PHILADELPHIA, USA — Holmwood Technical’s Cedricka Williams won the discus throw event, the only high school girls’ individual medal won by a Jamaican on Thursday’s opening day of the 126th Penn Relays Carnival at a very cold Franklin Field in Philadelphia, USA.

Edwin Allen’s Serena Cole in the long jump and St Jago’s Annishka McDonald, who was ranked number one in the high jump, both failed to win their events after coming into the meet with gaudy credentials.

Williams, the Carifta Games Under-20 champion two weeks ago, threw 54.00m, the fourth best ever at the event to become the 10th Jamaican winner in the last 11 stagings and 11th overall. She was the second thrower from Holmwood Technical to win the event after Gleneve Grange in 2013.

Her mark was almost 10.00 metres better than second-placed Victoria Christie of Camperdown High (44.88m) with Ella Lucas of Warwick, Pennsylvania, third with 42.53m.

Britannie Johnson of Camperdown was fourth with 41.75m, Immaculate Conception’s Maja Henry was ninth with 39.11m and Zavien Bowen of Petersfield High 15th with 33.08m.

Cole, who won the long/triple jump double at the ISSA/GraceKennedy Champs and the Carifta Games, lost in the long jump for the first time this year when she placed second here with a wind-aided 5.98m (3.6m/s). Avery Lewis of Friends Central of Pennsylvania won the event with a jump of 6.05m (2.8m/s) in the final round.

Cole took the lead from the first round and held on to it until the final round when Lewis produced her best.

Chloe Palmer of Vere Technical was 13th with 5.10m (3.5m/s).

Annishka McDonald of St Jago, the other Jamaican in the event, was third in the high jump with 1.69m after clearing 1.78m earlier in the season.

Nene Mokonchu of Spring-Ford, Pennsylvania, won with 1.72m with Audrey Kirkutis of Conard High in Connecticut second with 1.69m.

Torian Caven of Vere Technical was 10th with 1.56m.

Brittania Johnson of Camperdown High was the best placed Jamaican in the shot put in fourth place with 13.08m, as Trinity Franklin of Bullis School in Maryland won with 14.69m, ahead of Wisdom Williams of Alexandria City, Virginia, who was second with 13.71m and Casey Sullivan of Northern Valley Regional third with 13.21m.

Jamora Alves of St Jago was sixth with 12.43m; Juliet Smith of Immaculate Conception was 11th with 11.51m and Marsha McKoy of Petersfield was 18th with 9.74m.

Natalie Albert of St Catherine High placed 10th in the javelin throw with 36.63m.

— Paul Reid