07/21/06
Tough to beat Guerriere, Edmonds
DAILY STAR TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETES OF THE YEAR
By Rob Centorani
Staff Writer
It seems fitting that Cooperstown’s Josh Edmonds an
| | | Sidney senior Katelyn Guerriere won her fourth straight Daily Star Female Track Athlete of the Year award. She shared the honor two seasons with former teammate Amanda Haney before winning it outright the last two years. |
|
|
d Sidney’s Katelyn Guerriere are headed to nearby Division I colleges in Virginia this fall.
Though they competed in vastly different events this past track and field season, the two seniors were closely connected; they were, far and away, the best this area had to offer.
The Daily Star selected Edmonds as its Male Track Athlete of the Year and Guerriere as its Female Track Athlete of the Year.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Edmonds, who’ll run track and cross country at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., finished third overall in the state in the 3,200 meters.
Guerriere, who’ll compete for James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va., won Division II state championships in the 100 hurdles and the triple jump.
Harrisonburg and Lynchburg are separated by 99 miles, according to mapquest.com.
Edmonds burst onto the local scene this past academic year, helping the Redskins to a Class D state cross-country championship and becoming the area’s premier distance runner in track. Edmonds has lived in Cooperstown the past 14 years, but he was home-schooled and could not compete in sports.
This year, Edmonds earned varsity eligibility for the Redskins by attending classes at Basset Hospital in Cooperstown as part of the Mount Visions Program.
He did not disappoint.
Heading into this track season, the Center State Conference record of 9 minutes, 26.34 seconds in the 3,200 — set by Hamilton’s Turner Staffer — had stood since 1977. That record fell by nearly 8 seconds June 2, when Edmonds crossed in 9:18.89 in the Section Three State Qualifier at Cicero-North Syracuse.
The following week, Edmonds took five more seconds off the record, crossing in 9:13.87 during the state meet at St. Lawrence University in Canton. He placed third overall and second in Division II, the latter to Dan Busby of New Paltz.
"It was really nice to drop that much time — it’s kind of a lot of time," said Edmonds, who took 23 seconds off his personal-best in his last two meets. "Competition brings out the lower times, and I really hit a lot of competition at the state meet."
In a driving rain, Edmonds passed Busby with 350 meters to go. But Busby caught Edmonds on the top of the final turn, finishing in 9:12.63.
Liberty coach Brant Tolsma said he was impressed by Edmonds’ performance at the state meet.
"I was very pleased to see those drops," Tolsma said of Edmonds, who’ll major in pre-med or criminal justice. "He’s shown some good improvement."
Initially, Tolsma said he thought Edmonds might be the team’s seventh-best runner for cross country. But after his time in the state meet, he said: "He might be in the top five."
Edmonds also set a school record in the 1,600 (4:23.6) this season.
Guerriere was named The Daily Star’s Female Track Athlete of the Year for the fourth straight year. She shared the honor with former teammate Amanda Haney in 2003 and 2004 before winning it outright in 2005.
"I’m going to miss it, definitely," Guerriere said of a five-year high school track tenure that included six state championships. "It was definitely a lot of fun."
Guerriere won three state championships this school year — the 55-meter hurdles title during the indoor season and the 100 hurdles and triple jump outdoor crowns.
And one-hundredth of a second was all that separated her from an overall state Federation title in the 100 hurdles at the June 10 state meet.
"Definitely, that last hurdles race was my favorite," said Guerriere, who tied a Section Four record in the hurdles with a second-place time of 14.42 seconds — .01 behind winner Chia Hudson of the Harvey School. "That’s the one that stands out the most."
Waverly graduate Patti Diedrick set the Section Four record of 14.2 in 2002. That was hand held, which is .24 faster than the fully automated timing system used at the state meet.
So Guerriere’s time, run in miserable conditions that included a misty rain and wind, converts to a 14.18 hand held, which rounds up to 14.2.
Guerriere holds Sidney school records in the long jump (18 feet, 3 inches), the triple jump (38-6), the 400 hurdles (1:05.1) and the 100 hurdles (14.42). The last three records were set this season.
"I should fill in nicely in the three or four spot in the triple jump, and I should be right in the top of the hurdles as long as I can stay with the times I’ve been doing," Guerriere said of her prospects at JMU.
Guerriere said she expects her freshman season at JMU to be much her like eighth-grade season at Sidney.
"I was varsity as an eighth-grader, so I get to be the young kid again," said Guerriere, who’ll major in kinesiology.
———
Rob Centorani can be reached at rcentorani@thedailystar.com or 607-432-1000, ext. 209.
———
PEOPLE’S POLL RESULTS
Results of the 2006 People’s Poll voting for the male and female track athletes of the year.
Daily Star track and field Athletes of the Year since the award was first given.
