The 2013 track season is well under way, which means it is time for an update on some of the impressive performances of our high school athletes. Last weekend, many area teams traveled to Jacksonville on Friday for the Bolles Bulldog Classic. The weather was sunny with a slight chill in the air, which was perfect for both sprinters and distance runners. Many Tallahassee athletes placed in the top 8 of their respective events at this competitive meet and scored points for their teams. After a long day of competing, Maclay’s Kyle Weaver earned 3rd in the pole vault by clearing 13-06.00. Finishing third in the discus and second in the shot put, Shontielle Johnson from Chiles threw the discus 104-01 and the shot 36-02.00, and Maclay’s Lindsey Poole was sixth in the discus (98-11). Also scoring for Chiles in the discus, Saliba Fredrick was fourth with his throw of 132-01.

Meanwhile, the running events started on the track. In the first running event of the day, the 4×800, Maclay’s ladies finished seventh (10:04.13), and their guys were third (8:15.67). Next in the day’s events were the hurdles, and the Timberwolves earned 5 points from Justin Cromartie’s fourth place finish in the 110 hurdles (15.20). Cromartie was also fourth in the 300 hurdles (41.78). In the 100 meter dash, Leon’s Travis Amey, who is only a sophomore, finished seventh (11.07); he was second in the 200 (22.29), which is also a competitive and tight race. Although there was a large pack for the first two laps of the mile Rachel Givens from Chiles separate herself and finished first (5:09.76), and Kristin Sweeney from Maclay was second (5:13.35). Accomplishing this feat almost entirely solo, Lincoln’s Trevor Touchton ran a winning 4:20.42 in the 1600. Even though she is a freshman, Maclay’s Tamani Wilson dominated the 400 in 58.33 with the nearest competitor over a second and a half behind her! A short time after she won the 1600, Rachel Givens earned second title in the 800 (2:23.71). Trevor Touchton also ran the 800, and he won again in 1:55.58. Will Spiers (1:56.89) and Avery Bartlett (2:01.12) from Chiles were second and fourth. In the ladies’ 3200, Sara Lane from Chiles and Autumn Wable from Leon worked together to seventh and eighth place finishes with times of 11:41.29 and 11:41.58. One of the most remarkable performances of the evening was Sukhi Khosla’s 9:16.73 3200. He won the race by almost 18 seconds! Leon’s Wil Luca (9:47.47), Leon’s Will Henderson (9:47.68), and Chiles’ Cade Zimmerman (9:48.94) swept sixth through eighth in this event. Finishing out the day, the guys’ 4×400 from Chiles finished fifth (3:32.87). For the early season, this was a successful day!

Meanwhile, in Tallahassee, Florida High hosted a meet. There were several notable performances. In the triple jump, Andrew Glover of Rickards jumped 41-02.25 for second place. Florida High’s Jhori Stallworth (110-04.50) and Symone Holliday (107-08.50) went 2-3 in the discus, and their teammate, Tevin Floyd, was second in the discus with his throw of 129-00. In the 100 meter hurdles, Deanne Roberts won 10 points for Florida High in 17.21. Her teammate, Justin Lucas, also won the 110 hurdles in 16.55. The 4×100 races went well, and Florida High won both the guys’ (43.80) and the girls’ races (52.97). Ma’Rhea Everheart won the 200 in 26.39 as did Josh Davis in 22.39. Needless to say, Florida High won the meet for both teams. Rickard’s guys were third. FAMU’s ladies were seventh, and their guys were fifth. John Paul II was ninth in the guys’ division. Community Christian’s girls were eighth, and their boys were seventh.

Godby, Lincoln, and Rickards went to yet another meet, the Larry Clark Track and Field Invitational, in Bainbridge, Georgia. Jadzia Beasley from Lincoln won the 100 meter dash in 12.45. Godby’s Jazmyn Evans came home with gold in the 100 meter hurdles (15.23). The Trojans earned 10 more points with their 50.01 4×100, but Rickards ousted Lincoln in the 4×200 (1:44.07). In the 4×400, Godby took a turn atop the podium with a 4:08.92. In the guys’ competition, Lincoln’s Reggie Davis sprinted the 100 meter dash in 10.75 to first place, and he also dominated the 200 meter dash in 21.66. Overall, Godby ended up winning the women’s competition. Rickards was fifth, and Lincoln was sixth. For the guys, NFC finished third; Godby was fifth, and Lincoln was eighth.

It was a busy weekend for Tallahassee track teams! Teams will scatter again this weekend, and some will even take the weekend off for spring break. These times and marks are precursors for some even better performances later in the season.