ray 28.10

3. GA Devon Blount 29.59

400 meters

1. SS Kim Ashby 1:02.10

2. GA Caroline Doty 1:04.15

3. SS Kelly Parks 1:08.21

800 meters

1. GA Danielle David 2:47.66

2. GA Lindsay Freid 2:48.33

3. GA Rachel Craft 2:55.95

1600 meters

1. GA Jen Kopenitz 5:55.2

2. SS Elspeth Lodge 6:10.6

3. GA Christina Mack 6:28.7

3200 meters

1. GA Jen Kopenitz 13:38

2. GA Alexandra Beautyman 14.19

3. SS Elspeth Lodge 14:20

100 meter hurdles

1. GA Caitlin DeFusco 17.32

2. SS Kristy Caltabiano 19.00

3. SS Tija Bross 20.09

300 meter hurdles

1. GA Caitlin DeFusco 50.02

2. SS Kelsey Mullin 55.10

3. GA Devon Blount 56.69

High Jump

1. GA Caroline Doty 5’0”

2. SS Nan Wiesel 4’6”

3. GA Kim Bruce 4’4”

Long Jump

1. GA Caitlin DeFusco 15’8.5”

2. GA Caroline Doty 14’2”

3. SS Daylan Bakes 13’3”

Shot Put

1. GA Natasha Feller 23’7.5”

2. SS Laurice Morgan 23’7”

3. GA Elizabeth Johnson 21’8”

Triple Jump

1. GA Caitlin DeFusco 31’8.5”

2. SS Kristy Caltabiano 31’4”

3. SS Tija Bross 28’1”

4 x 100 meter relay

1. GA Jess Golson/Jleah Ray/Devon Blount/Kris Guynn 52.7

2. SS Kelly Parks/Paris Saunders/Kim Ashby/Kristy Caltabiano 53.8

4 x 400 meter relay

1. GA Danielle David/Lindsay Freid/Alexandra Stein/Caroline Doty 4:30.34

2. SS Kim Ashby/Kelly Parks/Sarah Alderfer/Paris Saunders 4:34.87