Big results from the Kansas Relays kicked-off the weekend, led by sophomore James White (MO) high jumping 7-00, Kevin Williams (CO) running 9:02.29 for 3200m and Roxi Grizzle (KS) throwing 163-11 in the girls javelin (U.S. #6 all-time). Keeping checking back as we post up the weekend's top results from across the nation.
For Specific State Coverage Click Here
Boys Weekend Top Performances - Roman Holmes (CO) soars 24-05 LJ, 47-03 TJ at Littleton (CO) - Maurice Mitchell (MO) goes 10.40 for 100m at Kansas Relays - Michael Shaw (OH) wins 100m dash in 10.39w at Tennessee - Chris Derrick (IL) runs 8:48.9 for 3200 at Downers Grove (IL) - Germantown Friends (PA) goes 7:47.50 4x8 at CB West Relays - Kenny McClain (FL) runs 37.21 for 300m hurdles in FL - Dan Block (IL) throws 199-08 discus, 63-05 shot put in IL - James White (MO) high jumps 7-00 at Kansas Relays - Kevin Williams (CO) runs 9:02.29 to win 3200m in Kansas Girls Weekend Top Performances - Anna Jelmini (CA) launches discus 183-11 in California - Karen Shump (PA) throws shot put 47-09 at Great Valley Relays - Kelly McNamee (WA) leaps 5-10 to win high jump at Pasco (WA) - Neely Spence (PA) U.S.#2 4:48.51 at 1600m, 2:15.38 800m in PA - Megan Frausto (TX) leaps 19-03.5 to win long jump at Kansas Relays - Chanelle Price (PA) runs 2:03.98 for 800m at the NY Relays - Jacquelyn Coward (TN) goes 41.26 300mH, 13.11w 100mH in TN - Roxi Grizzle (KS) launches javelin 163-11 at Kansas Relays, U.S.#6 A-T - Emily Sisson (NE) wins 3200m at Kansas Relays in 10:25.42Weekend Highlights & Results
Kansas Relays (KS)
Kansas Relays: Live Results / Official Website / Results: Boys - Girls
In Saturday's finals, sprint sensation Maurice Mitchell (Raytown, MO) (pictured right by Tracy Rollins) knew he had something to prove. Running only a few times this track season thus far, Mitchell really wanted to do something special. With legal winds behind him, Mitchell cruised to the 100m dash title in 10.40, good enough for one of the top times in the country currently. After his 100m win, Mitchell then came back to help guide his team to the 4x100m relay title in 41.86.
Following Mitchell's amazing sprint performance was Alishea Usery (McCluery S.-Berkeley, MO). Usery has shown strong signs of improvement this season and continued that Saturday. In the 400m dash Usery simply ran away from the field and won the race in 54.61, looking like she eased up a bit at the end. With two other relays to go on the day, this was a very possible scenario.
Perhaps the best performance on the day came from the girls long jumpers. Megan Frausto (Royse City, TX) won the event with a magnificant leap of 19-03.5, while Precious Selmon (Crystal City, KS) lept 19-00.5 to finish a strong second. It is rare to have more than one athlete leap 19 feet, which makes this Kansas Relays performance all the more special.
With half of the finals taking place Friday night at the Kansas Relays great results were bound to be pop-up. From the first event to the last event athletes rose to the challenge and some major highlights were shown. Leading the charge was Roxanne "Roxi" Grizzle (Tonganoxie, KS), who won the girls javelin throw with a incredible toss of 163-11. Not only did Grizzle win the event over some stiff competition (4 athletes over 140-00), but she also became the U.S. #7 all-time in the event.
Another top performance of the evening came from sophomore James White (Grandview, MO). White won the boys high jump with a leap of 7-00.. It's rare for a sophomore to leap 7-00, which makes the performance that much more impressive. Two other field performances worth noting were Alex Hartig's (Great Bend, KS) girls shot put victory of 45-03.75 over a very strong field and Johannes Swanepoel (Shawnee Mission North, KS) winning the boys javelin in 205-05.
