Friday, April 19, 2019

Young runners visit an old track for the Lion Invitational Middle School Track Meet

Going to the track at Leon High School is like a pilgrimage. The Tallahassee, Florida venue has hosted athletics at least since the school building was built in the 1930s, and I wouldn't rule out the possibility that there were running, jumping, and throwing contests there before, when the site was still McDougal's Pasture. Six-time state champion Fondren Mitchell threw the shot and disc there in the 1930s. Jesse Forbes sprinted there in the 1970s. For local track and field, this is hallowed ground.


That probably wasn't on the mind of the middle school athletes who came to the track on Thursday afternoon, 18 April 2019. They were there for the Lion Invitational, the third track and field meet of the 2019 season for Leon County Schools. If they were thinking about anything, it was the competition at hand.


Swift Creek eighth-grader Stella Lewis won the first contest of the afternoon, the girls' 1600, running 5:50.39. It was Lewis' best mark of the season, as well as her first win. Skye Williams, a Montford seventh-grader, made her season debut in the event by running 5:56.24 and taking second. A'Zion Jackson of Raa had been third in the 1600 two weeks earlier at the Trojan Invitational and again a week earlier at the Raider Invitational. This time out she was third again, running 6:10.26, her season best.


In the boys' 1600 Wyatt Townsend of Deerlake also posted a season best. Townsend became the first Leon County Schools' middle school athlete to crack 5:00 in the event this season, finishing in a winning 4:56.62. It was the eighth-grader's third win in three outings in the 1600 during April. Fairview seventh-grader Patrick Koon placed second in 5:08.53. Jackson Rowe of Montford was third in 5:20.36.


In a match of two Fairview athletes, Makayla Caldwell got her first 100-meter hurdles victory of the season, edging Alexandria Kennedy 16.78 to 16.79. Kennedy had won the event at the season opener, the Trojan Invitational. Angel Roberts of Raa, who had won the hurdles at the Raider Invitational, placed third in 18.20.


Raa's Mikael Myrick won the boys' 100-meter hurdles with a 15.71 effort. Cade Swart of Deerlake was runner-up in 15.87. Fairview's Ranceeson Grace took third in 16.18.


The hurdles were cleared from the track and it was time for the girls' 100-meter dash. Naudia Williams of Montford won the event for the first time this season, going 13.39. Cobb's Jazlyne Famer took second in 13.83 with two Fairview runners right behind her in 13.85--Darrah Jones and Lauryn Pye.


Sheldon Richardson of Nims ran 11.73 to take first in the boys' 100. Richardson had won the 200-meter dash at the previous week's Raider Invitational, but this was his first victory of the season in the 100. Cobb's Zhantavious Mills was second in 11.92, and Keyon Brown of Fairview third in 12.07.


The starting blocks were moved up the track for girls' 400. Channey Richardson of Cobb was undefeated for the season in the one-lap event, and she stayed perfect at the Lion Invitational, running a winning 62.80. Mariona Heartsfield of Montford was runner-up in 64.17. Deerlake's Madison McNeill edged Maddison Green of Fairview for third, 64.32 to 64.36.


There was a razor-thin difference between the top two competitors in the boys' 400, but Malek Jackson got by Ja'Marie Clemons to win 53.51 to 53.53. Both Jackson and Clemons were racing for Cobb. Montford's Rhyder Poppell was third in 55.75.


The girls' 4 x 100 had belonged to Raa for the first two meets of the season, but in the third outing the Cobb girls prevailed over Raa's relay, 52.60 to 52.61. Fairview's team placed third in 53.54.


Nims, though, retained ownership of the boys 4 x 100, winning the relay for the third week in a row with a season-best mark of 45.39. The Cobb boys were second at 50.79, with Montford and Fariview close behind at 50.97 and 51.12.


Alima Hemenway had won the girls' 800 at the Trojan Invitational and the Raider Invitational, but Hemenway wasn't on the track at Leon. Skye Williams of Montford was. Williams ran 2:39.07 to take first in the two-lap race. Two or three steps back, Montford's Mariona Heartsfield was second in 2:40.25. Stella Lewis, back on the track after winning the 1600 for Swift Creek, was third in 2:44.24.


