Janie Ford Wins Triple Jump, 400 and 100 Hurdles; Winston McGhee Wins 800, Takes Second In The Mile In Mobile

Story and Photos by Arthur L. Mack for DyeStat

St. Paul’s Episcopal AL star Janie Ford and Spanish Fort AL’s Winston McGhee were the Outstanding Performers at the 31st edition of the Mobile Challenge of Champions, held at St. Paul’s Episcopal School’s E.E. Delaney Stadium on Saturday.

Both used sheer grit to win their events to earn the coveted awards.

Several other standout performances marked this year’s meet. While there were no records broken, there was plenty of competitive drama.

Here’s a recap of the day’s events:

GIRLS: It was almost a foregone conclusion that Ford would shine at what was essentially a home meet. She won the triple jump (38 feet, 7.25 inches), the 400-meter dash in a personal best 55.40 seconds, and edged out Kimbriel Winfield of St. Georges Independent School TN in the 100-meter hurdles, 14.52-14.53.

In addition, Ford ran anchor leg on the third-place 4x400 relay team, which ran 4:05.53.

Ford, whose mother (and coach) Camille Root Ford was Outstanding Meet Performer in the Challenge of Champions Meet in 1994, said she didn’t have her best performance in the triple jump, but has been working to master her technique.

“I’ve been focusing more on my phases and more of an end result jump,} she said. "The 400 was really solid today; I thought the wind was going to be a little bad, but it was fine — I had a PR, so I was really happy about that.”

Ford faced a strong challenge from a stacked field in the 100-meter hurdles — which came 20 minutes after the 400. Besides Winfield, there was formidable competition coming from St. Paul’s teammate Grayson Akridge, Auburn’s Katherine Lee, and Saraland’s Amiah Matone. 

“I wasn’t sure I was going to make it, honestly,” Ford said. “I was on the starting line asking the other girls, ‘Are y’all going to do another run through?’ and the starter said, ‘All right, girls, runners set.’ I had to really focus and lock in and push myself to catch up with her (Winfield).”

Another solid performance came from Mobile Baker’s Myla Reed, who won the girls 100 (11.81) and 200 (24.72) over a star-studded field that included Foley AL’s Destiny Roper and Enterprise AL’s Layla Straw, two of the top sprinters in the state. 

Reed, who also anchored the third-place 4x100-meter relay team, which ran 48.94, said she was worried coming into the 100 because of several injuries suffered earlier in the season.

“I was just hoping I didn’t catch a cramp,” she said. “I didn’t know if it was nerves, but I just had to remember to have big arms and quick feet. When we got down to the last seconds, I told myself I had to pull away.”

The distance races were competitive as well. Mountain Brook’s Lucy Benton took the lead from the gun in the 800 and never looked back as she won in a solid time of 2:12.55, nearly six seconds ahead of her closest competitor.

In the mile, Atlanta’s Pace Academy’s Zahara Bernal won an exciting race over Baton Rouge Magnet’s Natalie Venkataraman, 4:57.45 to 4:57.52.

In the two-mile, Newman’s Ava Hartman ran strong from the start and won with a splendid time of 10:56.24.

Auburn won the 4x800 in 9:35.07, two seconds ahead of Alabama rival Mountain Brook (9:37.66). Auburn also won the 4x100 (47.95).

Foley won a hotly contested 4x400 in 4:01.43.

In the throwing events, Montgomery Academy’s Isabella Johnson won the shot (40-3.75).

BOYS: Unlike the girls, there wasn’t a clear-cut favorite for the boys Outstanding Meet Performer — that is, until McGhee made his mark in the competition.

McGhee finished second in the mile to Aiden Monistere of Baton Rouge’s Parkview Baptist, 4:16.81 to 4:21.74. McGee led in the early going of that race before succumbing to Monistere’s kick in the final 600 meters.

In the 800 though, McGee took advantage of a relatively slow first lap and outsprinted New Orleans Jesuit’s Brandt Blanchard and Central-Tuscaloosa’s William Peterson to win in 1:56.75.

“When my coach told me that me and my teammate (Josh Powell) were in the running (for MVP) I had a good feeling after getting on the podium twice,” McGhee said. “The 800 was a fun race; it was pretty tight when we came through pretty slow, but we had a negative split (on the last lap) so it was really fun coming out here to compete.

“It’s really amazing, especially coming out here last year and not cracking the top 10. It was definitely special.”

Powell, McGee’s teammate, won the long jump (22-3.50), and finished third in the triple jump (45-2).

Tuscaloosa Northridge’s William Numnum won the pole vault (15-1). His teammate, Kilan Little, won the triple jump (46-8.75), while Auburn’s Carnell Jackson won the shot (51-4).

The performance coming closest to a record came in the two-mile, where Gulf Breeze FL's Andrew Beroset got within a second of breaking the meet record of 9:02.49 set by Scott Fuqua of Birmingham Oak Mountain in 2002. Beroset ran 9:03.93, well ahead of second-place finisher William Porr of Mobile’s McGill-Toolen Catholic (9:20.39). 

In the sprints, Rummel LA’s Nsir Ceazar won the 100 in 10.67, while Kingston Jones, who finished third in that event, came back to win the 200 in 21.65.

In the 400, Elijah Thomas of Grayson GA won a close race in 48.69, defeating Blount AL's Marlon Miller (48.72) and Josh White (48.90) of Parker AL.

“I heard footsteps coming, and I trusted my training,” Thomas said. “I thought I was leaving the second and third place guys, then I heard more footsteps. I wanted to show what I’ve got, and this was a big meet.”

One of the more inspiring moments in the meet came in the Ambulatory Division, where Auburn’s Patrick Sweeney won the 100 in 14.84. Sweeney, who has won numerous events in the Ambulatory Division, got a huge ovation as he sped down the straightaway. 

“It wasn’t my best race, and I could’ve done better, but overall, it was a good race,” Sweeney said. “This opportunity wouldn’t be possible without my coaches. It’s physical and demanding, but I really love this sport and it’s great to be out here.”