Spartans freshman Alexis Hardy arrives ahead of schedule
Track & Field coverage presented by ATT Sports, Inc.
By Jason Guarente — MikeDragoSports.com senior correspondent
Alexis Hardy didn’t know for sure until she heard the reaction. The cheers from her coaches are what made it official.
Wyomissing’s freshman pulled off a surprise. Hardy outlasted a talented, experienced field and took first place in the 100. The fastest girl in Berks is only 15 years old.
“I was very excited,” she said. “Mid-race I couldn’t tell where I was. Toward the end is where I felt it.”
Hardy finished in 12.58, shaving 0.37 seconds off her PR entering the week, to secure the gold medal at the William H. Firing Meet at Shillington Saturday.
The ninth-grader didn’t exactly come out of nowhere. She’s a three-sport standout who also competes in basketball and soccer. She broke 13 seconds in the 100 at the junior high level last season.
Hardy was recognized as an up-and-coming sprinter. She arrived ahead of schedule.
“She’s a competitor,” Wyomissing coach Jim Delp said. “You’re not going to hold her back. She shows up and she competes. She brought her ‘A’ game today.”
This shortest race was considered up for grabs before the beep freed the runners from their blocks.
Exeter’s Aiyana Rivera had the Berks best time at 12.37. Schuylkill Valley’s Madison Ziska, a previous district champ in the 400, recently started trying the shorter race. Tulpehocken’s Ella Ahner won the 100 at districts in Class 2A last season.
There was also the fast-rising Sierra Hess, a Gov. Mifflin freshman who won the 200 and 400 Saturday, and speedy junior Catherine Arentz from Wilson.
Hardy beat all of them.
“I was up top filming it,” Delp said. “I was waiting for the other girls to make their move and she just held on. I was very impressed by that.”
Ziska finished second at 12.68, followed by Hess at 12.77 and Rivera at 12.78.
Hardy was the starting point guard for Wyomissing’s basketball team and will probably be All-Berks in that sport someday. Her track future also looks bright.
The freshman’s time at the Firing Meet could make her the No. 1 qualifier in District 3 Class 2A. This might not be her last taste of gold this spring.
Finishing first in the county didn’t seem realistic until Thursday. It didn’t seem likely until she crossed the line.
“After the prelim round when I had my PR here, I thought it was kind of possible,” Hardy said. “But I expected second or third. So at the end it was very surprising.”
Without peer
Caryn Rippey completed the distance double for the second consecutive year. After easily taking the 3200 Thursday, she won the 1600 by about seven seconds.
Wilson’s senior hit the line at 5:04.65. Those wins, combined with her second-place finish in the 800, made her the Jack Hemmig Award winner for most individual points among the girls.
It was a dominant effort by Wilson’s girls on the track. Katie Dallas won the 800 in 2:16.84 and was part of the 1600 relay team that posted a 4:01.26. Kara Brown took the 100 hurdles at 15.81. The Bulldogs won all three relays.
Wilson won the team championship with 124.75 points. Gov. Mifflin was second at 104.25 points.
Girls Firing Meet team totals
| 1 | Wilson | 124.75 |
| 2 | Gov. Mifflin | 104.25 |
| 3 | Exeter | 88 |
| 4 | Wyomissing | 65.25 |
| 5 | Schuylkill Valley | 55 |
| 6 | Fleetwood | 51.5 |
| 7 | Twin Valley | 50 |
| 8 | Muhlenberg | 34 |
| 9 | Daniel Boone | 30.5 |
| 10 | Conrad Weiser | 30 |
| 11 | Oley Valley | 20 |
| 12 | Hamburg | 13.25 |
| 13 | Reading High | 11 |
| 14 | Berks Catholic | 10.5 |
| 15 | Tulpehocken | 10 |
| 16 | Kutztown | 4 |
