Candice Guerero scooped the big honours at the Courts All Sectors Netball League’s awards ceremony at the Eastern Regional Indoor Sports Arena in Tacarigua on Wednesday. 

The University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT) centre received the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award for the league and emerged the MVP of her team and was also the best centre-court player of the Premiership Division. She was named on the senior All Star team.

Guerero said that it was rewarding that her team repeated its clean sweep of all titles in the division including the League, knockout, Steve Sargeant Challenge and the Fast 5 and that she was surprised to cop the top netballer prize.

“Winning the award was a surprise. It was really unexpected but I appreciate it. This is not the first time we did a clean sweep so we came in with the same attitude from last year. We bonded, we pulled it together when we needed to and we pulled it out again,” she said.

It’s the second time that Guerero, the national centre, has claimed the award, having picked it up in 2012, the year she led UTT to its first sweep—the league, Fastnet and the opening day knockout competitions. Despite her successes, the southerner is not satisfied and intends to put in more individual work.

“My plan personally is to get back into the gym, build my strength and work on fitness otherwise. I’ve been out of it for a while since returning from world tournament but I’m going to put in the work,” Guerero said, looking ahead to the rest of the season.

Her teammate Kalifa Mc Collin, another national player, had the best individual shooting average of 87.45 per cent which helped the Bridget Adams-coached UTT team walk away with best shooting average team award. National captain Joelisa Cooper of Police X was second best with 77.12 and third was national shooter/defender Afeisha Noel with a 76.47 shooting per cent accuracy.

McCollin was also named on the All Star team with Guerero as well as their teammates Jellene Richardson, Daystar Swift and Kielle Connelly. The others include Cooper, Rhonda John-Davis, Leslie Ann Bacquain, also of Police X, Fire Services trio Noel, Onella Jack and Amanda Cameron and Patrice Goring, the lone player from Police Y Jack was named the best defender of the top division.

Honour Roll

MVP: Candice Guerero (UTT)

Premiership Division 
League Trophy: 1 UTT, 2 Police X, 3 Fire
Steve Sargeant Challenge: UTT
Divisional Knockout: 1 UTT, 2 Police X
Fast 5: 1 UTT, 2 Fire
Opening day knockout: 1 UTT, 2 Police X
Best centre-court: Candice Guerero (UTT)
Best defender: Onella Jack (Fire)
Best shooting average (Team): UTT

Best shooting average (Individual)
1 Kalifa Mc Collin (UTT) — 87.45 per cent
2 Joelisa Cooper (Police X) — 77.12
3 Afeisha Noel (Fire) — 76.47

MVPs: Candice Guerero (UTT), Onella Jack (Fire), Rhonda John-Davis (Police X), Nichelle Hinds (Police Y).

Championship Division
League Trophy: 1 Fire, 2 UTT, 3 Jabloteh
Jean Pierre Challenge: UTT
Divisional Knockout: 1 Fire, 2 UWI
Fast 5: 1 UTT, 2 Bermudez
Opening day knockout: 1 Fire, 2 Defence Force 
Best centre-court: Kurtisha Hoyce (Bermudez)
Best defender: Shaquanda Greene (UTT)
Best Shooting Average Team: Bermudez
MVPs: Kurtisha Hoyce (Bermudez), Haajar Noreiga (Defence Force), Ayanna Peters (Fire), Giselle Hobson (Jabloteh), Donessa Wickham (Police), Shaquanda Greene (UTT), Shernese Seemungal (UWI).

Best shooting average (Individual)
1 Indra Anderson (Bermudez) — 78.76 per cent 
2 Aquila Blugh (Fire) — 70.68
3 Kernesha Greenidge — 67.18

Alternative Division
League Trophy: 1 TSTT, 2 Prisons, 3 Fire
Divisional Knockout:  1 Prisons, 2 Fire
Fast 5: 1 TSTT, 2 Prisons
Opening day knockout: 1 TSTT, 2 Fire
Best centre-court: Seana Marie Solomon (Fire)
Best defender: Allison Young (Prisons)
Best Shooting Average Team: TSTT

Best Shooting Average (Individual)
1  Chanteal Perry (TSTT) — 78.99 per cent 
2 Afiya Vincent — 66.91
3 Carla Victor — 66.79

MVPs: Juliana Julian (Fire), Gabriella Bridgewater (Police), Allison Young (Prisons), Chantael Perry (TSTT), Shurnell DeVerteuil (USC), Jenny Edwards (UWI).

Other awards
Most Improved: Prisons
Most Disciplined: Jabloteh
Courts Open Knockout: 1 UTT, 2 Fire

All Star Teams — Senior 
Kalifa Mc Collin, Joelisa Cooper, Afeisha Noel, Patrice Goring, Candice Guerero, Rhonda John-Davis, Leslie Ann Bacquain, Jellene Richardson, Amanda Cameron, Onella Jack, Daystar Swift, Kielle Connelly.

Junior
Indra Anderson, Aquila Blugh, Chanteal Perry, Kernesha Greenidge, Ayanna Peters, Donessa Wickham, Kurtisha Hoyce, Shernese Seemungal, Shaquanda Greene, Mawiyah Strong, Giselle Hobson, Allison Young

T&T youth netballers needed to rebound quickly and that they did against Antigua & Barbuda, beating them 35-11 in second round action in the Caribbean Netball Association’s (CNAC) Jean Pierre Championships in Barbados on Sunday evening.

The junior “Calypso Girls” shook off its opening loss to Bermuda 24-13 and bounced back with 24-goal victory thanks to the shooting of goal-attack Kadeemah Herbert, who led with 23 goals off 34 attempts and goal-shooter Abigail Boswell. She added the other 12 from 20 tries in the lopsided match.

Though improving offensively in its second encounter, it was T&T’s defensive effort that made the difference, particularly in the second half when it held its opponent to one goal. In the first quarter, T&T jumped to an early lead, 12-5, developing that advantage by the halfway mark to 19-10. 

It was a totally different scenario in the second half as the T&T defence prevented any goals from scoring in the third and only allowing one in the final session. 

Maleeka Elias began as goal-keeper with Georgia-Lee as the goal-defence and they were able to limit Antiguan/Barbudan shooters Rayana Regis (6/11) and Kahtalia Valentine (5/6).

The local team was scheduled to meet Grenada, which fell to its second straight loss in the junior competition. The Grenadians were no match for Jamaica, which completed as easy 45-11 victory, to seal its second straight win. Lori Daley was the best shooter for the Jamaicans with 26 in 34.

Defending champion Barbados guided by goal-shooter Tower Lorde (19/26) and Rashanna Thorne (10/19), also got its second consecutive victory, topping Dominica, 29-13. Carlene Alexander netted all of the Dominicans goals 11 from 14 attempts.

Bermuda, which made a dream start to the event, named after the late, great T&T netballer Jean Pierre, is the third unbeaten team thus far in the competition, narrowly defeating St Lucia, 31-29. Getting the Bermudans there were Donnauri Robinson, with 19 of 27 and Zekiah Lewis with 10 in 20.

Today, the shooters will look to be on target as they go after the team and individual honours in the shooting competition from 4 pm. Then they will rejoin their respective teams to compete in the evening matches.

Results:
T&T 35 (Abigail Boswell 12/20, Kadeemah Herbert 23/34) vs Antigua and Barbuda 11 (Rayana Regis 6/11, Kahtalia Valentine 5/6). Quarter scores: 12-5, 19-10, 29-10 (All in favour of T&T).

Bermuda 31 (Donnauri Robinson 19/27, Zekiah Lewis 10/20) vs St Lucia 29 (Ariel Leonard 1/1, Merkissa Theodule 20/25, Megan Nestor 8/13). Quarter scores: 10-5, 17-13, 22-20 (Bermuda)

Jamaica 45 (Lori Daley 26/34, Zandria Cohen 12/17, Felicia Smith 3/4, Denay Thomas 4/16) vs Grenada 11 (Carlene Alexander 11/14, Holly Ann Charles 0/0, Jana Joseph 0/2). Quarter scores: 12-1, 25-4, 38-9  (Jamaica).

