EMORY, Va. – For a girl whose athletic resume reads as long as a novel, Patrick Henry High School senior Kelsey Weddle found yet another milestone to claim as her own.
Weddle set a meet record in the girls 300-meter hurdles to highlight Saturday afternoon’s Hogoheegee District track and field meet at Patrick Henry High School.
Weddle also leapt to a victory in the high jump (4-foot-6) and raced to first place in the 100-meter hurdles (16.44 seconds).
“I was really excited all day and our team really pushed to do our best,” Weddle said.
But it was her victory in the 300 hurdles that was easily the most impressive, as she crossed the finish line in 47.19 seconds. It’s clearly been her best event this spring.
Two weeks ago, she clocked in at 46.55 seconds at a meet in Kingsport, Tenn.
“Last year, my PR at state was 48.14 and that was definitely my fastest,” Weddle said. “I hadn’t run that this year until the [Kingsport meet]. Now, I’m just trying to beat that.”
Weddle had to hold off a familiar nemesis en route to both hurdling victories. Rural Retreat’s Hannah Hadaway, the state champ in the 300 hurdles a year ago and a Winthrop (S.C.) University signee, finished second to Weddle twice on Saturday.
“You never know what she’s going to do,” Weddle said. “We push each other and have for four years, in almost every event.”
Weddle, who also stars in softball, basketball and volleyball, continues to pile up the wins on the track.
“She’s phenomenal,” said PH coach Anna Newman Jones. “She has just improved year after year and this district meet she shined and stepped up.”
George Wythe swept both the girls and boys team titles. The GW girls edged out PH by 16 points, while the boys just dominated the team standings.
The Maroons finished with 204 points, well ahead of runner-up Patrick Henry (96.5).
Nick Hagy (100 and 200), Ryan Layman (400), Andrei Stoker (110 hurdles), Isaac Young (high jump), Dominique Crockett (triple jump), Myron Wynn (shot put and discus) and the 4x100 relay team were winners for GW, which showcased its depth.
“They’ve been working hard,” said GW boys coach Danny Suthers. “We’ve got some really good sprinters, which has helped a lot.”
Other double winners on Saturday were Holston’s Sarah Collie (girls 1,600 and 3,200-meter runs), George Wythe’s Jordan Quinn (girls 200 and 400) and Rural Retreat’s Matthew Farmer (boys 800 and 1,600).
As for Weddle, the 5-foot-10 standout now has two track meets left in her career. The Region C meet is May 28 in Radford, with the state meet the following week.
She had a nice tune up on Saturday.
“She prepared for it and she knew that this is the stepping stone for the next two meets,” Jones said.
And the end goal remains the same.
“I just don’t want to let the state title slip away like I let it last year,” Weddle said.
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