OHS girls, Chargers favorites at OBC

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OHS girls, Chargers favorites at OBC

Sports

Friday, 26 March 2010 08:03

By Rick Pedone
Sports Editor
Over the past three seasons the Osceola High girls have dominated the Orange Belt Conference track meet, scoring a record 228.66 points two years ago.
Osceola is favored again when the conference teams gather at Poinciana High for this year’s track meet, but the competition may be a little closer. A strong Harmony team, second last year, should challenge OHS again.
Osceola Coach Eric Pinellas welcomes the competition: “I’ll say the same thing I always say: Anybody who thinks they can get us, tell them to come on,” he said.
On the boys side, Liberty, runner-up last year, is the favorite to win its first conference track championship with a talented team that boasts depth in most events. Osceola is the defending boys champion, but a deep Celebration team could challenge Liberty.
The meet Wednesday begins at 1 p.m. with the field events. The running finals start at 7 p.m.
Osceola’s girls appeared vulnerable early in the season after three-quarters of last year’s state champion 4 x 100 relay team graduated, but 100 meters state champion Tynia Gaither is back to defend her conference sprint titles.
Gaither, who has dual citizenship, ran 11.83, placing second in the 100 meters, and 24.06, first at 200 meters, last weekend in The Bahamas to qualify for the 39th Carifta Games, which brings many of best track athletes in the Caribbean together. She will represent the Bahamas in the sprints. The Carifta Games are April 3-6 at St. Lucia in the Cayman Islands.
The OHS girls also boast one of the county’s best distance runners in Ileis Figueroa.
“Tiny (Gaither) and Ileis are going to have to come up big for us, for sure, but a lot of it will come down to how well we do in the jumps,” Pinellas said.
Harmony Coach Debra Schweiger said the Lady Longhorns are capable of winning their first conference track title.
“It should be pretty tight throughout the meet,” she said. “It will all come down to who gets those second, third and fourth places.”
Liberty’s boys have one of the county’s best distance runners in Robbie Johnroe, and an elite group of hurdlers that includes Jean Leon.
Osceola boys coach Dave Andrews said it will be difficult for any team to overcome the Chargers’ talent, but he gives his Kowboys a chance.
“We are just so young that we don’t match up well. However, stranger things have happened,” he said.
St. Cloud’s Bailey Morgan will challenge Johnroe in the distance races.
One of the premier races Wednesday will be the boys 100 meters, where Poinciana’s Ronald Decomo, who set the school record of 10.87 against Celebration Wednesday, will take on defending OBC champion Defario Phillips of OHS.
Two of the state’s best discus throwers will compete — St. Cloud’s Diana Martinez, who leads the state at 137-2.5, and Harmony’s Chris Bollinger, one of the best in Class 2A for the boys who won the Disney Invitational last weekend with a throw of 165-2.