Girls Events Recap
As predicted, the girls field events were just as loaded as the Elite races, and there were a number of national-caliber performances from both days:
- The meet started off on fire, as the first event produced an exciting finish and what were the top two times in the nation at the moment (although Saturday's race in New York would change that). Leesville Road took the lead early in the 4x800, but E.C. Glass (VA) rallied on the final stretch to make it incredibly close: Leesville 9:16.62 US #5, Glass 9:16.65 US #6.
- After several close attemps, Chesney Ward (Ragsdale) finally cleared 13 feet in the pole vault, moving her up to US #7 & NC #2 All-Time. She wasn't the only one with a breakthrough, as Tessa Sheets (Northwood) cracked the 12-foot barrier for the first time, taking over NC #2. It was Adele Blalock (Bishop England SC) who finished 2nd, however, clearing 12' 6".
- Peighton Simmons (TW Andrews) went beyond 38 feet in the triple jump for the second straight weekend, staying just ahead of Shanthi Hiremath (Maggie Walker VA) at 37' 11" and Jada Woods (Hopewell) at 37' 10".
- Lauren White (Rolesville) became only the second North Carolina girl to break 18 feet this winter (seriously, what universe are we in?), but she didn't win - that was Daloria Boone (Baldwin GA) going 18' 4".
- Kenya Livingston (Rocky River) continued to assert her position as the top high jumper in the state, clearing 5' 7" for the second straight week. Next week, she'll be working on a PR of 5' 8" which has eluded her so far.
- G'Jasmyne Butler had a good weekend. On Friday she led off the #1 4x800 performance in the nation. On Saturday, before she won the Elite 800, the Leesville Road senior claimed a 1600 title by out-kicking Isabel Zimmermann (Reagan) 5:11.55 - 5:12.81.
- While we're on the subject of athletes who had a busy weekend, Butler's Leesville Road teammate Shellbi Chapman ran on that 4x8, then she took home gold in the 500 with a new PR of 1:14.84 NC #3 US #7 NC #7 All-Time.
- Breanne Bygrave (Wakefield) also had a good weekend, as she became the 4th NC girl under 40 in the 300 with her 39.97, in addition to a US top-10 run in the 60 Hurdles.
- Ashley Cox (R.J. Reynolds) continued her stunning season, running 11:11.81 to win a great 3200 battle with Sophie Ebihara (Cardinal Gibbons) and Sarah Bodmer (Cary Academy) on Friday night.
- Once again, Southeast Raleigh claimed both the 4x200 and 4x400 relays, although this time neither was an improvement for the Bulldogs. Still, their depth and ability to run multiple events well just reinforces their status as 4A title favorites.