Barbados 29 (Tower Lorde 19/26, Rashanna Thorne 10/19) vs Dominica 13 (Celena Langlaise 10/16, Rachel Seraphin 0/1, Kayla Telemaque 3/4). Quarter scores: 10-3, 15-6, 23-9 (Barbados).

fixtures:
Today
Shooting competition, 4 pm
Dominica vs Antigua/Barbuda, 6.15 pm
Grenada vs Bermuda, 6.30 pm
St Lucia vs Jamaica, 7.15 pm
Barbados vs T&T, 7.30 pm

Thursday 
(Morning session)
Barbados vs Antigua/Barbuda, 6.45 am
St Lucia vs Grenada, 7 am
Bermuda vs Jamaica, 7.45 am
Dominica vs T&T, 8 am
(Evening session)
Bermuda vs Antigua/Barbuda, 6.15 pm
T&T vs Jamaica, 6.30 pm
Barbados vs St Lucia, 7.15 pm
Dominica vs Grenada, 7.30 pm

Friday
St Lucia vs T&T, 5.45 pm
Grenada vs Antigua/Barbuda, 6.15 pm
Dominica vs Bermuda, 6.45 pm
Barbados vs Jamaica, 7.15 pm 

Allrounder Stacey-Ann King seemed to be still on a high after helping the West Indies women’s team cop its first Women’s Twenty20 World Cup title, notching an unbeaten century to guide Technocrats to a huge 115-run victory over Jus United in the Premiership Division of the T&T Women’s Cricket Association’s 50-over League competition last Sunday.

Technocrats batted first and raced to 190-7 in 33 overs thanks to King, who scored a whopping 125 not out in a one-sided affair.  Alicia Villafana was the only bowler for Jus United that caused any sort of damage, claiming 2/49 in a losing effort.

In reply, Just United was bowled out for 75 in 31 overs as its batsmen had no answers for Technocrats’ bowling attack which was led by Gaitri Seetahal. She was impressive with 3/3 while her fellow bowlers Kajol Dalgir and Chadean Nation secured two wickets each for six and nine, respectively.
Over at the El Dorado West Secondary School in Tunapuna, Hibiscus Ladies completed a narrow three-wicket win over Cricket Lovers in a match reduced to 45 overs.

Hibiscus won the toss and elected to bowled first. Led by 37 runs from Natalie Ninah and 19 from Jovanka Simon, Cricket Lovers got to 113/9 off 38 overs. It was the bowling of trio Akaze Thompson (3-27), Shanice Pascall (2-36) and Alice Collins (2-15) that helped to limit Cricket Lovers’ batting.

An undefeated 40 from Caneisha Isaac and 20 from Rachel Vincent in reply, helped Hibiscus Ladies reach its target in 30.2 overs, registering 114/7 despite the bowling of Simon with 2-23 and Selene O'Neil, who nabbed 2-30. The other match in the division saw Preysal Phoenix defeated Moosai Sports.

In the Championship Division, both Preysal Achievers and Players Sports Club sealed victories. Preysal seized an easy 10-wicket victory over West Side Giants and Players defeated Waterloo All Stars. Today, action continue in both the Premiership and the Championship Divisions from noon at various locations.

Results

Round 7
Premiership
Cricket Lovers 113/9 (38 overs) (Natalie Ninah 37, Jovanka Simon 19, Selene O'Neil 11; Akaze Thompson 3-27, Shanice Pascall 2-36, Alice Collins 2-15) vs Hibiscus Ladies 114/7 (30.2 overs) (Caneisha Isaac 40 not out, Rachel Vincent 20; Selene O'Neil 2-30, Jovanka Simon 2-23, Pauline De Feal 1-26). Hibiscus won by 3 wickets.

Technocrats 190/7 (33 overs) (Stacy-Ann King 125 not out, Crystal Hanslal 20; Alicia Villafana 2/49) vs Jus United 75 all out (31 overs) (Gaitri Seetahal 3/3, Kajol Dalgir 2/6, Chadean Nation 2/9). Technocrats won by 115 runs.

Championship
West Side Giants 17 all out vs Preysal Achievers 18 without loss. Preysal Achievers won by 10 wickets.

Today’s matches
Round 8 
Premiership 
Moosai Sports vs Technocrats, El Dorado West Secondary
Preysal Phoenix vs Cricket Lovers, Gilbert Park, California
Jus United vs Hibiscus

Championship
Preysal Achievers vs UWI, UWI, St Augustine
West Side Giants vs Waterloo All Stars
Players Sports on bye

T&T’s  Zakiya Denoon and Deandra Daniel simmered at the Hamption Relays in Virginia, USA, on Saturday, taking first place in their respective events, while Mark London was runner-up in his long-distance race at the Hampton University.

Denoon, a freshman at Monroe College, crossed first in the women’s 400 metres dash with a blistering time of 56.08 seconds. The standout freshman, set a meet and school record with a clocking of 56.21 in the 400 in her school’s outdoor season opener, helping them win the Ramapo College Invitational in New Jersey on April 4.

Khemani Roberts of Coppin State University also competed in the event but her time of 58.55 placed her 20th overall. Roberts, a freshman, had 14th fastest time in 16.46 but did not advance. Daniel of Coppin State grabbed gold after registering a best effort of 1.83 metres in the women’s high jump. 

Another Coppin State athlete, Mark London, bagged a bronze medal in the men’s 800m in 1:51.79. At the East Texas Invitational on Sunday, quartermiler Moriba Morain, a freshman at Wiley College, placed eighth in the men’s 400m in 49.16 while his teammate Kendall Perouza was 14th  in the men’s 200m in 22.70.

On Thursday, Haysean Cowie-Clarke placed fifth in the men’s 200m dash at the Bowie State Univeristy Challenge, in a time of 23.03.

A new element has surfaced concerning the controversy over T&T’s qualifying spot in gymnastics in the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janiero, Brazil, which runs from August 5-21.

On Sunday, Marisa Dick participated in the Aquece Rio Final Gymnastics Qualifier at the Rio Olympic Arena and qualified for the premier sporting event in the world, the first T&T gymnast to do so after placing 55th out of 66 competitors.

At short notice, Dick replaced Thema Williams, who was pulled by the T&T Gymnastics Federation (TTGF) from the Olympic Test event. For all who wanted to be part of the Olympic rendezvous, this was the last opportunity.

According to the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique (FIG) website, National Olympic Committees (NOCs) with more than one gymnast may choose which gymnast to send to the Olympic Games, provided both are placed higher than the lowest ranked qualifier so then why was Williams not allowed to compete in the event which she had qualified for at the World Gymnastics Championships in Glasgow.

Williams and Dick both competed in the artistic women’s individual qualification at the championships, with Williams finishing 59th and Dick ending 77th overall out of 192 participants.

Coincidentally, a number of gymnasts who had placed lower than Dick at the championships were among those named on the provisional list of qualifiers for the Olympics. Notable also was a number of countries fielded more than one participant.

After failing to contact TTGF president David Marquez by phone, a text message was sent to him asking how many athletes were eligible to compete at the test event for T&T. Still no answer or response.

Williams who had already landed in Brazil and was 24 hours away from possibly booking her spot in the Olympics when she got word that an injury reported by her coach John Geddert through an email to the TTGF, resulted in her being withdrawn. 

In a tweet on Sunday night, Brian Lewis, president of the T&T Olympic Committee (TTOC), revealed that his organisation had the final say on the Olympic spot in gymnastics. 

“As long as people understand it’s @TTOlympic that has the final say in respect of #TeamTTO selection for the Olympic Games. Plain talk.”

However, according to the rules of the test event it is the athlete that participates and qualifies that goes to the Rio Olympics. In February, the controversy between the two local gymnasts exploded when semi-nude photographs of Williams and Dick circulated on social media which forced the TTGF to take the matter to the Federation’s Disciplinary Committee. 

Williams’ attendance at the test event was then in doubt but after deliberation the TTGF confirmed last month that Williams would have been T&T’s representative at the Rio Test event.

