Pascal, tired from running all day at the Region of Peel Secondary School Athletic Association track and field championships, walked out of Centennial Park in Etobicoke last night with three gold medals.
"It feels really great; I would have never expected this," said the St. Marcellinus Secondary School student, who topped the midget girls' field in the high jump, 100-metre dash and, with help from her teammates, the 4x100-metre relay.
"I knew my (relay) team was depending on me and I didn't want to let them down," said Pascal, who received the baton for the final stretch. "I didn't get to train with them because I was at the high jump event, but they were very supportive."
Now, the team of Ashley Schipani, Monique Genard, Trayl Bharath and Pascal can't wait for the Ontario finals.
"This is what we've been training for," said Bharath. "First ROPSSAA, and then South regionals, and finally OFSAA.
"Right now, our speed and positioning are good, but we need to practice on our handoffs."
In the junior girls' relay, the St. Marcellinus team of Jasmine Patterson, Melissa Hewitt, Stephanie Marotta and Jasmine Dear also brought home gold.
Hewitt also won the junior girls' 100m event.
"It feels amazing; I've been training so hard," said the Mississauga Track Club athlete. "I didn't do as good as I wanted to in the 100 metres, but I'm really looking forward to the regionals and OFSAA."
Dontae Richards-Kwok of The Woodlands won the senior boys' 100m (10.90 seconds) while picking up a bronze in the javelin.
Finishing second in the 100m semi-final, Richards-Kwok knew he had to get out quicker.
"The gun was really quick in the semis," he said. "So when the finals came around, I was more prepared."
Taylor Mathers of St. Marcellinus also walked away with multiple gold medals, breaking Peel records in both the junior discus throw and shot put.
Mathers threw 48.19 metres in the discus, smashing the old record by more than four metres.
"I wanted to get a new personal best," said Mathers, who threw 50.50 metres last week at a meet in Niagara. "But it does feel good to hold the record now."
In the shot put, he threw 13.88 metres, breaking the old record of 13.13.
St. Aloysius Gonzaga teammates Lauren Leon and Keesha Danso-Dapaah were also multiple winners.
Leon captured gold in the senior girls' 400m and bronze in the 100m.
Danso-Dapaah, who won the senior girls' 1,500m and took home silver in the 400m, will be looking for her third medal, in the 800m, as the two-day ROPSSAA meet concludes today.
"You just have to believe in yourself and not be big-headed," said Danso-Dapaah, who has been winning medals in the same three events since Grade 9.
She says the 800m is her favourite.
"It's the toughest of the three," she said.
Other multiple winners were Loyola's Chris Dulhanty (gold in the 2,000m open steeplechase and silver in the junior boys' 1,500m), Hussien Hashi of The Woodlands (silver in steeplechase and bronze in senior boys' 1,500m) and Lorne Park's Sara Giovannetti (silver in the 1,500m steeplechase and bronze in senior girls' 1,500m).
onlinenews@mississauga.net
