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Philadelphia Tribune - Penn relay Supplement - Friday, April 24, 2009 - Index

Page 8
Philadelphia Tribune Friday, April 24, 2009
Local grad ready to take on The World
Donald Hunt
Tribune Staff Writer
When Juanita Broaddus was
a major track and field star for
William Penn High School, she
always wanted to run in the
USA vs. The World event at the
Penn Relays. Broaddus, a 5foot-6
sprinter, will have an opportunity
to run in one of the
biggest events of the meet on
Saturday afternoon at Penn’s
Franklin Field. The former LSU
All-American can hardly wait to
get on the track to run for USA
team in the 4x100-meter relay.
“This is really exciting,”
Broaddus said. “I remember
coming to the Penn Relays
when I was going to Roosevelt
(Middle School). Then, I came to
the Penn Relays with William
Penn. I always enjoyed watching
the USA vs. The World race.
I always dreamed about running
for USA.
“I always told myself that
would be one of my dreams.
When I got the e-mail from USA
Track and Field confirming that
I could go, it was a big relief. I
really don’t have the chills yet.
But when I get there and put
that uniform on it’s going to be
different.”
Broaddus had a terrific year
for the Lady Tigers last season.
She helped LSU win its first national
championship since 2004
by earning All-America honors
in the 100-meter dash at the
NCAA Outdoor Track and Field
Championships in Des Moines,
Iowa. She finished in eighth
place in the final to earn her
first individual All-America
honor. Broaddus ran a personal
best 11.17 in the 100 meters.
Broaddus wanted to make
the U.S. Olympic track and
field team. Unfortunately, she
got hurt in the national championship
meet.
“I made it to the Olympic trials,
but I got hurt in the
NCAAs,” said Broaddus, who
also starred for Barton County
Community College. “I strained
my (left) hamstring. I was hoping
it wasn’t that bad. I took
two weeks off after the nation-
als. I thought it was going to be
okay.
“I went to the trials and
couldn’t finish the 100 (meters).
I went like the first 50
meters my legs couldn’t hold
up any more. I had to walk
across the finish line. It was the
worst feeling. I had worked so
hard to get to that point.”
After the trials, Broaddus
turned professional. She signed
with Nike and trains out of
Chapel Hill, N.C.
“My coach is Anthony Parker,”
Broaddus said. “He went to
Overbrook High School. He ran
track at Saint Augustine’s College.
He’s doing a real good job.
He’s getting me ready for the
spring season. So far, I ran a
few indoor meets in Brussels,
Paris (France) and Germany.”
Broaddus will make her outdoor
debut in track and field at
the Penn Relays. This should
be a very special moment in her
career.
“The Penn Relays will be my
first meet this spring,” she said.
“I’m going to be opening up at
home. I already have a lot of
family and friends calling me. I
know they’re going to be chanting
“USA! USA!” I remember
when I used to chant that in
the stands. This is going to be
really something for me.”
Relays homecoming for Texas star
Donald Hunt
Tribune Staff Writer
When Angel Patterson was
running track for the University
of Texas eight years ago, she
always looked forward to coming
back to Philly to participate
in the Penn Relays. Patterson,
a former William Penn High
star, grew up running in the
country’s oldest track and field
meet. She couldn’t wait to bring
her college teammates to
Penn’s Franklin Field to perform
in front of 35,000 fans on
Saturday afternoon.
“That was a chance to come
and brag,” Patterson said. “I
told my teammates how big the
Penn Relays is in Philly. I didn’t
come home that much when I
was in college. The Penn Relays
gave me a chance to get some
Herr’s Potato Chips,
TastyKakes and a cheesesteak.
It was nice coming back from
Texas to run at the Penn Relays.
I have some good memo-
Juanita Broaddus, a former track and field star for William Penn High School, will return to The
Penn Relays to run with the U.S. Olympic Team.
Angel Patterson
ries from my days at William
Penn. It was great to be able to
run there in high school and
college.”
Patterson was a 12-time All
American with the Longhorns.
She was a terrific 400-meter
hurdler. She ran on the 4x400meter
relay team. In addition,
Patterson led Texas to the
1999 NCAA Outdoor Track and
Field championship. She graduated
from Texas in 2002 with
a degree in social work. Patterson
no longer runs, but is still
a big fan of the Penn Relays.
“It’s a lot of fun,” said Patterson,
who anchored the 4x400meter
relay to lead William
Penn to a 1996 Penn Relays
championship. “You can still
see a lot of friends down there.
The Penn Relays has some
great athletes coming in each
year. Track was really big in
the Public League. We won a
lot of championships at
William Penn. We had some
good athletes like Tasha Staten,
Christina Smith and Gorgeous
Harper. Simon Gratz
was good, too. I remember
Joyce Bates and Jamillah
Wade who ran for Simon
Gratz.”
Patterson, a member of the
Pennsylvania Track and Field
Hall of Fame, could have
turned pro after her college career.
However, she decided to
join the work force immediately
following graduation. Patterson
worked in the city’s probation
department from 2002 to
2008. She now works as a
dean of students for a K-12
charter school in the city.
“I had thought about running
professionally,” Patterson
said. “It was certainly something
that I could have done.
The only thing was I wanted to
work with young people. I
wanted to make a difference in
their lives. I started when I was
in the probation department.
I’m now working at a charter
school. I’m working with students
who have a lot of potential.
It’s nice to see them do
well in school.”
Tim Hickey was Patterson’s
track and field coach in high
school. Hickey has seen her
develop on and off the track.
“Angel is a wonderful young
lady,” Hickey said. “She was a
probation officer for a while.
Now, she’s a disciplinarian in
a charter school. She does a
great job with the kids there.
“Angel had a summer to determine
whether she was
going to continue running pro
or not. She went down to
Texas and got her degree. She
knew what she wanted to do.
She really has done well.”
Patterson used track and
field as a tool to receive a good
education. She realized a long
time ago that sports would
provide her with a bright future.
“I got a scholarship for running
track,” Patterson said.
“That helped to pay for my education.
I realized that I was
very fortunate. I had great
coaching in college from Bev
Kearney and Mr. Hickey really
helped me at William Penn. It
was important for me to get
my education and come back
home. I wanted to inspire others
to do the same thing.”