Rio test event results
Aquece test event, women’s qualifying results Provisional qualifiers (unofficial) to the 2016 Olympic Games after four sub-divisions:
Individuals:
(Unofficially, all but Nekrasova and Abdul Hadi have qualified for the Olympics. All countries with two gymnasts, except Austria, can choose which of the two to send to the Olympics).
1. Ana Sofia Gomez (GUA): 55.498
2. Jessica Lopez (VEN): 55.265
3. Vasiliki Millousi (GRE): 54.431*
4. Zsofia Kovacs (HUN): 54.399*
5. Ana Perez (ESP): 54.199*
6. Angelina Kysla (UKR): 54.199
7. Alexa Moreno (MEX): 54.065*
Ana Lago (MEX): 53.932*
8. Marcia Vidiaux (CUB): 53.832
Claudia Colom (ESP): 53.732*
9. Filipa Martins (POR): 53.574
10. Katarzyna Jurkowska-Kowalska: (POL) 53.440*
Gabriella Janik (POL): 53.333*
Argyro Afrati (GRE): 53.165*
11. Lisa Ecker (AUT): 53.132*
12. Toni-Ann Williams: (JAM) 52.931
13. Irina Sazonova (ISL): 52.931
14. Phan Thi Ha Thanh: (VIE) 52.700
15. Dipa Karmakar (IND): 52.698
16. Barbora Mokosova (SVK): 52.532
17. Courtney McGregor (NZL): 52.465
18. Oksana Chusovitina (UZB): 52.465
19. Houry Gebeshian (ARM): 52.415
20. Ariana Orrego (PER): 52.232
Noemi Makra (HUN): 51.932*
21. Simona Castro (CHI): 51.857
22. Teja Belak (SLO): 51.665
23. Tutya Yilmaz (TUR): 51.632
24. Emma Larsson (SWE): 51.499
25. Marisa Dick (TTO): 51.365
26. Ana Derek (CRO): 50.974
27. Catalina Escobar: (COL) 50.899
28. Kylie Rei Dickson (BLR): 50.798
29. Ellis O’reilly (IRL): 50.032
30. Ailen Valente (ARG): 49.598
31. Marina Nekrasova (AZE): 49.133
32. Farah Ann Abdul Hadi (MAS):49.132
Jasmin Mader (AUT)” 46.898*
(NOCs with more than one gymnast may choose which gymnast to send to the Olympic Games provided both are placed higher than the lowest ranked qualifier.)

It’s official. According to an International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) release yesterday on the updated list of women’s Olympic qualifiers following the second qualifier on Sunday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Marisa Dick will be the first to represent T&T in artistic gymnastics at the Olympic Games in Rio. The sporting event is set for August 5-21.

Dick placed 55th from 66 competitors in the Aquece Rio final gymnastics qualifier at the Rio Olympics Arena after replacing Thema Williams, who was withdrawn from the event by the T&T Gymnastics Federation (TTGF) because it was reported she was suffering with a sore ankle and did not perform at a high level during one of her training days.

In a tweet on Sunday, T&T Olympic Committee president Brian Lewis said: “As long as people understand it’s @TTOlympic that has the final say in respect of #TeamTTO selection for the Olympic Games. Plain talk.” 

However, a source close to the proceedings said that there was not much that the TTOC could do.

“The TTOC can reject the spot but they can’t replace Marisa. The TTGF has the final say. TTOC can’t do anything. It’s either Marisa goes or no one goes. That’s the options,” said the source, who is very close to the matter. 

Saying the whole situation has left a sour note, the source added: “The sport is growing and this issue has put a bad image internationally.”

The source compared T&T qualifying for the Olympics in gymnastics to the national football team qualifying for the FIFA World Cup in 2006.

“This country was just happy when the Soca Warriors qualified for the World Cup. We knew it was unlikely that we were going to the win the competition but just knowing that we had achieved such a great goal was momentous. 

“The joy would have been that a gymnast for the first time from T&T has qualified. They (TTCG) won’t understand the importance of the achievement. 

“The chance was taken from one young lady and given to another. It’s not racial although some are saying it’s about race. Marisa has become a bitter pill. It hurts me to see what they did to both Marisa and Thema,” the source added

The source said it was unknown who made the decision to pull Williams and did not want to speculate as to who among the council members were responsible.

At the heart of the controversy is who made the decision to pull Williams from the event.

It was reported that according to the player’s contract the head of delegation, the physiotherapist, coach and the athlete must be consulted before removal of the athlete can be executed.

The source added that Nicole Fuentes, who was listed as head of delegation and physiotherapist, will submit a report that will reveal what actually transpired. John Geddert was Williams’s coach.

The TTGF council is made up of 19 members, including the president, the first vice- president, second vice-president, general secretary, assistant secretary, who recently resigned, treasurer and assistant treasurer and heads of each standing committees — Women’s Artistic Gymnastics (WAG), which would have had a vote according to the source, Men’s Artistic Gymnastics (MAG), coaching body, rhythmic and general gymnastics. Two representatives from each committee are on the council.

The source said that the coach indicated in an email that Williams was injured so the TTGF did nothing wrong in that sense.

“But the fact is, Thema would have gone to Rio even if she had an acute injury. All elite athletes have injuries. It was acute not chronic. That’s normal for any elite athlete.

“It was not a medalling competition. The purpose was to go to Rio and earn a spot from the competition where only the last two finishers did not qualify. Thema more than could have made it. 

“She could have performed. There was nothing at stake in terms of winning medals. TTGF’s goal was to send Marisa,” the source added.

Carifta gold medallists Tyriq Horsford of Signal Hill Secondary and Bishops High’s Akanni Hislop lead a strong contingent from Tobago to the National Secondary Schools Track and Field Championships which starts today and continues tomorrow at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo. Action begins at 9 am on both days with some of T&T’s best junior athletes.

Tobago emerged the top district last year and with the likes of Horsford, Hislop and fellow Carifta medallists Anya Akili and Asha James, both of Bishops, the zone may just capture its 26th straight national title.

Athletes from seven other districts including North East, Port-of-Spain, St George East, St Patrick, Victoria, Caroni and South East will try to upset the Tobagonians’ run in the Championships, which are held under the auspices of the Ministry of Education.

The competition is organised by the T&T Secondary Schools Track and Field Association and will see some 600 athletes battling over the two-day event.

Horsford threw the spear 73.00 metres to smash his old record of 70.73 to take his second Carifta gold medal in Grenada over the Easter weekend (March 26-28). The Signal Hill Secondary student has been at the helm of Tobago’s victory in recent years winning the Victor Ludorium in 2013.  

Hislop also shined in the 200m when he struck gold in the Boys U-20 category. James earned bronze for in the girls’ U-18 javelin and Akili secured bronze in the girls’ open heptathlon.

Carifta silver medallist Tyrell Edwards in the boys U-18 200m will lead the North East zone which will be equipped with last year’s joint Victrix Ludorium Ayanna Glasgow and the 2013 winner Akidah Briggs, all of Toco Secondary. Fellow Carifta medallist Che Lara (boys U-18 4x400m) of Arima North Secondary is listed to be part of the North East team.

Another Carifta silver medallist Ianna Roach of Bishops Anstey (girls’ U-18 shot put) will hope to inspire Port of Spain and Environs as well as double bronze medallist Jeminise Parris (girls U-20 100m hurdles and 4x100m) of St Francois girls. Among the main athletes competing for Port-of-Spain are Carifta medallists bronze medallists Jenea Spinks (Holy Name Convent-Port-of-Spain), Akilah Lewis (Bishops Anstey), Renee Stoddard (Providence Girls) and Jaden St Louis (St Anthony’s College) and Recardo Prescott (St James Secondary).

Carifta champion Akanni Hislop of Tobago Zone did as expected and won the Boys Over-18 100 metres final at the National Secondary Schools Track and Field Championships yesterday at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo.

Hislop clocked in 10.68 seconds to cross ahead of Chad Richards of St Patrick in 10.95 and Aaron Brewster (Victoria) in 11.17 in perfect weather for athletics as the sun beamed down on T&T’s top junior athletes despite clouds hanging overhead for the entire day.

Hislop a few minutes later anchored Tobago to victory in the Boys O-18 4x100m in 42.34 with Port-of-Spain second in 42.93 and Victoria third in 43.37.

In the Boys Over-18 400m, Victoria’s Kashief King clocked 47.86 to edge out Darren Alfred of Tobago (47.89), to cop gold while Antonia Barker of Port-of-Spain won the Girls’ race in 1:02.95.

Barker, running the last leg, helped her team nab gold also in the Girls O-18 4x100m in 51.48. Tobago (51.84) and North East (55.12) finished second and third, respectively.

