THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 5, 1996 TAG: 9605050237
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KEITH POMPEY, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
Don't let the Great Bridge girls track team fool you.
With only two seniors, the defending Southeastern District champions seem to be in a rebuilding stage.
However, the Wildcats' performance at the Suffolk Invitational told a completely different story Saturday.
Great Bridge won the Group AAA team title at Lakeland, scoring 118.5 points. Norcom finished second with 89. Western Branch (119 points) beat Tallwood (85) by 34 points for the boys title. And Lakeland won both the boys and girls Group A/AA crowns.
``We were all that,'' Great Bridge senior Kalisha Brown said. ``We proved that we can run, jump and throw with the best of them. Now everybody will give us respect.''
The Wildcat who earned the most respect was Denita Eason. The junior won the 100- (12.00 seconds), 200-meters (25.08), took fifth in the triple jump (34-2 1/2), sixth in the long jump (16-8). Then she teamed with Chylanda Williams, Pam Garrett and Kim Gibbs on Great Bridge's second-place 4x400 relay (4:03.7).
As a result, Eason was the Group AAA female athlete of the meet.
``I was shocked with my performance,'' she said. ``I expected to win the 100 and 200. But I didn't expect to run that fast.''
If Eason didn't get MVP, it could have gone to Norcom's Missy Banks.
Banks set meet records in the shot put (43-1 3/4), discus (135) and joined Nina Melton, Keywanna Bloodworth and Brandy Harris to set another record in the AAA girls 4x100 (55.9).
``I'm really pleased with my performance in the shot,'' Banks said. ``I got tired of throwing the shot at the 42-foot mark. And we came here to set a meet record in the 4x100. We did that. So today turned out pretty good.''
The boys events were highlighted by Western Branch's Clayton Porter and Lakeland's Melvin Faulk.
Porter - the Group AAA male MVP - won the 100 (10.54), the long jump (22-9) and ran on the Bruins' first-place 4x100 (42.95).
Faulk - the Group A/AA male MVP - took the 100 (10.7) the 200 (21.6), second in the triple jump (43-8) and ran on Lakeland's winning 4x100 (42.7).
In other events, Gibbs won the girls 800 (2.22.3), setting a new school record. And Kellam stole the boys 4x400 (3:23) and 4x800 (8:19.3).
In other meets:
First Colonial's Brian Kollar won the discus with an area and personal best throw of 165-11 at the T.C. Williams Invitational. Green Run's Sevend Mason finished first in the 200.
Granby jumper Anthony King won the high and triple jumps and was second in the long jump at the Hampton Invitational.
In the girls, Bayside's Lashonda Cutchin posted an area-best 55.88 in winning the 400 run. She also was first in the 200. Teammate Ebony Shelton won the 100 run and was second to Cutchin in the 200.
Byron Harvin paced the 300 hurdles and was third in the 110 hurdles as the Oscar Smith boys won the AAA division at the Gloucester Invitational.
The Tiger girls finished second, led by Torae Artis, who was first in the 400 run, second in the high jump and third in the long and triple jumps to help the Oscar Smith girls to a second-place finish in the the girls AAA division. by CNB