Lady Hornets run strong but finish second to Northside
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FAYETTEVILLE — The Bryant Lady Hornets won two events but it was Fort Smith Northside’s day at the Arkansas Track Coaches Association Indoor Invitational at the Tyson Track Center on the campus of the University of Arkansas Saturday, Feb. 19.
The Lady Hornets compiled 75 points but wound up a distant second to Northside’s 112 points. Russellville was third with 58 in the 20-team field.
The Lady Hornets were led by Brooke Higgs who pulled away from the field at the halfway point and cruised to an easy win in the 800 meter run, finishing in 2:22.
Higgs then contributed a leg to the winning 3200 relay team. Despite dropping the baton between the second and third legs, the team of Jessica Sowell, Mary Edwards, Nicole Darland and Higgs paced the field with a time of 10:11.5.
“I thought for the first meet of the year our team ran strong,” stated head coach Danny Westbrook. “Higgs, Edwards, Darland, and Sowell all had a good day in the distance events. Kelsey Mitchell looked good in the hurdles and Jessica Norris had a good triple jump performance.
“Northside will definitely be the favorite to win the team title at the State meet (March 5),” Westbrook added. “They have some really good sprinters and jumpers.”
Norris provided a second-place finish in the triple jump, covering 32-11. Edwards turned in a second in the 1600 with a time of 5:42.3.
Mitchell’s 9.05 time in the 55 meter hurdles earned third-place honors. Edwards took third in the 800 with a time of 2:30.1, and the 1600 meter relay team of Sara Coker, Edwards, Sam Montgomery and Higgs garnered third-place points with a time of 4:21.
Fourth-place points came courtesy of Darland’s 5:48.9 in the 1600, and 12:34.9 in the 3200. Sowell turned in a sixth-place finish in the 1600 with a time of 5:50.7.
Mitchell’s 27.4 in the 200 meter dash was good for seventh, as was Sowell’s run in the 800 and Norris’ high jump of 4-6.
Kim Bergen added an eighth-place finish in the 800 with a time of 2:33.8. Mitchell’s 30-4 in the triple jump was good for eighth.
