Six DCCC Phantoms Track and Field student-athletes have qualified for the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III Outdoor Track and Field National Meet. (L to R): Aidan Heppard, Jimmy Love, Fatumata Kaba, Daniel McLaughlin and Fred “Tre” McCray. Not pictured: Daishon Billops. Courtesy DCCC.

(Delaware and Chester Counties, PA)—They do not even have a track of their own, but that has not stopped the Delaware County Community College Phantoms Men’s and Women’s Track and Field team from tearing it up this spring. Six DCCC student-athletes have qualified for the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III Outdoor Track and Field National Meet, to be held May 8-10, 2025, in Utica, N.Y.

Throughout the cold, rainy late winter and early spring, the athletes have been working out twice a week at 6:30 a.m. at Interboro High School track in Prospect Park and twice a week at DCCC’s Marple Campus. And each weekend, they have continued to run faster and jump farther, setting school and personal records in the process of qualifying for Nationals.

The six student-athletes will compete against the nation’s best in eight different events. Several athletes have qualified in multiple events, and all previously made their marks on the Delaware County high school track and field circuit. DCCC’s Nationals qualifiers, with their events and high school/hometowns, are:

Fatumata Kaba – Women’s 100m, Long Jump and Triple Jump
Academy Park High School/ Sharon Hill, Pa.

Daishon Billops – Men’s 110m High Hurdles
Imhotep Charter High School/Darby Township, Pa.

Aidan Heppard – Men’s 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m Relay
Ridley High School/Swarthmore, Pa.

Fred ‘Tre’ McCray – Men’s 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m Relay
Upper Darby High School/Upper Darby, Pa.

Daniel McLaughlin – Men’s 110m High Hurdles, 400m Intermediate Hurdles and 4 x 100m Relay
Strath Haven High School/Rutledge, Pa.

Jimmy Love – Men’s 100m, 200m and 4 x 100m Relay
Ridley High School/Ridley, Pa.

Thrilled for their athletes are Phantoms head coach Cara Fordenbacher and assistant coach Elisa Ford. Fordenbacher ran cross-country and track and field for Eastern University in St. Davids, Pa., and was a member of the first indoor track conference championship team in Eastern’s history. Ford has experience herself on a national stage. She competed in track and field for Arizona State University and was a 1980 Olympic hopeful whose dreams were dashed by the U.S.’s boycott of those Games. She continues to compete and will be participating in the 2025 National Senior Games this coming July.

“Being a part of a Varsity Athletics program at a community college affords students with a robust collegiate experience. Athletes can take college classes at an affordable price, while also representing their school as an athlete,” Fordenbacher says. “DCCC in particular offers great resources and support to students to help them on their academic journey, as well as many opportunities to get involved on campus whether in a sport or club, in a work-study position, or through participating in events on campus.”

DCCC Athletics Director Dwayne Saunders is extremely proud of what the student-athletes and coaches have achieved thus far and is looking forward to their performances at the NJCAA Div. III National Meet.

“This provides a great opportunity for Delaware County Community College athletics, and DCCC as a whole.”