{"id":31623,"date":"2017-12-18T16:27:52","date_gmt":"2017-12-18T21:27:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/?p=31623"},"modified":"2019-01-02T13:42:11","modified_gmt":"2019-01-02T18:42:11","slug":"returning-champions-and-rising-stars-set-fast-pace-at-opening-of-44th-annual-colgate-womens-games-track-and-field-series","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/returning-champions-and-rising-stars-set-fast-pace-at-opening-of-44th-annual-colgate-womens-games-track-and-field-series\/","title":{"rendered":"Returning Champions and Rising Stars Set Fast Pace at Opening of 44th Annual Colgate Women’s Games Track and Field Series"},"content":{"rendered":"

BROOKLYN, N.Y., Dec. 18, 2017 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — A number of personal best performances marked an exceptional early start to the indoor track season as East Coast athletes from Boston to Virginia competed in one of the largest opening preliminary meets of the 44th annual Colgate Women\u2019s Games<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Avery
\nOn Friday, returning Colgate Women\u2019s Games\u2019 first place finalists won seven of eight High School division events:<\/p>\n

Three time returning champion Iantha Wright<\/a> of Queen\u2019s Jamaica High School won the 55M in 7.14; Last year\u2019s Mid School champion Brianna Brown now a freshman at Dewitt Clinton High School, Bronx won the 200M in 25.99; Sophia Myers<\/a> of Queens HS won the 55MH in 8.19, and Athing Mu <\/a>of Trenton HS, NJ returning after a perfect season of double wins, took the 800M in 2:20.86, and the1500M in 4:55.69. Brooklyn\u2019s My’Khiyah Williams<\/a>, who holds High Jump records in Elem. B (4-feet 9-inches) and Mid School (5-feet 6.5-inches), cleared the bar at 5-feet 4-inches; and Manhattan\u2019s Mariam Cisse of Promise Academy won the shot put with her personal best toss, 10.93M. Jasmine Douglas-Grant<\/a> of Stroudsburg High School, PA, off a second place finish last season, scored her first major meet\u2019s 1st place win in the 400M in 1:01.30.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, national sprint sensation Avery Lewis with four concurrent sprint records<\/a> since first grade, moved up to the Mid School division and scored another double win with two personal bests; 7.16 in the 55M, and 25.56 in the 200M. The 11-year-old six grader (who turns twelve this week), attends Westtown School in PA, and has been called one of the fastest girls in the nation every year since her 7th birthday. Lewis holds Colgate Women\u2019s Games\u2019 Elementary A Records in the 55M (7.75) and the 200M (28.09); and Elementary B records in the 55M (7.35) and the 200M (25.99).<\/p>\n

Meet Director Cheryl Toussaint calls Avery Lewis a truly gifted young athlete and says competitors like her and many others through the years continue to make the Colgate Women\u2019s Games among the nation\u2019s premiere proving grounds for track and field talent. The Games have produced hundreds of national champions, and with last summer\u2019s six alumnae on Olympic Team USA, 26 former Olympians, and in four decades, countless changed lives.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Colgate Women\u2019s Games are primarily about helping girls and young women build self-esteem,\u201d says Toussaint. \u201cCompetitive athletics help girls of all abilities discover and improve their skills; and learning they can meet and exceed personal goals are lessons that help women find and expect excellence throughout their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Toussaint said, \u201cThis weekend was especially exciting with the number of athletes enjoying their own personal best performances, something normally not seen until later in the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Peyton
\nWith more personal records in the Mid School division; Peyton Rollins<\/a> of Andrews MS in Medford, MA won the 55MH in an impressive 8.28; Rowan Houston<\/a> of Rye Country Day in White Plains NY and Selah Dungey<\/a> of St. Peter Academy, River Edge, NJ both cleared 5-feet 0-inches in the High Jump; and Melissa Aymil<\/a> of Mendham MS in Brookside, NJ tossed 10.58 in the Shot Put.<\/p>\n

Also in Mid School on Saturday, Simone Kelley<\/a> of Wissahickon MS in Ambler, PA won the 400M in 59.49; Returning division champion Alina LaForest<\/a> of Drexel Neumann Acadamey won the 800M in 2:19.02; and Brooklyn\u2019s Rainn Sheppard <\/a>of Dock Street School won the 1500M in 4:55.13.<\/p>\n

Additional results for Saturday\u2019s College\/Open, and Sunday\u2019s Elementary A and B and 30\u2019s Plus division events are available at colgategames.com\/results<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Participation in the Colgate Women\u2019s Games is completely free. Girls and young women compete within their own age\/grade division for ribbons, medals and points. Events include 55 meters, 55-meter hurdles, 200 meters, 400 Meters, 800 meters, 1500 meters, high jump and shot put. Four preliminary meets and a semi-finals at Pratt Institute will determine who will compete at the finals at the New Balance Track and Field Center at The Armory, New Yor<\/a>k on Saturday, February 10, 2018, where trophies and educational grants-in-aid from Colgate-Palmolive Company<\/a> are awarded to top place finishers in each division.<\/p>\n

Athletes, parents and coaches can follow scores throughout the series and find more information about the program at http:\/\/www.colgategames.com\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

*PHOTO for media: Send2Press.com\/300dpi\/17-1218s2p-avery-lewis-300dpi.jpg<\/p>\n

PHOTO CAPTIONS:
\n(1) National sprint sensation Avery Lewis with four concurrent sprint records<\/a> since first grade, moved up to the Mid School division and scored another double win with two personal bests; 7.16 in the 55M, and 25.56 in the 200M at the opening preliminary meet of the Colgate Women\u2019s Games in Brooklyn, NY on Saturday.<\/p>\n

(2) Peyton Rollins<\/a> of Andrews Middle School in Medford, MA won the 55MH in an impressive 8.28 at the Opening Preliminary meet of the Colgate Women\u2019s Games at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY on Saturday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BROOKLYN, N.Y., Dec. 18, 2017 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) — A number of personal best performances marked an exceptional early start to the indoor track season as East Coast athletes from Boston to Virginia competed in one of the largest opening preliminary meets of the 44th annual Colgate Women’s Games.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4994,"featured_media":31621,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8436,10656,37,134,8,30,956],"tags":[8442],"class_list":["post-31623","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-track-and-field-news","category-brooklyn-business","category-entertainment-news","category-general-editorial-news","category-new-york-news","category-sports-news","category-womens-interest","tag-pratt-institute","has-post-title","has-post-date","no-post-category","no-post-tag","no-post-comment","has-post-author"],"acf":[],"views":9391,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31623","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4994"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31623"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31623\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31623"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31623"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.send2press.com\/wire\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31623"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}