On Thursday, members of the Deerfield girls track and field team competed at the 2024 Penn Relays in Philadelphia, PA. The Big Green are set to compete in two events; the high school girls prep school 4×100 independent relay and the high school girls prep school 4×400 independent relay.
In the 4×100 relay the Big Green team including Alex Hermsdorf, Zariah Hargrove, Campbell Fealey and Kaelin Creagh and Meryl Gilbert (alternate) crossed the finish line in first place with a time of 48.75 seconds. The finishing time bested the Penn Relays event record of 49.40 set in 2017 by St. Catherine’s (Richmond, VA).
It was exciting race for the Big Green that came down to the final leg of the relay when anchor runner Kaelin Creagh came from behind to surpass fellow NEPSAC opponent from Loomis Chaffee before the finish line.
Click here for the 4×100 relay results.
The girls track & field team returned to the track in the afternoon to compete in the 4×400 M relay. In the opening leg, Campbell Fealey established an early lead for the Big Green and never looked back. She passed the baton to Alex Hermsdorf who then carried the baton to Meryl Gilbert and finally passed it to Kaelin Creagh. Alexis Miller served as team alternate for the race. With each Big Green runner pacing around the track, the Doors extended their lead with every lap. In the anchor leg for the Big Green, Kaelin Creagh crossed the finish line in first place with a time of 3:58.59. Followed again by Loomis Chaffee in second place with a time of 4:07.12
Click here for the 4×400 relay results.
Coach Keegan shared her recap on the day:
“Insofar as one can imagine a perfect day on the track, the girls 4x100m and 4x400m relays had one at the Penn Relays. With representation from nearly every grade level, the relays won both of their heats in stunning fashion. Alex Hermsdorf, Zariah Hargrove, Campbell Fealy, and Kaelin Creagh set a Prep School Meet Record in the 4x100m with a time of 48.75 seconds. The 4x400m relay team of Campbell Fealy, Alex Hermsdorf, Meryl Gilbert, and Kaelin Creagh broke the 4-minute barrier for the first time in school history and ran 3:58 to win by nearly 10 seconds over Loomis. Thanks to Campbell’s perfect, aggressive start, they lead the race every single step of the way. Kaelin closed in 55.5 seconds, a feat that only a handful of high school girls in the nation are capable of. Every runner ran a season’s best. This is truly a day they’ll remember for the rest of their lives!”