The NCRunners Elite Tune-Up has always been a staple of the late spring track season, but the 2025 edition may be the most competitive yet. It's certainly the biggest, with entries up by over 200 athletes compared to 2024! That brings depth to every event, especially the sprints, which are unusually loaded this year. The extra numbers also bring even more energy to one of the most enjoyable events on the calendar. Couple all of that with unusual weather for this time of year, and you have a formula for a very special meet! With athletes from 5 states on hand, any fan of the sport will want to be in Concord on Saturday night,
Field Events
These are traditionally the thinnest events at this meet, but that could be changing in the near future. The change in location to Robinson High School means that the meet can once again hold throws and pole vault, and that could spark renewed interest over the next few years.
For this year's edition, there are a handful of noteworthy athletes. The most interesting event is the girls' triple jump, where the top 3 athletes are all in the 38's and 39's, topped by Angel Neal-Smith (Butler, NC #4). The girls' high jump should also be interesting, with Asia Artis (Garinger) and Miracle Mclean (Carolina Forest SC) set to battle. West Forsyth's Laila Jones (NC #2 in the discus and #4 in the shot put) and North Lincoln's Hunter Zettl (NC #3 in the discus, headline the throws.
The boys' long jump also features a competitive three-way battle at the top, with Jakari Galvin topping the seeding at 23' 7.5". In the boys' pole vault, 15-footers David Lee Williams (North Stokes) and Austin Sweet (Davie) will go head to head.
Sprints & Hurdles
While not known for having large numbers in the sprints and hurdles, the Tune-Up has produced some incredible performances at 400 meters and down. The 2025 edition of the Tune-Up is, BY FAR, the deepest in meet history, and could produce a complete re-writing of the meet records. The only thing that might get in the way is the cool weather, but the competition should bring more than enough heat to make for an exciting night!
Thanks to legend Trentavis Friday, the boys' sprint records will be tough to touch. Bryce Lofton (Independence) and Justin Stevenson (Palisades) will square off in the 100 with a chance to improve their NC #4 and #6 rankings, but 10.17 is a tall order. In the 200, Ja'Neil Harris (T.W. Andrews) currently sits at NC #2 and wants to move up. NC #1 for the season may lie within his grasp, but again, the meet record of 20.33 may be just out of reach. Harris will benefit from strong challenges by the Independence fleet of sprinters, including Lofton and Sadat Grant, plus Dre Davis (Albemarle). Brenden Robbins (Cuthbertson) heads the 400 seeds and has mid-47 potential, still short of Friday's 46.97.
The girls' meet records, on the other hand, could get turned completely upside down this weekend. Sydnei Murphy's 100 time of 11.68 is certainly under threat from Dudley's armada of talent, including star freshmen Bridgette Dow and Z'Niyah Taylor - and don't forget about Adriana Zega (Bonnie Cone Leadership) and Kendall Hicks (Butler). Hicks also leads all entries in the 200, followed closely by Taylor and Jada Erwin (Charlotte Country Day). Of course, the 100 and 200 times could be obliterated by state leader and all-time great Dana Wilson (Greensboro Day) - but she has opted for the 400 this weekend, where she has an excellent chance to take down Layla White's meet record of 55.09.
Makenna Barnett (Grimsley) will be in the house to make another run at the #1 spot in this spring's 100 Hurdles rankings; her current #2 time of 13.75 has her 0.24 off from the state lead.
We could even see a heated relay race Saturday, which isn't common at all for a meet at this time in the year. The Independence boys will almost certainly shatter the meet record of 42.41 - the question is, can they move up the current-season and all-time rankings in the event? NC #1 this season and #2 all-time is 40.72, which isn't out of the reach of a team that has dipped under 41 already this season.
Distance Races
Of course, these are the events that have made the Tune-Up famous over the years, and this edition is shaping up to be incredible! The combination of unusually cool weather for late May and a wicked array of talent means that some of the most hallowed meet records, even those that rank among the state's all-time best performances, could be under threat.
The evening kicks off at 5 PM with the 2000 Meter Steeplechase, the culmination of a season that has seen more races in this event than ever before in NC history. Four of the top six boys in North Carolina this year are entered: Connor Tyrrell (Riverside 4A), Jones Barber (Wesleyan Christian), Brooks Barbee (Christ School), and Benjamin Rheineck (Charlotte Panthers/Hickory Ridge). The girls' steeple doesn't have as many total entries, but NC #2 Ava Walters (Cuthbertson) will lead a strong group of front-runners in pursuit of sub-7.
Ana Laurient (Wando SC), fresh off a SCHSL championship in the 800, will try to break 2:10 for the first time. South Carolina has a strong tradition in this event at the Tune-Up: Laurie Barton holds the meet record at 2:06.10, set in 2016. Will Laurient get enough push to drop the 0.3 seconds she needs? Tate Shore (Reagan) leads the boys' 800 entries, with Hough's Drew Johnson close behind.
Superstar freshman Kaitlyn Estep (Cardinal Gibbons), already the North Carolina leader in the 800 and 1600, will try to sweep the top spot in the rankings for all three distance races Saturday. She will need to best Caroline Barton's 10:11 to do so, but at this point, why would we bet against her? Price Fee (Metrolina Christian) is the top seed in the boys 3200, where the cool weather could make the biggest difference in promoting new PR's.
As always, though, the focal point of the night is the final event - the mile. This year's collection of talent could very well result in two new meet records, not to mention the possibility of adding to the North Carolina all-time list. Well, actually, it's South Carolina's history that could be altered, as Jackson Tuck (Greer Middle College) treks north to take on some of the best from The Old North State. Tuck has clocked 4:08.26 for 1600 this spring, and he will be looking to improve on that against a deep field. Hunter Bates (Weddington) leads the North Carolina contingent, and he may be the only one capable of challenging Tuck. Those two have a very real chance to take down the meet record, currently 4:12.45 (held by Connor Lane of Cardinal Gibbons). There should be an intense battle for third, however, with 10 more boys seeded under 4:20.
The girls' mile could be even more bombastic, with three of the top 4 runners in the state (and another in the top 6) all set to face off. With her teammate (and the meet record holder in this event) Estep in the 3200, Hannah Rae Shaffer (Cardinal Gibbons) holds the top seed. She will have her hands full with Kasey Dingman (Lake Norman), Louisa Betz (Broughton), and Colby McCollum (Cuthbertson) - all four of them already having run faster than the 4:53 standard Estep set last year.
(posted Saturday morning)
