Published: 08:03 PM, Sat May 19, 2012
Terry Sanford sprinter Jahmaal Daniel wins state 4-A 100-meter title
GREENSBORO - Jahmaal Daniel crossed the finish line first in the 100 meters, then spread his arms like he was flying.
The superhero swagger was back.
Daniel, a Terry Sanford sophomore, won the 100 with a personal-best time of 10.55 seconds during the 4-A state track and field meet Saturday at N.C. A&T. The victory occurred more than two weeks after he captured three Mid-South Conference individual titles and a week after a hip injury contributed to a subpar regional performance.
A return trip to the Irwin Belk Track in Greensboro, where Daniel won an age-group national championship last year, boosted his spirits.
"My confidence up until we pulled into the stadium was low," Daniel said. "Coming off being on top of the world at conference, feeling like Superman, then go to regionals and not be able to run as fast as you know you can, that's disappointing. Once we pulled into the parking lot, saw the stadium and all the blue, the state championship banners, my confidence went back up."
The Bulldogs, who benefited from senior John Leonard's fourth-place showing in the shot put and a surprise cameo by freshman Philip Hall, finished sixth in the team standings, well behind first-place Knightdale. Daniel also took fourth in the 200, and his only issue with the 10.55 in the 100 was that it's 0.04 seconds slower than what Terry Sanford sprints coach Bobby Eppenger says he ran in high school.
A calf injury contributed to a quiet start to Daniel's track season, and last weekend wasn't an ideal time to hurt a hip. At the regional, he finished third in the 100 and second in the 200, with rival Joseph Horton of Knightdale winning both events.
Daniel pumped his fists when he won his 100 heat Saturday in 10.56 seconds, two-tenths of a second faster than anyone else's qualifying time. He celebrated again after beating Horton by 0.06 seconds in the final.
"The season was long, drawn out," Daniel said. "I got through two injuries, and I'm still not completely over one. All the hard work, to know this is where you leave it all on the track, you come up with the result you wanted to start with, you're fine."
Terry Sanford received an unexpected boost from Hall, who finished fifth in the mile with a time of 4:22, one second off his personal record.
An Achilles injury slowed Hall last weekend, and he didn't plan to compete at the state meet. That changed Saturday around 9 a.m., when he read a MileSplit.com preview that declared, if healthy, he could be one of seven runners to break 4:20. He arrived in Greensboro after the rest of his team but in plenty of time to participate.
"I thought, 'If my name is up here, I might as well go and run,' " Hall said.
Hall, who went the entire week without practicing, even indulging at the Five Guys burger restaurant Friday, said he felt no pain during Saturday's race. He took the lead on the third of four laps and held it until winner Craig Engels of Reagan passed him with 300 meters remaining. Three other runners went by Hall on the backstretch.
The other top performers among Cumberland County athletes were Jack Britt's Deondre Butler, the long jump champion, and South View's Darlene Girardeau, who finished second in the long jump with a mark of 18-4.75, one quarter of an inch shorter than Durham Jordan senior Alexis Perry's best effort. Girardeau also placed fifth in the 100, accounting for all of the Tigers' points in a meet won by Wakefield.
Butler joined Jamar Collins-Hall, Justice Blount and Juwon Davis-Johnson on a 4x400 relay team that used a strong anchor leg to finish second behind Knightdale. Scotland's boys ended up fourth in the team standings thanks to second-place efforts from Kwashaun Quick (triple jump) and Seyyon Moody (110 hurdles). Moody also finished third in the 300 hurdles.
Staff writer Bret Strelow can be reached at strelowb@fayobserver.com or 486-3513.