Daniel Hernandez of North East also excited the small crowd gathered in winning the Boys U-18 400 final in 50.59 ahead of Recardo Prescott of Port-of-Spain in 51.45 and Tyshawn Gray (Tobago) in 51.88.

Ethan Forde of Port-of-Spain took the Boys U-14 400m in 52.21 beating Chazz Alexander (St Patrick) in 52.33 and Jyasi Murray (Victoria) in 52.40.

Forde’s teammate Kershel Mc Intyre sealed the Girls U-18 400m in 58.22 ahead of Schrese Trim (Tobago) and Afiya Wyllie also of Port-of-Spain.

In other relay events which closed off the day’s activities 100m winner Arianna Luco also anchored Port-of-Spain to victory in the Girls U-14 4x100 in 54.69 ahead of Tobago (55.39) and St Patrick (55.42).

St Patrick took the Boys U-18 4x100m in 43.44 beating Tobago (43.82) into second and Port-of-Spain was third in 43.88.

The event continues today from 9.30 am.

Yesterday’s Selected results

100m Finals

Girls U-16

1 Mckenzy Baptiste (North East) 12.99

2 Kekola Bhola (St Patrick) 13.10

3 Seynia Daniel (Victoria) 13.16

Boys U-18 100m

1 Joel Thomas (Tobago) 11.38

2 Brandon Monsegue (St Patrick) 11.41

3 Nathaniel Charles (North East) 11.48

Boys U-16

1 Renaldo McEachnie (POS) 11.75

2 Omari Lewis (North East) 11.95

3 Oriel Villaroel (Tobago) 11.98

Girls U-18 100m finals

1 Ayla Stanisclaus (Tobago) 12.32

2 Shania Mc Carter (St George East) 12.53

3 Jendayi Noel (Victoria) 12.69

400m

Boys U-14

1 Jordan Pope (POS) 55.79

2 Jabari Taylor (Tobago) 58.48

3 Brian Morris (St George East) 58.90

Girls U-16

1 Joanna Rogers (POS) 57.95

2 Patrice Richards (Caroni) 1:01.25

3 Shanika Belfon (Tobago) 1:03.44

Girls U-14

1 Cassandra Joseph (North East) 1:03.69

2 Faith Deane (St George East)

3 Janiel Bailey (POS)

110m hurdles

Over-18

1 Kerlon Ashby (Scarborough Sec) 15.43

2 Jabari Kent (Speyside Sec) 23.03

U-18

1 Anson Mason (Bishop's High) 16.87

2 Ako Hislop (Signal Hill) 17.56

3 Tyrese Trotman (Sangre Grande) 17.86

100m hurdles

Over-18 Girls

1 Ayanna Glasgow (Toco Secondary) 15.62

U-18 Girls

1 Anya Akili (Bishop's High) 14.49

2 Cheziah Phillip (Toco Secondary) 14.66

3 Nkoni Morrison (Bishop's High) 19.07

U-16 Boys

1 Justin Guy (Signal Hill) 14.49

2 Kelsey Daniel (Bishop's High) 14.79

3 Jadon Clauzel (Belmont Boys) 16.35

80 m U-16 Girls

1 Patrice Richards (Holy Faith Couva) 12.13

2 Safiya John (Scarborough Sec) 12.20

3 Antonia Sealy (Cedros Sec) 12.30

1,500m

U-16 Boys

1 Genesis Joseph (Belmont Boys) 4:54.59

2 John-Mark Walters (Bishop's High) 4:56.17

3 Tichard McKellar (Trinity College) 4:58.11

U-16 Girls

1 Camille Lewis (Sangre Grande) 5:57.43

2 Julice Gardiner (Mason Hall Sec) 6:09.15

3 Shalyah Trim (Pent Light) - 6:21.49

U-18 Girls

1 Silinni Acosta (Bishops High) 5:50.75

2 Shanique McKenzie (Bishops High) 5:51.67

3 Isabelle Charles (Matura Secondary) 5:56.04

Goal-shooter Chantel Perry and goal-attack Kalifa McCollin operated well in the circle to lead Soul City to a convincing 58-42 victory over Defence Force in the First Division of the Port-of-Spain Netball League at the Jean Pierre Complex in Mucurapo on Monday evening.

Perry led with 30 goals from 38 attempts and national youth and senior player McCollin added 28 off 30 in a contest which Soul City dominated throughout, leading 17-6 at the end of the first quarter, 33-17 at the half and 45-29 in the third stanza.

Former national shooter Anastascia Wilson was at her best, hitting a match-high 32 in 37 but her team remained on the losing end. Her goal-attack Dianna Pierre added the other 10 goals from 17.

In third Division action, Horizon tasted success over Las Lomas Police Youth Club, topping them 23-21 while Hill Girls got the better of Laventille united, 9-7.

Horizon X team also got a win in the Kiwi Division when it defeated Hill Girls, 12-2 thanks to the shooting of Aleisha Hunte, who scored the bulk of the winner’s goals with nine off 16. Horizon led at the half, 4-2 and never allowed Hill Girls to connect another goal in the second session.

Play the other match of the division was more balanced but when the final whistle sounded it was Mucurapo emerging with a 9-7 win over Police.

Matches continue today in the Kiwi and Second divisions.

Results

First Division

Soul City 58 (Chantel Perry 30/38, Kalifa McCollin 28/30) vs Defence Force 42 (Anastascia Wilson 32/37, Dianna Pierre 10/17). Quarter scores: 17-6, 33-17, 45-29 (Soul City).

Third Division

Hill Girls 21 (R Makeda 5/11, C Joseph 3/4, J Walker 13/16) vs Laventille 14 (S Finch 12/14, K Stapleton 2/5). Quarter scores: 4-3 (Hill Girls), 8-8, 15-11 (Hill Girls).

Horizon 23 (S Williams 11/16, N Purcell 12/14) vs Las Lomas Police Youth Club 21 (R Jattan 7/9, A Paul 14/21). Quarter scores: 7-4 (Las Lomas), 11-11, 20-14 Horizon.

Kiwi Division

Mucurapo 9 (Joselle Williams 5/16, Safaa Mark 2/5, Nikeisha Charles 2/8) vs Police 7 (Ketara Richards 2/2, Kaliya Cooper 5/7). Half time: 4-4.

Horizon X 12 (Kadesha Wharwaood 3/6, Aleisha Hunte 9/16) vs Hill Girls 2 (Nicholette Roberts 2/3). Half time: 4-2.

Second Div X:

Police 14 (D Douglas 11/14, K Duncan 3/9) vs Mucurapo 29 (Shyan Bacquain 3/7, Kamaria Joseph 3/10, Natasha Vialva 23/35. Quarter scores: 13-4, 20-9, 24-9 (Mucurapo).

Matches

Today (Start time at 5.30 pm)

Second Div Y: Fire vs Malta Carib, court 1

Third Div: Laventille vs Las Lomas, court 2

First Div X: Police X vs Horizon, court 3

Third Div: Soul City vs Marvellites, court 1

Second Div Y: Harlem vs Horizon, court 2

First Div Y: Malta Carib vs Hill Girls, court 3

Machel Cedenio won his outdoor season opener, the 400 metres sprint at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational on Friday night at the University of Florida, USA. Cedenio clocked 44.79 seconds to beat David Verberg into second in 45.11 and Arman Hall (Florida) was third in 45.17.

Jehue Gordon also competed at the meet and was fifth in the men’s 400m hurdles in 51.38. At the Bermuda International Permit Meet also on Friday, Alena Brooks was second in the women’s 800m in 2:09.40 while Jamal James was third in the men’s version of the race in 1:51.32. 

Yesterday, Coppin State freshman Khemani Roberts had one of her busiest day in her young College career and she excelled winning the women’s heptathlon  at the Morgan State Legacy Meet in Baltimore, Maryland. Her stats read first in both the high jump (1.77) and 200m (25.09), second in the 800m in 2:32.55 and the shot put event with a best toss of 9.91m, fourth in javelin with a throw of 27.03, sixth in 100m hurdles in 15.40 and eighth in the long jump (4.65m).

Roberts was also active in the javelin throw and placed ninth with a best effort of 28.66. 

Much was expected of Coppin State high jumper Deandra Daniel after she was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week, announced by the conference office on Wednesday.

