Girls
Athletes to Watch
Briana Haith (Granville Central) tops the list in both the 55 dash and the 300, with the second race really being her specialty in the winter. If she can duplicate last weekend's feat of going sub-40 on a flat track, she should win that one; the 55 will present more of a challenge, though. Sage Proffitt (Nortth Buncombe) is one of the most versatile athletes in any classification, as she leads the entries for the 500 and the pole vault and could also grab some points for her team in the long jump or the 300. Watch for her anchor leg on the 4x400 to close out the meet. Blake Dodge (West Carteret) is the top qualifier in the 1000 and ranks second in the 1600, where the leader is her close neighbor Carmen Hilliard (South Brunswick). Dodge may have her hands full with teammate Katie Cease in the 1000, as well. Francesca Evans (Cummings) is seeded first in the 55 hurdles and the triple jump, as well as second in the 500 and fourth in the 300. She could be joined in all four events by her teammate, Ro'Daijah Faucette, but the Cummings coaches could spread them out as well. If there was an award for field event athlete of the meet, the early favorite would be Jamie Glenn (Monroe), who is seeded in the top three in the shot put, long jump, and triple jump. The shot put could provide one of the best battles of the day, between Whitney Williams (South Johnston) and Hailey Cook (Hendersonville), as the two are separated by only one inch and are the best two throwers in the state in any classification. Emily Kimble (Owen) leads the high jump list, while Chelsea Darden (Beddingfield) is close behind; Darden is also highly ranked in the long jump. Teaunna Cuthbertson (North Rowan) is the top long-jumper in the field and ranks second in the 55 hurdles.
Teams to Watch
On paper, Cummings appears to have the strongest team, although they will have to make some choices with their two stars (especially regarding the 500 and 300). North Buncombe is a bit more diverse, with potential scorers in the 300, 500, long jump, pole vault, 1600, 3200, 4x800, and 4x400. West Carteret is powered by their mid-distance crew, with big points possible in the 1000, 1600, and 4x800, along with a solid 4x400. Monroe has some athletes in the meet and should be in the top 5, but it will be hard for them to match the depth of the other contenders. If you want a real dark horse candidate, look to Cardinal Gibbons, whose girls in the distance races may be capable of exceeding their seeded marks.
Girls' Virtual State Meet
(Based on best marks from the MileSplit database)
Boys
Athletes to Watch
Tevin Hester (Granville Central) is ranked in the top 5 in the country in the 55 dash, and he has been steadliy improving his 300 times, as well. His experience running the tight curves of an indoor track may help in that race, as much of the field posted their times outdoors. Cardinal Gibbons will face an unusual question with Tommy Schotzinger, as he leads the lists for both the 1600 and the 500, which are back-to-back events. Tommy is also ranked in the top 5 in the 1000. Paul Lilley (Rocky Mount) is the top seed in the 1000 and second in the 1600. Steve Mulherin (Science & Math) leads all qualifiers in the 3200, and he is also well-seeded in the 1000 and the 1600. Don't count out Schotzinger's teammate Stephen Phillips in the 1600 and 3200; the distance races look like they will be very exciting, with quite of bit of strategy to play out before the races even start. Isaiah Moore (Cummings) leads the entries in the 55 hurdles and the long jump. His namesake, Isaiah Brown (Farmville Central), is the top seed in a shot put field that has four guys over 50 feet. Ethan Smith (Cedar Ridge) is on top of the list for the pole vault, and he is one of the best in the state from any classification. The high jump could be a tremendous event, with three qualifiers within one inch of each other: Cole Finch (Weddington), Spencer Walden (Union Pines), and William Brown (Salisbury). A few weeks ago, Brown came out on top of a similar competition, and he will try to repeat that on Saturday.
Teams to Watch
Cardinal Gibbons has the best shot to bring home the team title, but their point total in the virtual meet is deceiving: they will have to trim down some of their entries, as nobody's legs could stand up to that number of events. In addition to their potential scorers in the individual distance races, Gibbons is the top seed in the 4x800 and has a solid 4x400 to help them close out the meet. Cummings, powered by Moore and Thomas Jones II, will have to keep an eye behind them as well as in front, as there are a host of schools with a chance to score right around 30 points, including Science & Math and Marvin Ridge. It looks like the team scoring here will depend heavily on the distance races, as there is no dominant sprint school (aside from Cummings) in the meet.