Riley represents for Mpls North
Twin sisters Jia Lewis and Jada Lewis — the Minneapolis Edison stars who made their mark on the 1A track and field scene the past two seasons — led the Tommies to the Class 1A girls’ track and field championships held last Saturday at Hamline University.
The Lewis sisters, along with Chauntel Fleming and Linda Senaphanh, placed first in the 4 x 100 relay with a time of 48.85, and placed in the 100 and 200 meter dashes despite the dominance of Minneapolis North sprinter T’Nia Riley in both events.
Riley, only a sophomore, burst onto the scene when she set a 1A record in the 100 prelims, finishing with a time of 11.95 last Friday. The next day she won the 100 in 12.18 and the 200 in 25.06.
Jia Lewis placed second in the 100 (12.31) and 200 (25.10), while Jada Lewis finished fourth in the 100 (12.18) and third in the 200 (25.51).
Those finishes propelled Edison to the 1A title after placing second last season.
For Minneapolis North, Riley’s accomplishments and a fifth-place finish in the long jump by sophomore Corelone Powell-Smith (21’7”) capped off an outstanding year in athletics for the Polars.
The football team finished runner-up in 1a competition. The boys’ basketball team captured the 1A crown. The junior varsity girls’ basketball team captured the Twin Cities championship.
For Edison, who placed second in last year’s competition, the future looks bright. Jada Lewis and Jia Lewis finished their season as underclassmen and will be back.
Oh, and don’t think that Riley is the only sprinter representing North in the future. She, along with fellow sophomores Idaesha Hill, Bryana Thomas-Butler and Lauren Porter, helped North’s 4 x 100 team qualify for the state prelims.
For North and Edison, the future has promise.
Mitchell Palmer McDonald welcomes reader responses to mmcdonald@spokesman-recorder.com.
Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald is a contributing columnist at the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.