Firebirds Compete in 121st Running of Historic Penn Relays

PHILADELPHIA - Despite chilly temperatures on April 23^rd and 24^th, the Firebirds braved the elements and competed at the oldest and largest Track & Field meet in the United States, the Penn Relays at Franklin Field.

Thursday was a very busy day for the Firebirds as they lined up in three different events. They ran in the 4x100M Relay with the quartet of Brittany Okon, Simone Grant, Shayna Hodge and Simone Grant. They fell victim to a botched hand-off on the first exchange and weren't able to recover, finishing 8^th among nine teams competing in Heat 6 of the College Women's 4x100m Relay.

Simone Grant was the only individual competitor for the Firebirds, and she held her own in the College section of the Women's Long Jump. Her mark of 5.43M was a respectable 22^nd best overall among 53 competitors.

On Friday, the Firebirds put forth a good showing in the Heats of the College Women's 4x400M Relay. Competing in Heat 7, the team of Jerily Benjamin, Marlena Wright, Kimoy Mais and Simone Grant would be in for a very competitive race. Mid-pack for the most of the race, the Firebirds would get a big finish from anchor leg runner Simone Grant, going from 5^th to 2^nd place as she just caught two teams right at the finish line. Their time of 3:58.09 was 2^nd best among nine teams competing in the Heat, and 51^st overall among the large field of 83 teams in the event.

Friday also saw the Firebirds in action competing in the 4x200M with Simone Grant, Brittany Okon, Marlena Wright and Jerily Benjamin. They were 8^th in Heat 6, finishing in a time of 1:44.62. That time had them 42^nd among 61 teams competing in the event.