Isbell does little of everything, leads Wash High to title
Waynesburg Central High School’s Hunter Cennane took 1st place with a leap of 40 feet 7inches in the men’s triple jump at the Washington - Greene County Coaches Track Meet at Peters Township High School field in Peters Township Saturday.
Winners of the mens 1600 meter relay stand on the podium for photographs and their medals at the Washington - Greene County Coaches Track Meet at Peters Township High School field in Peters Township Saturday.
Peters Township’s Luca Pugliano gives it his all as he keeps ahead of McGuffey’s Cole Vaughn to win the boy’s 1,600-meter relay at the Washington-Greene County Coaches Track & Field Championship at Peters Township High School Saturday.
Peters Township high school’s 1600 meter relay team poses for pictures after the awards ceremony where they placed 1st at the Washington - Greene County Coaches Track Meet at Peters Township High School field in Peters Township Saturday. From left: Ryan Ponchione, Zach Rile, Matt Dekmon and Luca Pugliano.
Waynesburg Central high school’s Caitlin Brooks, right, sits bundled up in her sleeping bag as she and teammate Jessie Belding watch the boys triple jump at the Washington - Greene County Coaches Track Meet at Peters Township High School field in Peters Township Saturday.
Fort Cherry’s Joz Wiakowski leaped 36 feet 4 3/4 inches to take 1st place in the girls triple jump at the Washington - Greene County Coaches Track Meet held at Peters Township High School field in Peters Township Saturday.
Fort Cherry’s Joz Wiakowski leaped 36 feet 4 3/4 inches to take 1st place in the girls triple jump at the Washington - Greene County Coaches Track Meet held at Peters Township High School field in Peters Township Saturday.
McMURRAY – DeQuay Isbell had every reason to sit out the Washington-Greene County Coaches’ Track & Field Championships Saturday. A pulled right hamstring forced him to limp across the turf field at Peters Township. With Washington competing in the WPIAL Class AA team semifinals Tuesday, resting would be understandable.
Isbell was not going to use that as an excuse to measure himself against the area’s best. The Wash High senior wanted to defend his 400-meter dash title from last year and establish himself as the fastest runner in Washington County.
He accomplished that and more.
Isbell took first place in the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes as well as a gold medal in the high jump. The four top finishes were enough to earn Isbell the Most Valuable Combination Athlete of the meet and he helped the Prexies claim another Class AA team title.
“My goal was to come in and get as many gold medals as I could,” Isbell said. “I knew if I could come out and get first place in every event, that it would show I’m the fastest person in the county and one of the fastest in the WPIAL. That way I won’t be taken lightly at the bigger meets.”
Isbell made his point.
He inched out Ringgold freshman Brenden Small for the 100-meter dash crown with a time of 11.24, beat teammate Kurt Adkins with 22.73 in the 200 and had a personal best of 49.97 in the 400-meter dash – 0.37 away from tying the meet record.
After finishing second in WPIAL Class AA in the 400-meter dash last year and winning the PIAA title in the 3200 relay, Isbell wanted to focus on an individual state title. He has quickly become Wash High’s top sprinter this season, leading the Prexies to a 9-0 record in Section 6-AA.
Entering Saturday’s meet, he had his eye on Small, who has been one of the top sprinters in Class AAA. Though he started slowly out of the blocks, Isbell shot past Small in the final stretch for the 100-meter gold medal.
“He’s a great runner,” Small said of Isbell. “He came out well. He caught up to me in the last 20-30 meters. Those long legs got me. He’s really good.”
Wash High coach Theresa Booker is never surprised by Isbell’s talent. He is the ultimate utility athlete for the Prexies. He can compete in any event. When Wash High needed a competitor for the high jumps, she turned to Isbell.
Though he does not practice the event very often and needed an electronic muscle stimulation pack throughout the day to ease his hamstring problems, Isbell jumped 5-10 – two inches higher than teammate Isaiah Robinson for first place.
“He did excellent. He’s been working real hard and we expect that from him,” Booker said. “I’m looking forward to seeing what he does in WPIALs. He really hasn’t been doing much with the high jump, but I’m glad we have him this year. I couldn’t be happier for him.”
Isbell had a personal best of 10.7 in the 100-meter dash at the Monessen Invitational early this month and ran a 22.1 in the 200 at the same meet. He is one of many performers who have helped Wash High continue its sterling reputation in track and field. The team has succeeded despite not having a home track while Wash High Stadium is undergoing renovations.
“We are trying to decide where else to run him,” Booker explained. “Maybe the 800 and we have to decide what relay to put him in. He’s a kid we can put anywhere. He naturely has that ability.”
The Prexies had 10 top-three finishers Saturday. Senior Zack Blystone won the shot put title (50-8) and sophomore Ben Heim took second in the 800-meter run (2:02.98).
Isbell was happy to be the leader of the group, which defeated McGuffey for the Class AA crown with 108 points.
“My coaches look to me and everybody looks to be to be one of the hardest workers on the team,” Isbell said. “Getting a push from all of the great athletes on our team helps a lot. It puts you in a good spot and shows that everything will work out fine.
It’s all about hard work and our entire team has it.”