Rocky Point's Alexandra Kelly wins triple jump, breaks state mark

CICERO, N.Y. – There was a part of Alexandra Kelly that thought it just wasn’t going to happen. Her ultimate goal, the state triple jump record, seemed out of reach and she would just have to go on to Princeton without it.

That was Saturday morning.

On Saturday afternoon, there was a new record holder.

Kelly, a Rocky Point senior, mustered up a weekend of frustration and exploded it into the sand, winning the state Federation triple jump championship and breaking a 12-year-state record with a 42 foot, five inch flight on the second and final day of the state track and field championships at Cicero – North Syracuse High School.

Kelly broke the previous state mark of 42-4, set by Westbury’s Marlene Ricketts at the St. Anthony’s Invitational in 2010, according to milesplit.com.

“Coming down the runway, I had so much speed and, in my head, I was just going ‘make it big, make it big,” Kelly said. “By the time I got there, it just kind of exploded.”

Kelly entered Saturday afternoon’s triple jump – her final event of the weekend – with a string of second places. She was second in the Federation long jump (18-6), second in the Division I long jump (19- 2 ½), and second in the Division I triple jump (41- 8 ¼). The Division I classification groups public school athletes according to school size, while the Federation championships include all schools in the state, regardless of status or size.

“I was definitely upset after yesterday, but I had to shrug it off,” Kelly said.

Kelly’s Division I triple jump was, at the time, a personal best, she said. She wasn’t sure if she could extend that to the record distance when Saturday came around.

“I PR’d yesterday, and I kind of thought that was going to be it,” Kelly said, “I hit my peak for the season, so I didn’t come into [Saturday] with too much confidence. But, the second we got over to the [jumping] pits, I kind of just snapped out of it.”

Without any expectations, Kelly was free to jump. It was the first time in a while that the record was not hanging over her, and that’s exactly what she needed to smash it.

“I think it helped a little to not be freaking out about being on top and just looking to do the best that I could do,” Kelly said.

When she landed that fourth and final jump and heard the number, Kelly could barely believe it.

“I just kind of stood there,” she said. “I didn’t really know how to react at first. But then, it all kind of hit.”

On the track, Elmont’s Ashley Fulton won the Federation 200 meters in 24.68 seconds, clipping past Mohonasen’s Zionna Perez-Tucker, who was second in 24.77. Fulton also won the Division I 100 in 12.14 seconds and the Division I 200 in 24.23.

“In the 200, I get off really fast in the start and I try to pass everybody within their lanes. I try to break the stagger,” Fulton said. “Then, coming off into the straightaway, I just keep calm and keep my form together. That’s exactly how [Saturday’s] race went.”

Despite the long weekend of travel and racing, Fulton said she was ready to go when the final 200 began.

“I’m used to doing a lot of 200s at practice,” Fulton said. “It was just like practice, except I’m executing it at a meet.”

Mount Sinai’s Kate Del Gandio once again proved that she’s the best hurdler in the state, winning the Federation 100-meter hurdles in 14.81 seconds and the Division I 100 hurdles in 14.74 seconds. The Federation final was the last race of Del Gandio’s high school career, she said. The Albany-bound hurdler will not be competing in any of the various national meets because of a conflict with her dance school.

“It’s really emotional,” said Del Gandio, who won the 55-meter hurdle indoor state championship in March. “I got up on the podium and it just hit me, this is the last time. I’m never going to wear this uniform again. It’s been real fun four years. But, it’s on to bigger and better things for me now and this morning I woke up and said, ‘let’s finish up your senior year strong [as a] back-to-back New York State champion.”