By Gary Curreri

S’kaydrah Woods made a triumphant return to South Florida as she capped off her middle school career with a victory in the 200-meter dash in the recent Broward County Middle School Track and Field championships at Coral Springs High School.

The Pompano Beach Middle School eighth grader moved to Central Florida last year with her father but came back in time to turn in a huge performance at the track meet.

Woods was second in the 100-meter dash (13.00) and the 400-meter dash (58.68) before winning the 200-meter dash (26.43) and her efforts helped her school finish fourth with 30 points in the girls competition.

“Track is like a job,” said the 14-year-old Woods. “I love to do it. I like track because it is hard and you have to work for it. You just can’t go out there and expect to win and I like working hard. I like to compete.”

The three-time Junior Olympic champion in 2009 plans to compete this summer in the Junior Olympics with the FINESSE Track Club.

Another Pompano Beach Middle School track athlete also picked up a first place finish with a strong effort.

Marc Maurency, 15, won the boys 800-meter run by nearly four seconds over Arthur Ashe’s Deandre Miles as he completed the race in 2:08.89. Maurency, an eighth grader, came in third last year in the same event.

“I want to do this forever,” said Maurency, who shaved six seconds off his previous best time and helped the boys’ team finish second overall. “I want to go to the Olympics. I love track.”

Maurency said the win was very satisfying.

“This is the biggest thing that ever happened to me and this shows me I can do anything I want if I just set my mind to it,” Maurency said. “A lot of people told me I couldn’t do nothing, but I just proved them wrong. When I went through the finish line, that was the best moment ever.”

Pompano’s Benjamin Victor won the high jump with a 5-8 jump, while Deerfield Beach Middle School’s Jenicka Theodor placed fourth in the long jump for its only points of the meet.