The senior business management major from Gasparillo notched her second first-place win of the outdoor season at the Hampton Relays on April 16. Daniel won the high jump with a leap of 1.73m placing first out of 14 competitors.

On Saturday, she sealed the third spot with a best attempt of 1.87m. Currently, Daniel leads the MEAC in the high jump event at 1.75 m recorded on March 17 at the Alan Connie Shamrock Invitational. She is ranked tied for 20th place amongst the entire NCAA Division I. 

In the men’s 800m,  Mark London, a junior at Coppin State finished second in a time of 1:50.65. At the Red River Athletics Conference Meet in San Antonio, Texas, Moriba Morain of Wiley College was unstoppable doing the triple winning the 100m, 200m and 400m.

The freshman won the 100m dash in 10.59, the 200 in 20.99 and the other event in 48.12. Quinn-Lee Ralph, a sophomore at Wiley, participated in both the 100m and 200m and placed second (10.62) and third (21.46), respectively.

Both then teamed with their schoolmates to nab gold in the men’s 4x100m in 40.67. Kendall Perouza was also successful in two events, placing third in the men’s 400m intermediate hurdles in 56.09 and the sophomore was part of the 4x400m team that placed first in 3:16.13.

 Shermund Allsop of Tiger Olympians placed fifth in 10.23 in the men’s 100m at LSU Alumni Gold at the Bernie Moore Track Stadium. 

The feature match on Monday in the Port-of-Spain Netball League between Defence Force Y and Laventille United boiled down to a 34-34 draw after an intense 40 minutes at the Jean Pierre Complex in Mucurapo.

Laventille had the better chances of both teams to seal the win in their First Division match in group X play, leading by four (25-21) entering the final quarter but a fightback led by Akeela Rodriguez saw Defence Force hold on for the draw.

Rodriguez, the goal-shooter, was good for 24 goals off 35 attempts as her team Defence Force claimed the first quarter, 9-7. 

Laventille did not stay down for long and rallied back to take a six-goal (17-11) advantage at the halfway mark, thanks to shooters Veronica Baptiste (6/11) and Cheryelle McIntosh (26/31), who opened in the circle.

On the start of the second half, Defence Force made a run and managed to lessen its deficit to four (25-21) heading into the final session.

The soldier/sailor combination team stayed aggressive and Rodriguez with assistance from goal-attack Makeda Pierre (10/17) went on to outscore their opponents, 13-9, to level the scores at 34 when time expired.

Laventille used one more shooter Jillisa Allen, who connected two of her six tries.

In the Second Division “Y”, Malta Carib Senators was held to a 26-26 draw by Horizon while Aaliyah Mulrain led with 27 of 40 to put Malvern past Police 39-12. In the division’s “X” group, Carla Victor was in good shooting form, netting 33 in 42 to direct Marvellites’ easy 38-11 win over Chips.

Horizon and Mucurapo emerged winners in their Kiwi Division matches, against CS Jets (5-4) and Hill Girls (10-4), respectively.

RESULTS

First Div X

Defence Force Y 34 (Akeela Rodriguez 24/35, Makeda Pierre 10/17) vs Laventille 34 (Veronica Baptiste 6/11, Cheryelle McIntosh 26/31, Jillisa Allen 2/6). Quarters: 9-7 (Defence Force), 17-11 (Laventille), 25-21 (Laventille).

Second Div X

Malvern 39 (Patrina Ashby 12/19, Aaliyah Mulrain 27/40) vs Police 12 (Kayshanna Duncan 2/3, Kathrina La Rimpe 7/12, Rayshenelle Rouff 3/4). Quarters: 9-2, 21-7, 31-9 (Malvern).

Marvellites 38 (Carla Victor 33/42, Chantel Emmanuel 5/7) vs Chips 11 (Abigail Boswell 4/11, Dyese Sylvester 7/12). Quarters: 12-3, 20-4, 30-6 (Marvellites).

Second Div Y 

Malta Carib 26 (Teshannda Figuera 4/12, Zakiya MCKenna 21/37, Natalie Jeffers 1/5) vs Horizon 26 (Makini Tyson 10/15, Sherry Thomas 16/22). Quarters: 6-1 (Malta), 14-9 (Malta), 19-16 (Horizon).

Kiwi Div

Horizon Y 5 (Karena Lewis 5/9, Kayandra Paul 0/1) vs CS Jets 4 (Abia Williams 0/7, Rebecca Beggs 4/6). Halftime 3-1 (Horizon).

Mucurapo 10 (Jashelle Williams 5/17, Nikeisha Charles 5/13) vs Hill Girls 4 (Precious Des Vignes 2/4, Destiny Ward 2/3). Halftime 4-0 (Mucurapo).

MATCHES​

Today’s matches Start at 5.30 pm

Third Div: Hill Girls vs Marvellites

Kiwi Div: Transcend vs Horizon X; Chips vs Hill Girls

Second Div Y: Defence Force vs Harlem

First Div Y: Chips vs Hill Girls

First Div X: Jabloteh vs Fire

T&T Under-21 netball squad will tackle host Grenada today in the opening match of a five-match netball series at the Tanteen Netball Complex from 7.30 pm.

The Junior “Calypso Girls”, who departed yesterday evening, will also face the Grenadians in two matches tomorrow. The first match starts at 7 am followed by an evening encounter from 7.30 pm. The two sides will play again on Sunday at 7 pm and the final match in the series will be contested on Monday from 6.30 pm. 

T&T netballers are preparing for the Americas Federation of Netball Associations (AFNA) qualifiers which will be held in St Maarten in August. The top team from the qualifiers advances to next year's World Netball Cup in Botswana.

Grenada is using the series in preparation for the test series and a tour of England next month. They will participate in the Challenge Section of Netball Europe which runs from May 12-15 and involves the United States, Gibraltar, Ireland, Israel, Malta and Switzerland.

On Wednesday night, the T&T unit competed in their final warmup against the University of T&T (UTT) before departing for Grenada at the Jean Pierre Complex in Mucurapo. 

The junior “Calypso Girls” fell to a 38-28 defeat but head coach Rhonda John-Davis and assistant coach Kemba Duncan were not too bothered by the local team's loss and they saw positives coming out from the match.

“The main thing was for them was to get rid of the jitters. They have a lot. A lot of them are not accustomed to playing at this level. Some of them were very nervous. It was used to help them build confidence and for them to try different things to see what is working for them and what was not,” said John-Davis.

The local squad played one other practice match and it was against El Basan women's team which the young netballers won easily, 48-28, earlier this month.

Despite losing the second practice match and playing without key shooter six-footer Jameela McCarthy, co-captain Shaquanda Greene is quite assured that the local squad will thrive in series.

“We are very confident because we have been training very hard. We have watching videos on YouTube with Grenada team and our coaches have given us ideas about how they play so are prepared for them,” said the goal-keeper, who is making her debut on the national team.

McCarthy missed the warmup match as she had exams but she will be in Grenada representing alongside senior team shooter Kalifa McCollin and defender Monica Peters, who will bring the experience having also played for T&T at the U-16 level.

Remy Brewer stood out for the International School of Port-of-Spain (ISPS), topscoring with 28 points to lead his team to a 61-46 win over Queen’s Royal College (QRC) in the Secondary Schools Basketball League North Zone Under-20 Boys Division on Thursday. 

The action unfolded at the ISPS court in Westmoorings. Brewer could do no wrong as he was effective from beyond the three-point arc connecting two shots in his total to have his side up by 13 (35-22) at the halfway mark.

Ephraim Archer was also good for ISPS offensively, hitting 10 in the one-sided affair. For QRC, Kobee James was best with 16 Antonio Ambris scored nine and Johnathan Ward added eight, six of which came from two three-pointers but their team remained on the losing end when time expired.

In the earlier encounter in the Girls Open Division, East Mucurapo was no match for the ISPS as they fell by a huge 56-2. Susannah Gray and Sara Low scored with ease, notching 24 and 20 respectively.

On Tuesday, the two match played were also lopsided with both ISPS teams emerging with victories. In the Boys U-15 Division, Jonathan Aboud led ISPS with 13 to help defeat East Mucurapo 52-17. Jovanni Williams was on target with three three-pointers to topscore for the losing side with 11.

