Boys NCHSAA 3A Preview
Athletes to Watch
One of the engines that powers the Richlands 4x800, Darius Futrell will also be in the hunt for the individual 800 title. He will have strong competition from Noah Shore (Asheville) and Riley Smith (Northern Guilford). In the 1600, it's Hunter Gilbert (Western Alamance) who posted a breakthrough time of 4:18.64 in his regional to claim the top seed. He will have his hands full with runners like Mitchell Resor (Weddington), Jacob Gonzalez (South Johnston), and others in the race. And yet, that's still not the most exciting-looking of the distance races!
Both hurdle races lack a clear favorite, but in the 110 Hurdles there are only three real challengers for the title unless something weird happens. Travis Rodgers (Jay M. Robinson) has the best time on the season, while Juwan Houston (West Rowan) posted the top regional time, and Earl Green (Southern Guilford) is right in the thick of things with those two. Earlier this season, you would have said for certain that R.J. Russell (Richlands) was the favorite in the 400, but that was before Jazire Notice (Jacksonville) posted a 48.39. Notice won the battle between the two last weekend, and both runners will be on equal footing after running the 4x800 earlier in the day.
The jumps can be very interesting, because athletes sometimes bust out performances that are significantly better than their consistent marks; if that happens early in the season it can set high expectations and add pressure, but if it happens at the state meet it can create surprise champions! Wayne Robertson (Asheboro) posted a 23' 0.5" season best at his conference meet, and then followed with a 22' 1" at the regional, making him co-favorite here with Samuel Johnson (Statesville), a consistent 22-footer. The wildcard is B.J. Emmons (Freedom), who hit 22' 6" in his first meet of the season but hasn't approached that distance since. J.T. Reid (Piedmont) cleared 6' 8" twice this season, best in the classification, Gabe Stainbeck (Concord) has been over 6' 6" twice, and freshman Morgan Paschall (Orange) hit 6' 6" once - but all three managed only 6' 4" at their regional, setting up an interesting battle for the title. Bailey Frederick (Marvin Ridge) is the favorite in the pole vault with his season best of 15' 7", and if anyone beats him it should be teammate Carter Clasper, who cleared 15' 2" while competing unattached earlier in the spring (which is why he doesn't show in a virtual meet) and also won the regional at 15 feet even.
Events to Watch
William Wicks (Terry Sanford) had a rough postseason last spring, but if his regional results are any indication, he's ready to write a new ending this time around. He leads the 100 Dash and 200 Dash for both season bests and regional marks, having clocked 10.74 and 21.73 last weekend. To win, though, he will have to get through Kadarius Lotharp (Sun Valley), the defending champion in both races who had his breakout meet at A&T last May. Lotharp hasn't posted big marks yet this season, but it's clear that he brings his best at the state meet, so definitely don't sleep on him. You also have to keep your eye on Avin Lane (Cox Mill), who moved to NC this year from Kansas, where he posted a 10.75 PR (and he defeated Lotharp in both races last weekend). Titus Toms (Burns) will also be in the hunt for a title, having run 10.77 this weekend and 10.69 last spring.
The 3200 Run is absolutely packed with talent in this classification and could be incredible exciting, The top 7 seeds all ran under 9:50 at their regional meets, with Gonzalez leading the way at 9:36. On the season, however, it's Marchinko that leads 3A with his 9:18 time; he, in turn, barely leads Matthew Conner (Weddington) and David Melville (Northern Guilford), all three of them having clocked 9:18's this spring. Don't be surprised if Resor stays in that lead group, and we could see big races from Wyatt & Gable Dershem (Cleveland). All told, it's entirely possible for there to be 8 or more runners under 9:30 in this race, especially given that it will run later (and therefore at cooler temperatures) than recent state meet 3200's.
The 300 Hurdles may be the most wide-open event of Friday's meet, because there 6 athletes in the final section that have season bests within 1.5 seconds of each other coming into the meet! Ben Shelley (Marvin Ridge) holds the top seed and the season lead with his 38.54 last weekend, but he narrowly held off Jalen Martin (Concord) in that race. Green, Houston, Jacobi Loyd (Jacksonville), and Delante Sykes (Ashbrook) have all run in the low- to mid-39's, and all four could be in striking range of a podium finish. It's a shame that West Rowan's Joel Thomas-Morales did not make it out of his region, because he would have added another sub-39 time to the mix.
The Shot Put should be an intense, back-and-forth competition between several very strong throwers. Sherrod Greene (Rocky Mount) is in the driver's seat after putting up a 57' 1" mark last weekend, but there are two other competitors that have been over 55 feet this spring: Fortenberrry and Alex Williams (Fike). Behind them are three more athletes who have season bests above 51 feet, including Farmer. Let's hope this deep field pushes all the throwers to new heights!
Teams to Watch
In almost any other year, Richlands would lead the state with the 7:49.13 4x800 they ran at their regional, but this isn't quite a normal year for that event in NC. Still, you have to respect that effort, especially given that they ran 16 seconds faster than the next-best team in that race. With Weddington in the meet things probably won't go quite as easily this Friday, but the Wildcats would love nothing more than to break the race open early and let Russell cruise to save his legs for the 400. Richlands also has a monster 4x4 squad, but they were upset by Jacksonville last weekend, making the Cardinals the favorite on Friday evening.
When Lotharp is on the anchor, Sun Valley is the favorite in the 4x100 and 4x200 - it's a simple as that, as anyone who witnessed last year's state meet can attest. The Spartans hold the top seed in the 4x1 by virtue of their 42.37 at the regional, although they have run 42.23 this spring and are capable of breaking 42. Eastern Wayne, West Craven, and Cox Mill are also threats, but if Sun Valley is on then those three could be fighting for silver. Cox Mill leads the 4x200 with a 1:28.17, and West Craven has also run a few 1:28's this season, so both teams could push the Spartans in that event.
Who will win the team title on Friday? Your guess is as good as mine, with at least 5 squads that are capable of taking the crown. If you look at regional results, Richlands has a slight edge over Jacksonville, with Marvin Ridge and Cox Mill in contention. If you look at season bests, however, it's Jacksonville on top, and Weddington comes into the picture as well. 5 teams battling for 2 trophies? That's the very definition of excitement!