The Track and Field season is back from Spring Break and the annually busy period saw an enormous amount of results worth considering as the state championships approach. Grace Smith (Westminster) had a strong showing at the Sixth Annual Spring Break Showcase and took first in the 100 and 200 meter (12.05, 24.98) to help lead the Wildcats to a first-place team finish. Teammate Palmer Walstad earned a third-place finish in the 1600 meter (5:06.05) and then topped the field in the 3200 meter with a time of 11:20.35. Kelsey Chambers matched Cherokee’s Toni Warren with a 5-2 high jump. On the boys side, Hughes earned a team victory and received top finishes in the 100 and 200 meter with Maurice Gleaton (10.55, 21.54). William Gituku won the boys 400 meter with a blazing 40.08 and Hughes’ Torey Arnold took second-place with a 50.43. Hughes also won the 4x100 and 4x200 meter relays and finished second in the 4x400 meter relay. Hughes’ top finish was also fueled in the field with Malachi Yehudah’s 6-6 high jump and a 21-6.5 long jump by Jaden Barnes.
Starr’s Mill hosted the Friday Night Lights two weeks ago and Stephenson’s Jace Coleman took the top time in the boys 100 and 200 meter (10.98, 21.71). Carrollton crowded the podium with Will Jennings (1:56.78) winning the 800 meter and Noah Martinson taking the 1600 meter (4:23.15) and 3200 meter (9:20.18).
The Paulding County Championships saw North Paulding dominate the girls field and East Paulding eclipse the Wolfpack for first place on the boys side. The Lady Wolfpack earned 181 points to second-place East Paulding’s 78. The East Paulding boys racked up 151 points with North Paulding coming in with a 103.5 team score.
As for the team scores, the Marietta boys dominated the Cobb County Meet with a 132.50 mark and Hillgrove finished second with 92. Host McEachern earned third with 87.50, Harrison finished fourth with 53 and Campbell tallied 45 to edge Pebblebrook’s 44.50. On the girls side, Marietta also took first with a 130 team score and Hillgrove finished runner up with 106 ahead of Walton (85) and McEachern (72).
At the Gwinnett County championships, Parkview’s Elijah Jenkins edged Devin Williams (10.65) in the 100 meter with a 10.63, but Williams took the 200 meter with a 21.54. All of those finishes were personal records. Georgia Tech football-commit Bryce Dopson took first in the 300 meter hurdle with a personal record 37.93 time.
On the girls side, Brookwood’s Janai Jones earned another top 100 meter finish with a 11.90, while Buford’s Sydney Harris took first in the 200 meter (24.32) and 400 meter (54.95). All of which were personal record times.
The state’s top high jumper, Riyon Rankin of Brunswick High School earned a first place at the Game Changers Apex Invite in Richmond Hill with a 7′1 mark.
About the Author