Kimberly Shen scored a match-high 20 to see ISPS easily past East Mucurapo, 33-6 in their girls U-15 matchup.

RESULTS
U-15 Girls
ISPS (19) 33 (Kimberly Shen 20, Daniyelle Bennett 7) vs EMSS (4) 6.

Thursday
U-20 Boys
ISPS (35) 61 (Remy Brewer 28, Ephraim Archer 10) vs QRC (22) 46 (Kobee James 16, Antonio Ambris 9, Johnathan Ward 8)

Open Girls
ISPS (31) 56 (Susannah Gray 24, Sara Low 20) vs EMSS (0) 2.

Tuesday
U-15 Boys
ISPS (25) 52 (Jonathan Aboud 13, Ethan Lankester 8, Mohammed Rashwan 8) vs EMSS (6) 17 (Jovanni Williams 11)

U-15 Girls
ISPS (19) 33 (Kimberly Shen 20, Daniyelle Bennett 7) vs EMSS (4) 6.

Stories of Success (SOS) Basketball Academy captain, Charles Williams, hit a clutch mid-range jumper at the buzzer to give the Under-19 Boys Invitational Tournament hosts the win in thrilling fashion over St Joseph Lions (SJL) at the Maloney Indoor Sport Arena on Sunday.

In what proved to be an intense final, it was an even exchange right from the tip off, with good defensive pressure and swift transition on attack seen from both teams. 

Ahkeel Boyd with a team-high nine led the charge for St Joseph but it was SOS’s Mohammed Elias with a match-high 18pts, who made the difference going into the break, knocking down two points to give his team a 17-15 halftime advantage.  

Momentum in the second half seemed to shift in St Joseph’s favour, with the Lion’s capitalising on a series of missed shots by SOS to mount a five-point lead with just under a minute left on the clock. The SOS squad defended strongly in the closing stages, winning back possession on two occasions, with Shannon Harris and Elias stepping in with key baskets to reduce the deficit to one point. 

Another St Joseph turnover gifted SOS a chance to win with 12 seconds left. Elias’ shot came off the ring and was claimed by Boyd, whose attempt to smother the ball saw him called for travelling. With 0.9 seconds remaining to play, Elias inbounded the ball at the baseline, and with Williams finding space, the captain got the ball with just enough time to catch and shoot. Williams’ effort hit nothing but net, much to the elation of the SOS supporters, and the disbelief of the St Joseph faithful, with the hosts snatching victory from St Joseph right at the buzzer. 

Having been fouled in the play Williams had to go to the free-throw line for one shot. The SOS skipper missed the free-throw, but it was of little bother as he and his teammates began celebrations as champions of the inaugural SOS U-19 tournament which saw four teams take part also including Brian Chase Basketball Academy (BCBA) and San Juan Warriors (SJW).

Teams competed in a round-robin competition in the preliminary round in matches 10 minutes per half. They were then placed in a standings according to the results from that stage. SOS emerged on top of the table playing unbeaten in the group stages. Second was Warriors with two wins and a loss; third was Lions with one win and two losses and fourth was winless BCBA.

In the semifinal round, first place played fourth while second met third. SOS topped BCBA 14-7 while Lions eliminated Warriors, 33-17.

Awards were presented at the end of the day’s contest and Kushiah King of BCBA picked up the most, claiming the prizes for the best two-point shooter, free throw shooter and most steals.

HONOUR ROLL
Tournament Champion: Stories Of Success Basketball Academy
Best 2pt Shooter: Kushiah King (Brian Chase Basketball Academy)
Best 3pt Shooter: Akheem Boyd (St Joseph Lions)
Best Free-Throw Shooter: Kushiah King (Brian Chase Basketball Academy)
Most Assists: Akheem Boyd (St Joseph Lions)
Most Steals: Kushiah King (Brian Chase Basketball Academy)
Most Blocks: Charles Williams (Stories Of Success Basketball Academy)
Best Offensive Rebounder: Tyrik Singh (San Juan Warriors)
Best Defensive Rebounder: Tyrik Singh (San Juan Warriors)

Results: 
Group Stage
SOS 27 vs BCBA 12
SJL 18 vs SJW 19
BCBA 12 vs SJW 13
SOS 22 vs SJL 19
BCBA 26 vs SJL 30
SOS 24 vs SJW 17

Semi-finals
SJW 17 vs SJL 33
SOS 14 vs BCBA 7

Third Place Playoff
BCBA (23) vs SJW 25

Final
SOS 29 vs 28 SJL 

T&T’s Khemani Roberts of Coppin State University put together a spectacular couple of days to cop the women’s heptathlon at the 2016 ECAC/IC4A Track and Field Championships at Weaver Stadium in Princeton, New Jersey on the weekend. Roberts placed first, racking up 4,790 total points defeating the runner-up by 24 points on Saturday. 

On the opening day, Roberts led the field of 13 with 2,951 points through four events. The freshman was tied for first in the high jump at 1.66 metres and placed second in both the 200m (25.53 seconds) and shot put (10.65m) while 10th in the 100m hurdles (15.84) on Friday. The following day, she placed second in the javelin throw (29.17m), third in the long jump (5.48m) and eighth in the 800m (2:30.70).

Last week, Roberts won the heptathlon with 4,539 points at the Mid-Eastern Athletic Championships (MEAC) Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Greensboro, North Carolina. 

Roberts was back in action on Sunday, competing in the women’s high jump event and placed eighth with a mark of 1.67m. Her teammate Deandra Daniel, a senior, failed to clear the bar during the competition.

On that same day over on the track, Coppin State junior Mark London 4x400m relay team finished eighth with a time of 3:22.36. London also lined up in the 800m preliminaries and his time of 1:52.99, placed him in 21st position overall, not good enough for him to advance to the next round.

The T&T long distance runnier (1:49.30) is currently ranked 47th in the nation in the men’s 800m which he ran at the Florida Relays earlier this season while both T&T women jumpers rank amongst the nation’s best in the high jump event. Daniel ranks 19th at 1.78 m recorded at Penn Relays while Roberts sits at 28th nationally with a measure of 1.77 m at Morgan State Legacy Meet.

Coppin State’s regular season concludes with the upcoming NCAA Division I Preliminary East Region Championships in Jacksonville, FL beginning on May 26. 

Also on the weekend at the Sun Belt Outdoor Championship in Lafayette, Louisiana, Chelsea Anika Charles of the University of Arkansas Little Rock bagged a bronze medal in the 100m. Running in a minus wind of 0.1 she clocked 11.58 to cross third.

The Simplex Sports Club sprinter finished fourth in the 200m in a time of 24.03 seconds, to set a new personal best which keeps her second on the Trojans’ all-time list.

She later anchored her team to gold in the 4x100m relay, shattering the school record in the event, finishing in 45.22, 0.81 seconds faster than their own previous school record they had set twice earlier this year.

Shaniqua Bascombe had a super day on Wednesday at the Atlantic National Primary Schools Track and Field Championships at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo, picking up the most outstanding award and rightly so winning all the events she entered.

Bascombe of Port-of-Spain zone copped the award last year in the Girls Under-13 age-group and impressed again, this time in a higher category, dominating the 13-15 bracket winning the 100, 200 and 400 metres and then partnered with Carlissa Harry, Beyonce Moses and Shakanah George to run away with the Girls Sprint Medley in a time of 1:58.50.

She clocked 12.62 seconds to win the 100 dash;  25.14 in the 200; and 1:03.33 in the quartermile.

Her effort won Port-of-Spain the top spot of the eight districts with a tally of 483.50 points, beating out last year's champion Tobago into second with 368. In third was Caroni with 343; fourth was Victoria with 326; St George East’s 313 earned them fifth spot while North East (265.50), St Patrick (252.50) and South East (164.50), brought up the rear.

Janae De Gannes, last year' outstanding U-11 athlete, Jeremiah Joseph and Kevon Mc Kenna also starred on the day.

De Gannes of Tobago competing in the same age-group won gold in the 100, 200, long jump event and then helped her team to second place in the 4x100 relay in 1:00.24, finishing behind Port-of-Spain (58.19), who dominated the relays, winning seven of eight races that were contested.

Joseph of Port-of-Spain like Bascombe won the 100 (11.94), 200 (24.27) and 400 (54.85) and helped his team to gold in the 800 Sprint Medley in the boys 13-15 category. Mc Kenna of Tobago claimed the 100 in 12.40, 200 in 26.37 and 400 in 1:02.22 in the boys U-13 age-group.

