Leesville Road's Tony Taylor II made his first trip to the NCHSAA Indoor State Championship a memorable one.
Taylor II, a senior from the Raleigh-based school, was only one of three boys' individual qualifiers from Leesville Road. A school in which we haven't seen a state champion since Nevada Mareno in 2015.
Out of flight one, Davie County's Cooper Williams held the lead after tossing 50-05.25.
Five athletes threw over 50' at the state championship, but it was Taylor II's first throw of the second flight that set the tone.
"It was incredible, I've been training to do that over and over again...finally at this meet it all came together."
Taylor II's first throw nearly tied his personal best, and put him immediately at the top of the table. A position he would not relinquish. 53-05.25 was now the mark to beat.
NCHSAA Indoor State Championship Coverage Hub
Gatlin Lundy (Cuthbertson) and Devin Coleman (Providence) kept the pressure up with 50' tosses on their first two throws.
However, Taylor's second throw even furthered his lead: 54-04.75. It was his first time over 54' indoors and the second time in his career he has surpassed that mark.
NCHSAA Indoor Shot Put Rankings | NCHSAA Outdoor Shot Put Returning Rankings
On Lundy's 5th throw (out of six) he made Taylor's margin of victory slim, and put the pressure on Taylor to re-deliver.
On his final indoor toss of his career, Taylor II launched a throw of 55-03.25, shattering his previous personal best.
"Repetition. I recently switched my original technique, so I had to get back into learning how I was throwing. It was a really tough process. My [marks] went down, but then I started getting the hang of it: repetition after repetition, training after training."
During the 2022 outdoor track season, Taylor II won the NCHSAA 4A East Regional shot put and took 2nd in the discus competition.
"I really want to make it back to [the outdoor state meet], nationals, and even see if I can qualify for U20."
His mark is NC No. 2 overall this indoor season, and he became the 25th thrower in state history to toss over 55-00 during the indoor season.