Boys NCHSAA 4A Preview
Athletes to Watch
Marcus Krah (Hillside) is the top seed in the 110 Hurdles, Long Jump, and narrowly the second seed in the Triple Jump. He put on a show during the 4A Indoor State Meet winning all three of these events and earning the meet MVP. Terrell Adams (Middle Creek) set an NC All-Time State Record at the 4A Midwest Regional in the Discus by over 14 feet with a throw of 213-09, which is US #1. He is also the current state leader in the Shot Put with a his 60-4.5 mark. On the distance side Kenny Kneisel (Mt. Tabor) won't attempt to win all four distance events as he did indoors, but will look to lead his team to a 4x8 title, and win the 1600/800; he is your current state leader in the 1600 with a 4:11.24. Jayquan Williams (Green Hope) is only entered in the 800, where he is the state leader, but he will anchor both the 4x4 and 4x8 where Green Hope is the top-ranked team.
Desmond Jackson (Hillside) is the sole competitor in the Amputee events, but is working towards qualifying for the Special Olympics this summer. Keep an eye on him Saturday because he is one of the best single-leg amputee runners in the US for all ages and is just gearing up for a huge summer season. His 100 Dash time of 12.31 from last weekend's regional meet would be an American record, were it not for the lack of a wind reading!
Events to Watch
The 800 will most likely be the most highly anticipated event of the day with 10 boys at or under 1:55! It'll certainly be the hardest event to win. The favorites have to be Jayquan Williams (Green Hope), Connor Peeples (Cardinal Gibbons) and Nolan Patrick (Southwest Guilford) who had a huge race at the Midwest regional. I'm hopeful that the elite caliber of this field will push the race towards the 1:50 mark.
The Shot Put is a really strong event up top this year, and we will see a duel between Daniel McArthur (Moorseville) and Terrell Adams. Adams is the state leader, but McArthur had a huge regional meet and threw 59-11! If conditions hold up we should see two boys over 60 feet.
Pole Vault is strong this season with Liam Dixon (Moorseville) having jumped 15-9 this season, and Elijah Cole (Millbrook) with a mark of 15-7. Then you have Joseph Popek (Ragsdale) who is very consistently at or near 15-0, and has a PR of 15' 6". Cole broke 16 feet this past indoor season, and would certainly love to get there again (although rainy conditions might put a damper on that).
The 100 is loaded this year with nearly the whole field under 11 seconds last weekend. Zamir White (Scotland) comes in with the fastest time from last weekend, but Cameron Milligan (Fuquay-Varina), Brandon Smith (Hoke County), Cravont Charleston (Mallard Creek) have all gone under 10.62 this season. And that doesn't even include last years champion Daniel Estrada (Northwest Guilford). You'll see all of these guys coming back later in the day in the 200 as well. But don't blink or you might miss the race!
Teams to Watch
Green Hope looks to be the team to beat as they are the indoor champions. But Hoke County has a strong sprint squad with some tough relays and strong individuals in Brandon Smith and Jalen Jones. Devin Norwood and Kelvin Thorpe will look to tally up some points in the field events as well. Green Hope relies heavily on their middle distance squad to score a lot of points including their relays.