Selected results
100m
13-15
Girls
1 Shaniqua Bascombe (POS) - 12.62
2 Kurlecia Francis (Victoria) - 12.77
3 Shernicah Sargeant (Tobago) - 13.18
Boys
1 Jeremiah Joseph (POS) - 11.94
2 Osei Stephens (South East) - 12.11
3 Kern Cedeno (St Patrick) - 12.11
U-13
Girls
1 Vanessa Stephens (St George E) - 13.27
2 Renesha Andrews (POS) - 13.57
3 Nikida Peters (St Patrick) - 13.66
Boys
1 Kevon McKenna (Tobago) - 12.40
2 Darius Joseph (St George E) - 12.82
3 Cayson Clement-Holder (South East) - 13.11
U-11
Girls
1 Janae De Gannes (Tobago) - 13.89
2 Janika Jordan (POS) - 14.11
3 Sierra Joseph (Victoria) - 14.36
60m
U-9
Boys
1 Makaelan Woods (POS) - 9.23
2 Kaii Williams (Tobago) - 9.24
3 Jayden Moses (St George E) - 9.42
400m
13-15
Girls
1 Shaniqua Bascombe (POS) - 1:03.33
2 Joanna French (Tobago) - 1:05.86
3 Claudine Antoine (Caroni) - 1:06.40
Boys
1 Jeremiah Joseph (POS) - 54.85
2 Kern Cedeno (St Patrick) - 56.59
3 Tyric Samuel (Caroni) - 58.54
U-13
Girls
1 Atiya Croal (St George E) - 1:05.21
2 Kianna Llewelyn (POS) - 1:11.09
3 Opal Jackson (Caroni) - 1:14.93
Boys
1 Kevon McKenna (Tobago) - 1:02.22
2 Jarvon Westfield (POS) - 1:02.61
3 Josiah Alexander (StPatrick) - 1:07.03
Long Jump
U-11
Girls
1 Janae De Gannes (Tobago) -  4.94m
2 Rhianna Jackson (St George E) - 3.90
3 Akilah Jacob (St Patrick) - 3.87
200m
13-15
Girls
1 Shaniqua Bascombe (POS) - 25.14
2 Kurlecia Francis (Victoria) - 25.30
3 Shernicah Sargeant (Tobago) -  26.71
Boys
1 Jeremiah Joseph (POS) - 24.27
2 Kern Cedeno (St Patrick) - 24.69
3 Keeshawn Babb (Victoria) - 25.19
U-13
Girls
1 Vanessa Stephens (St George E) - 26.94
2 Renesha Andrews (POS) - 27.77
3 Zaria Baxam (Victoria) - 28.32
Boys
1 Kevon Mc Kenna (Tobago) - 25.51
2 Darius Joseph (St George E) - 26.37
3 Cayson Clement-Hamilton (South East) - 26.67
U-11
Girls
1 Janae De Gannes (Tobago) - 28.34
2 Janika Jordan (POS) - 29.22
3 Sierra Joseph (Victoria) - 39.24
Boys
1 Giovanni Bobb-Semple (St George E) - 28.03
2 Imanni Matthew (North East) - 28.64
3 Tyrell Springer (POS) - 28.82
Discus throw
13-15
Girls
1 Renecia McIntosh (POS) - 17.53
2 Celine Joseph (Caroni) - 17.48
3 Joanna French (Tobago) - 16.80
Boys
1 Christopher Crawford (Tobago) - 44.88
2 Darion Felix (Victoria) - 29.21
3 Antonio De Freitas (North East) - 22.60
1,500m Open
Girls
1 Shakiah Phillip (POS) - 5:30.48
2 Shyann Scott (North East) - 5:53.74
3 Christie-Marie Maharaj (St George) - 5:53.95
Boys
1 Khaylon Antoine (POS) - 4:56.73
2 Marvin Waldrop (Victoria) - 5:11.73
3 Joel Lalloo (N East) - 5:23.46

Led by 40 goals from 48 attempts from former national shooter Anastascia Wilson, Defence Force X wrapped another easy victory over Chips, 53-26 in the First Division of the Port-of-Spain Netball League at the Jean Pierre Complex in Mucurapo on Thursday evening.

The one-sided match in the “Y” grouping saw Crystal-Ann George, who functioned as the goal-attack, connect 13 off 21 for the army/coast guard combination, which dominated from the start, leading 17-6 in the first quarter. By halftime, they were up 24-14 and pushed that lead to 15 (35-20) heading into the final period, to come away with the 27-goal victory. Goal-shooter Denise Rose was the best in the circle for the Chips unit, producing the bulk of the goals with 22 in 38 while goal-attack Jaime Browne was good for four of 10.

Wednesday evening had two exciting affairs in the First Division with Horizon edging Laventille, 36-35 in the X group and Police claimied a narrow two-goal (30-28) victory over Malta Carib Senators. Goal-attack Jocelyn Marcelle shined for Horizon, putting in 24 from 27 in a closely contested match. 

Horizon claimed the early lead, holding a 10-7 advantage in the first session. Laventille with shooting from Cherryl Mc Intosh (29/41) rallied and managed to seize a 18-15 lead at the halfway mark. Laventille remained ahead in the third stanza but Horizon forged their way back to trail by one (26-25) at the start of the fourth and final period. Marcelle and goal-shooter Debra Beckles combined well enough to outscore Laventille, 11-9, to complete the hard-fought victory.

It was not the best performance from Cheryse Aguillera but her 19 off 33 was good enough to see her team stop Senators. The Malta Carib began aggressively to lead 8-3 in the first period but the policewomen came back to tie the scores at 14 at the half. Police then moved out front in the third, 23-19 to hold on the for the win at the end of regulation time.

RESULTS
Thursday: First Div Y: Defence Force X 53 (Anastascia Wilson 40/48, Crystal-Ann George 13/21, Stacy Sparks 0/1) vs Chips 26 (Denise Rose 22/38, Jaime Browne 4/10). Quarters: 17-6, 24-14, 35-20 (D Force).
Second Div Y: Harlem 29 (Kefia Thomas 29/48) vs Malta Carib 39 (Natalie Jeffers 20/51, Zakiya McKenna 19/46). Quarters: 11-4, 16-14, 29-22 (Senators).
Second Div X: Marvellites 41 (Carla Victor 38/46, Shurnel De Verteuil 3/5) vs Police 19 (Dennisha Douglas 9/11, Kayshanna Duncan 10/18). Quarters: 11-3, 20-9, 27-13 (Marvellites).
Third Div: Marvellites 20 (Ashley Wickham 9/22, Jaime Dookeran 11/18) vs Horizon 20 (Shania Williams 11/23, Alesha Gomez 1/2, Renelle Ayers-Mason 2/6). Quarters: 5-5, 12-8, 15-13 (Marvellites).
Hill Girls 15 (Hannah Scott 8/12, Kwana Sylvester 7/11) vs Soul City 12 (Tamika Jack 6/9, Jimi Crichlow 19/6/7). Quarters: 5-1, 6-4, 9-8 (Hill Girls).
Kiwi Div: Transcend 0 vs Ebony 25 (Deneicia Forde 9/16, Aishah Abdul Hakeem 16/24). Half: 11-0.
Horizon X 14 (Kadesha Wharwood 8/13, Akesha Hunte 6/12) vs Chips 1 (Robyn Adams 1/5). Half: 5-0.
Wednesday: First Div X
Laventille 35 (Cherryl Mc Intosh 29/41, Ayanna Peters 6/15) vs Horizon 36 (Debra Beckles 12/17, Jocelyn Marcelle 24/27). Quarters: 10-7 (Horizon), 18-15 (Laventille), 26-25 (Laventille).
First Div Y: Police 30 (Cheryse Aguillera 19/33, Shamica Thomas 2/3, Nicola Small 9/12) vs Malta Carib Senators 28 (Travica John 11/21, Christie Snaggs 10/21, Lilia Cameron 7/8). Quarters: 8-3 (Senators), 14-14, 23-19 (Police). 
Second Div: Fire 39 (Camiesha Lesile 31/49, Attiya George 1/2, Daniella Hall 2/4, Kynda Richards 3/3) vs Defence Force 14 (Cella-Grace Bonaparte 7/15, Nikeisha Peters-Williams 7/9). Quarters 10-4, 21-8, 33-11 (Fire).
Mucurapo Ex 37 (Natasha Vialva 29/45, Kamaria Joseph 8/13) vs Cardinals 20 (Roannta Dalrymple 5/7, Waveney Warrick 6/7, Jariel McCollin 3/6, Kadeemah Herbert 6/14). Quarters: 10-7, 22-11, 28-14 (Mucurapo).