You'll recall that Ja'Marie Clemons was second in the boys' 400. Clemons wasn't second in the boys' 800. In his second 800 of the 2019 season, the Cobb athlete won the race in 2:13.36. Fairview's Justin Greenwood finished runner-up in 2:15.58. Rhyder Poppell of Montford was third in 2:18.55, just ahead of the 2:18.94 posted by 1600-meter champ Wyatt Townsend.


After her second-place showing in the girls' 100-meter hurdles, Fairview's Alexandria Kennedy won the girls' 200-meter dash with a 27.59. Gabria Cottrell, the Raider Invitational champ in the event, was second in 27.91. Channey Richardson, on the track again after her 400 win, was third in 28.07.


Malek Jackson completed a winning 400-200 double with a first-place performance of 24.55 in the boys' 200. Cobb's Jackson also competed in the boys' long jump, placing ninth at 4.73 meters. Keyon Brown of Fairview was a close second to Jackson in the 200 at 24.59, and Zanario Travis of Nims was third in 25.32.


The Fairview girls didn't run their best time in the 4 x 400, but their 4:35.08 was nevertheless the winning time in the event. It was the third week in a row that Fairview had won the girls' 4 x 400-meter relay. Fairview had run in section two, while the Cobb girls had the fastest time in section one of the relay--a 4:47.45 that earned their team second place. Deerlake and Nims battled for position in section two, with Deerlake going 4:48.22 to place third in the event and Nims 4:49.11 for fourth.


The Fairview boys made it a Falcon sweep in the 4 x 400, winning their relay in 3:54.51. The Cobb and Nims teams were not far behind, with Cobb second in 3:56.00 and Nims third in 3:58.56.


The 4 x 400 concluded racing on the track, but competition in the field events had also been going on throughout the meet. Raa's Gabria Cottrell won the girls' high jump, clearin 1.47 meters. Leah Holman of Deerlake placed second in the event at 1.42 meters. There was a four-way tie for third, with Janaysia Jennings of Cobb, Olivia Carter of Deerlake, Daphne Story of Fairview, and Nehemiah Jenkins of Nims each making 1.32 meters.


Errol Quallo of Fairview and Juvon Pettway of Swift Creek each made it over the bar at 1.57 meters in the boys' high jump, tying for first. Corey Stavres of Swift Creek and Ja'Marie Clemons of Cobb wen 1.52 meters to share third place.


Alexandria Kennedy of Fairview wasn't just second in the hurdles and first in the 200; she also won the girls' long jump, leaping 4.90 meters. It was Kennedy's third win in three weeks in the event. Ausunti Herring of Deerlake placed second, going 4.42 meters. Danae Baker of Raa and Dyani Steward of Cobb tied for third with jumps of 4.37 meters.


For the second week in a row, the boys' long jump went to Kenneth Jenkins of Raa. Jenkins' winning mark in the Lion Invitational was 5.73 meters. He had also won the Lion Invitational high jump in 2018, clearing 5.61 meters. Keyon Brown of Fairview, winner of the horizontal jump at the Trojan Invitational, took second at 5.32 meters. Ryan Jackson of Raa placed third with a jump of 5.18 meters.


Ka'Niyah Fuller of Cobb had the best mark in the girls' six-pound shot, a winning 13.54 meters. Makenzie Knight of Nims placed second, sending the metal ball 9.60 meters. Fairview's Kisiyah Rogers was third, hurling the shot 9.36 meters.


Jordan Clark of Nims ran his season record in the boys' eight-pound shot to a perfect three wins and zero losses with a winning toss of 13.54 meters, his best on the season. Ladarrion Dudley of Griffin scored a mark of 12.80 meters, taking second in the event. Fairview's Kamari Strong was third at 12.17 meters.


With all the events scored, the Fairview boys were first in the team standings with 88 points. Cobb was second in the nine-team boys' field with 82-1/2 points. The Nims boys were third with 77-3/4 points.


The Fairview girls were first among eight teams with 86-3/4 points, completing a Falcon sweep of the team titles. The Cobb girls were a close second with 82 points. Raa was third with 69-3/4 points, just ahead of the 65-1/2 points scored by fourth-place Montford.


After the Lion Invitational, just one meet remained in Leon County Schools' 2019 middle school track season--the Championship Meet at Godby High School on Thursday afternoon, 25 April 2019.


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Posted by Herb Wills at 9:29 PM
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