CR has seven of top eight back from title team
By JENNIFER JAVIER
Staff reporter
09/05/2002
CAMDEN -- Two
years ago, Kashante and Kasheka Codner arrived at Caesar Rodney. The
sisters were both runners, fresh off a move from Virginia, and didn't know
much about Delaware cross country.
"All we heard about when we got here was the upstate schools, like
Brandywine," said Kashante, a senior. "People came up and told
us to go out for cross country. They said, 'There's this girl named Jill
on the team, and she's really good. She could use some people to help her
out.' But people didn't say much about the team."
That "girl named Jill" was Jill Hajec, the Caesar Rodney
standout who had been the Division I state champion the year before.
So the Codners joined the team, Kashante as a sophomore, Kasheka a
freshman. And they gave the Riders a big boost, as CR became the first
Henlopen team to win the Division I girls state title last year.
Hajec won a second individual title, while three other Riders finished
in the top 10, including Kashante (sixth) and Kasheka (eighth).
Now that Hajec is gone, it is up to the Codners to help lead a team
that returns seven of its top eight runners.
"Everyone is expecting a lot out of CR this year," Kasheka
said. "Our main goal running this year is to show everyone we can do
it without Jill."
Having the Codners isn't be a bad start. Since their family moved to
Dover from Langley Air Force Base in Virginia, Kashante and Kasheka have
been making names for themselves.
In 2000, Kashante finished third and Kasheka took fifth in the Division
I state meet. Kashante also posted one of the five fastest times in the
state that year. The sisters have been consistent top-10 finishers in most
of the major meets in Delaware.
The Codners' cross country roots took hold in Virginia. As an
eighth-grader, Kashante ran in one-mile races and a friend encouraged her
to run cross country. Kasheka, a year younger, followed her sister and
also ran when she became an eighth-grader.
"My mom, back when I was in eighth grade, begged me to do it since
my sister was already running," Kasheka said. "I tried it then
and have done it ever since. It's not a lot of fun sometimes, but you get
used to it after a while."
The Codner sisters have been running on the same teams for four years.
It is not unusual to see them running together in a race, with Kashante
finishing first.
"I've always wanted to beat her," Kasheka said. "It
hasn't happened yet. We try to run together, but that doesn't ever work.
She always speeds up when she looks behind her and sees me."
But no matter who finishes first between the two this year, both know
they're running for the same prize: a second state title.
"Everybody puts their part in," Kashante said. "It's not
like they're depending on me. We all depend on each other. We had four
come in the top 10 at the state meet last year."
 The News Journal/GARY EMEIGH |
| Kasheka Codner (left) and her sister, Kashante, are two of the key runners for Caesar Rodney this season. |
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