TRACK: Stoney Creek wins first-ever boys track league title; Troy girls claim 11th in 14 seasons
BY DAN STICKRADT
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BLOOMFIELD HILLS — It was a long-time coming for Rochester Stoney Creek’s boys track and field program.
Sixteen years to be exact.
Stoney Creek captured its first league title in the program’s 16-year tenure Thursday on the track of Bloomfield Hills High School.
Coupled with a 5-0 dual meet record, Stoney Creek toppled the six-school field at the league meet with 157 points to put the finishing touches on the outright league title.
“It is a long time coming. We’ve been close before, but never won a league title until this year,” said Paul Duffy, Stoney Creek’s head coach all 16 seasons and a track coach for 31 years in the Detroit-Ann Arbor areas. “We have a really solid group this season.”
Auburn Hills Avondale was second with 125 points, while Troy (75), Bloomfield Hills (63), Troy Athens (58) and Pontiac (22) rounded out the field.
Stoney Creek won five events and finished 1-2 in three events to help put them in cruise control.
“You never know for sure what you’re gunna have” said Duffy. “I mean we have a few really good athletes on the team, and then guys like Jericho (Redmond-Barr) got a whole lot better since last season. It’s guys like him that really made a difference.”
Meanwhile, undefeated Troy girls captured their 11th league crown in 14 seasons by scoring 158 points, 10 ahead of runner-up Stoney Creek (148). Bloomfield Hills was third with 102.5 points, followed by Avondale (40.5), Troy Athens (35) and Pontiac (2).
“When you have the horses, you just let them go out and run,” said Troy coach Matt Richardson, who has several runners off his Division 1 cross-country state championship team competing in track and field. “We have a great group that can score a ton of points.
Grace Johnson (15.13) and junior Lauren Fulcher (15.50) took the top two spots in the the 100 hurdles, while Fulcher broke the tape in the 300 hurdles (46.10) for the Colts. Hannah Palomino won the 1,600 (5:15.15), while University-of-Michigan-bound Megan Worrel captured three events — the 400 (59.31), 800 (2:20.04) and 3200 (11:16.66) for Troy.
The Colts also won the 800 relay (1:45.97).
“We have group of girls who I think can score really well at the big meets,” said Richardson. “We’re hoping to win the regional, be top five at the county and I think we can be top 10 in the state if we stay healthy and (compete well) at the state finals.”
Stoney Creek’s Isabella Davis won the 100 (12.83) and 200 (25.91), while the Cougars also broke the tape in the 1,600 relay (4:11.98) and the the 3,200 relay (9:58.02). Lorin Palmer captured the shot put (34-10) and discus (100-8) for Stoney Creek.
Bloomfield Hills won the 400 relay (50.14), Athens’ Jenna Doyle took the high jump (5-2) and Avondale’s Claire Matthews the long jump (17-2) to round out the winners in the girls meet.
In the boys meet, Stoney Creek’s captured the 3,200 relay (8:18.55) and 1,600 relay (3:26.42) on the bookends to aid the Cougars’ cause.
Ben Blanchet (16.56) and Brenner Huss (16.58) galloped to the top two slots in the 110 hurdles, while Harrison Steen pulled into pole position in the 1,600 (4:26.39) for Stoney Creek. Adam Hilton (50.40) and Barr-Redmond (50.48) sprinted to the top two slots in the 400, while Sam Darling (1:59.30) and Steen (1:59.53) finished 1-2 in the 800 for Stoney Creek.
Avondale’s David Holloman captured the 100 (11.64), Jibril Syed the 300 hurdles (41.40), Vince Johns Jr. the 200 (22.70), Baba Conate the long jump (20-8), and Gatlin Coleman the shot put (44-8), while the Yellowjackets also won the 800 relay (1:30.89) and 400 relay (44.51).
Troy’s Donald O’Keefe the 3,200 (9:56.30) and Trae Harewood the discus (130-7), while Pontiac’s Dominique Stovall took the high jump crown (6-2).
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