Jaguars show stripes on final day
Charles H. Flowers is the top county finisher in 1,600 boys' relay
The final day of the 115th Penn Relays Carnival had a Jaguars' flavor to it for county teams.
Charles H. Flowers High school senior Dwayne Powell helped cap off a solid weekend for county athletes in field events.
Powell's accomplishment was impressive given the fact that he had less than 20 minutes between anchoring the Jaguars' 1,600-relay team and his first jump.
"That's not a lot of time to get your legs back after you run a race like the 400," Flowers coach Carl Rose said of Powell's ability to bounce back in a short time frame. "I thought he did a great job."
"The weather plays a big part in track and field," said Powell, who said he felt the best of all three days he had spent at the event. "For me, the better the weather, the better I perform."
The Jaguars' 1,600 boys' relays had the best performance of any county team at Penn Relays.
The team of George Empty, Mike Rowland, Garland Brooks and Powell finished fifth in their heat with a time of 3:19.29, despite having a late substitution (Brooks) as a result of an injury. The Jaguars finished 19th overall in the event.
The Bowie boys' 1,600 relay team of Paul Edwards, Anthony Simpson, Collin Manning and Daniel Ballah finished 49th overall (3 minutes, 22.15 seconds). The Eleanor Roosevelt team (Tristan Youngblood, Jovon Edwards, Paul Ford and Denny Long) finished 52nd with a time of 3:22.27, while DeMatha (53rd/3:22.29/Jordan Lomax, Christopher Walker, Thomas Gaither and Michael Williams) and Suitland (58th/3:22.93/Jordan Coleman, Sequan Johnson, Cortney Mazyck and J.D. Tharpe) round out the top county finishers.
The 1,600 relay consisted of 576 teams from across the country, including 16 from Prince George's County. Frederick Douglass, Fairmont Heights, Friendly, Potomac, Forestville, Bladensburg, Riverdale Baptist, Largo, DuVal, Henry A. Wise and Laurel joined the schools mentioned above.
E-mail Terron Hampton at thampton@gazette.net