Two relay teams represented the Bahamas over the weekend at the annual Penn Relays in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with the men’s 4×400 metre (m) team picking up a silver medal in the US vs the World themed race and the women’s sprint medley relay team placing fourth overall in the event final.
The team of Ramon Miller, Teray Smith, Michael Mathieu and Alonzo Russell finished in 3:02.54 to capture silver in the relay. The U.S. won the meet in 3:01.31, and Jamaica was third in 3:02.12. Russell’s 44.29 seconds was the fastest split of the race.
Team Canada, a favorite to medal headed into the race, was disqualified due to a lane violation.
In women’s action, the Bahamas clocked 1:39.03 in the sprint medley. USA Red won gold in 1:35.20, followed by Trinidad and Tobago in 1:37.42 and Jamaica in 1:38.31.
Along with the two elite teams, three local high schools and the University of The Bahamas (UB) were represented at Penn.
Saint Augustine’s College (SAC) competed in the boys and girls 4×100 and 4×400, St. John’s was in the boys and girls 4×100 and the girls 4×400, and Tabernacle Baptist competed in the boy’s 4×400 and 4×100.
SAC finished second in the boys 4×400 and made it to the finals of the girls’ 4×100 (7) and 4×400 (9).
In collegiate action, UB sophomore Ken Mullings posted a strong opening day performance to win the men’s decathlon with 5231 total points.
The 20-year-old shattered the previous indoor record of 4,141 points, set by Desmond Major at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Championships on March 8, 2014, by accumulating a total of 5,059 points.
Mullings also established school records in the high jump (2.09m) and the pole vault (3.64m).