Duo Josiah Best and Hakeem Morgan made certain that there was no doubt about who was earning the final spot available in the North Zone Boys Under-20 Big Four competition of the Secondary School Basketball League as they led East Mucurapo to a comfortable 68-28 victory over Fatima College. This was at the Jean Pierre Complex in Mucurapo on Sunday.

The other three spots were already filled by the International School of Port-of-Spain (ISPS) and South East Port-of-Spain (SEPOS), who emerged the top two teams in the Group A while Success Laventille sealed its place, topping Group B. 

Best notched 29 points and Morgan scored 23 slamming in two dunks to entertain in the one-sided affair. Also effective on offence for the East Mucurapo was Tehrek Scott with 12. Their team dominated from the jump, leading 37-11 at the half before pulling off the 40-point win.

Andrew Mussio was the only player reaching double-figures for Fatima with 12. In the Boys U-17 Division, Belmont Boys and Morvant Laventille have already advanced to the Big Six competition finishing first and second in Group C. Progressing out of Group A was ISPS and St Anthony’s College, which defeated Queen’s Royal College (QRC) 43-26 also on Sunday.

In the other match played on the evening, SEPOS beat Success Laventille 39-31 in extra-time in a Boys U-17 Division encounter. The scores were tied at 26 before SEPOS outscored its opponent 13-5 in the five-minute overtime.

East Mucurapo locked down a place from Group B and still await the winner between Morvant Laventille and Belmont Boys RC.

All four teams have sealed their spots in the Boys U-15 bracket. Fatima and QRC are the top two teams from Group A while SEPOS and Belmont Boys qualified from the other group.

Results
Sunday
U-20 Boys
Fatima College (11) 28 (Andrew Mussio 12, Adam Tang-Niam 6) vs East Mucurapo (37) 68 (Josiah Best 29 (1-3pt), Hakeem Morgan 23, Tehrek Scott 12).

U-17 Boys
Success  Laventille (20) 05 31 (Akini Assanah 5, Nickel Lewis 14, Najay Lewis 7)   Extra Time   vs SEPOS 9/17/13  39 (Ezekiel Humphrey 27)

U-17 Boys
QRC (10) 26 (Kobee James 12,  Antonio Ambris 10  (1-3pt) vs St Anthony’s College (19) 43 (Israel Gonzales 12, Joel Romain 9, Jakeem Jobe 8). 

Friday
Open Girls
Success Laventille (6) 9 (Daria Corridon 4) vs East Mucurapo (4) 8.
 
U-15 Boys
Morvant Laventille (4) 15 (Oswald John 6) vs Fatima College (33) 45 (Adam Tang-Nian 15(2-3pts), Ethan Smith 12).
                                                                                                                 
Thursday
U-15 Girls
SEPOS (13) 28 (Aaliyah Duncan 7, Shania Patterson 9) vs East Mucurapo (6) 7
ISPS  (12) 29 (Alexandra Coenjaerts 11) vs Success  Laventille (6) 8 (Daria Corridon 8)

U-15 Boys
East  Mucurapo (3) (Josiah Gill 7) vs Fatima College (21) 46pts (Jean-Pierrre Bermont 12, Luke Darvent 8, Adrian Sangster 8).
                                                          
Tuesday
U-15 Girls
SEPOS  (10) 25 (Grace Peru 18) vs Success Laventille  (11) 22 (Daria Corridon 14)

Open Girls
ISPS (24) 40 (Sara Low 10, Susannah Gray 10) vs Morvant Laventille (4) 4.

U-17 Boys
Fatima College  (14) 29 (Adrian Sangster 9) vs Morvant  Laventille (16) 31 (Oswald St John 10, Michael Straker 9 (1-3pt)

Local athletes are currently engrossed in their final preparations for this weekend’s Hampton International Games which comes off at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo. The event is in its 39th year of existence and is expected to attract quite a number of international athletes.

T&T’s Jeminise Parris, a Carifta gold medallist, will line up in the 100 metres hurdles event, while Marcus Duncan of Rebirth will renew his rivalry with Barbadian Levi Codogan in the Men’s 100m dash in an event which is fully being supported by the Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs and the Sports Company of T&T (SporTT).

SporTT has contributed $52,000 to the Games to cover the cost of medals, trophies and stipends for some 90 officials. Additionally, the meet timing and results management is also being handled by an eight-person team from SporTT, which provides this service to all meet organisers in T&T. The service comprises electronic photo finish and digital field events results, which allow spectators to see results in real time and for the overall meet results to be available immediately after the event’s conclusion. 

This being an Olympic year, spectators will be treated to a highly competitive affair, with athletes attempting to make the qualifying standard for their respective country. The Caribbean will form the bulk of visiting athletes, with representation from French Guiana, Barbados, St Vincent, Martinique and Suriname. Kenyan athletes are also expected to bring their usual high standards to the distance events. 

International athletes will participate in heats tomorrow with the finals unfolding over the following two days (Saturday and Sunday) from 1.30 pm and 2.30 pm, respectively. 

Local track and field athletes, who competed in their heats some two weeks ago, will use the premier event to improve on their times/distances against quality opposition. 

Entry fee is $35 for adults and $15 for children under 12. Patrons purchasing tickets will get a chance to win a door prize. The make the event even more exciting

T&T’s Machel Cedenio will attempt to cause a major upset today when he takes on a stellar cast in the Men’s 400 metres event at the 42nd Prefontaine Classic, a member of the IAAF Diamond League of elite international track and field meets, at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, USA.

The national quartermiler lines up against Olympic 400m champion Kirani James and LaShawn Merritt, a former Olympic gold medal winner, who themselves are locked in their own rivalry and return to the Classic for a record fifth time, and after  sub-44 races the last two years, it’s possible one of the oldest records in meet history could take a tumble.

In 2000, Michael Johnson set the record of 43.92 seconds in his final race at Hayward Field in winning his second Pre Classic 400. The mark, made less than a year after he set the World Record of 43.18, stands as the second oldest men’s meet record.

Both James and Merritt join Johnson as the only multiple Pre Classic winners in this event. The field is its fastest ever, bolstered by a record five runners who have run sub-44.

The others in the event are Botswana’s Isaac Makwala, Abdalleleh Haroun of Qatar, Steven Gardiner of the Bahamas, Saudi Arabia’s Youssef Ahmed Masrahi and Jamaica’s Rusheen McDonald. James, 23, is the two-time defending Pre Classic champion and is the only runner with more than one sub-44 clocking at the premier event. He won last year’s race at 43.95 after taking the 2014 title in 43.97, both over Merritt. At the recent Drake Relays, James took the early world lead at 44.08 with a victory over Merritt to increase his career head-to-head lead to 11-7.

Merritt, 29, owns as many Pre Classic 400 wins (four) as James and Johnson combined. He also has four runner-up finishes—the lowest position he has ever placed at the Pre Classic. Cedenio have been progressing well this season with hopes of making his debut at the Olympics in Rio-deJaniero in August.  

In his first meet of the Diamond League series in Doha, Qatar, Cedenio, 20, won a silver medal in a time of running a season’s best time of 44.68 seconds running in lane three. Merritt won in 44.41.  This followed up his outstanding showing at the Tom Jones Memorial Invitational at the University of Florida, USA, clocking 44.79 to win the 400 in April.

Also today, Olympic champion T&T’s Keshorn Walcott gets his first real test of the season when he takes on a field that includes World silver medallist Ihab Abdelrahman, Thomas Rohler, who took the first javelin points of the year in the Diamond League series in Shanghai ahead of Czech Jakub Vadlejch, another contender in today’s event.

The rest are USA’s Cyrus Hostetler, Marcin Krukowski of Poland, Johannes Vetter of Germany and Kenyan Julius Yego.