On the track, the boys and girls 3200m were highlights on the day. In the boys race, Kevin Williams (D'Evelyn, CO) continued his accomplished season by winning the race by 22 seconds in 9:02.29. This was Williams' first major competition back since running at the World Cross Country Championships in March. On the girls side, Emily Sisson (Millard North, NE) won for the second year in a row, this time finishing in 10:25.42, thirty-one seconds ahead of her nearest competitor.
In Friday's sprint action, Maurice Mitchell (Reytown South, MO) (pictured right by Tracy Rollins) and Alishea Usery (McCluery South-Berkeley, MO) both ran the fastest times of the day in their respective events. Mitchell cruised through his heat in the boys 100m dash with a time of 10.53, while Usery won her heat in the girls 400m dash in 55.87. While few sprint finals were contested Friday, Kianna Elahi (Millard North, NE) followed in the winning footsteps of her teammate Sisson and won the girls 300m hurdles in 44.75.
Volunteer Track Classic (TN)
Volunteer Track Classic: Official Website / Meet Page / Results
Kicking off Saturday's action were the 300m hurdle finals. Knoxville West senior Jacquelyn Coward has been one of the top female hurdlers nation wide all season and continued her dominance by winning the long hurdle race in a stellar time of 41.26. Coward ran even throughout and beat runner-up Jasmin Stowers (Pendleton, SC) by nearly two seconds. On the boys side Marcus Pope (Andrews, SC) won going away in 37.54, winning the event by over a second.
Coward then came back in the second session on Saturday to win a wind-aided 100m hurdle race over Stowers 13.11-13.52. In the boys 110m hurdles, Robert Jackson (Brookwood, SC) won the race in a close battle over Marcus Pope 13.99w-14.11w. In both races the wind reading was just over the legal +2.0 mark at 3.5 and 3.1 respectively. Another top performance, and double winner, came from Tyler Stepp (Jefferson Co., TN) in the long jump and high jump. Stepp easily won the high jump in 6-09 and his mark of 22-09 won the long jump competition.
In the boys 100m dash, Michael Shaw (Trotwood Madison, OH) was considered the heavy favorite heading in and that status definitely stayed true through the finals. With a strong +4.4 wind behind him, Shaw cruised to victory in 10.39 seconds, easily besting his competition. Shaw then came back to win the 200m dash in 21.30w, giving him a very good double for the weekend.
Two male distance highlights Saturday came in from Dylan Ferris (East Forsyth, NC) at 800m and Peter Dorrell (Blacksburg, VA) at one mile. Ferris, who performed well last weekend at the Taco Bell Invitational, improved upon his beat time of the season by winning his race by nearly two seconds in 1:52.42. Meanwhile, Dorrell closed strong in a competitive mile field and finished with a great mark of 4:15.36.
A few of Friday's top results came in the 3200m run. '06 Foot Locker national champion Kathy Kroeger (Independence, TN) started her major invitational season by winning the girls event in 11:00.09. Kroeger beat the rest of the field by over a hundred meters and looked comfortable in the process. On the boys side, Ryan Hill (Hickory, NC) outlasted a strong charge from Peter Dorrell (Blacksburg, VA) and Bill Matthews (Baylor, TN) to win the race in a great time of 9:06.19. Dorrell finished a second in 9:08.88 and Matthews finished third in 9:14.05.
Pasco Invitational (WA)
Pasco Invitational: Meet Page / Results: Boys - Girls
The big meet in the Pacific Northwest this weekend was the Pasco Invitational in Washington. Most of the top athletes from Washington, and a few from Oregon and Idaho, competed and the results produced some great highlights. The best performance of the day came from Kelly McNamee (Joel Ferris, WA), who won the high jump with a leap of 5-10. Ferris is one of the top high jumpers in the country this season and Saturday proved her dominance in the event once again.
The top female sprinter was Whitney Leavitt (Kiona Benton, WA). Leavitt won the 100m dash in 12.20 and finished second for 200m in 25.76. The top female distance mark came from a freshman. Mead High School is generally known for their powerful boys distance programs, but on this day freshman Baylee Mires led the way by winning the girls 1600m run in 5:02.80.
A rush of distance runners took to the 1600m and 3200m on the boys side. Most of the state's top stars took part in one of the events, which led to some deep results. In the 1600m run Ryan Prentice (Mt. Rainer) backed up his impressive third place 5k performance from last weekend at the Arcadia Invitational, coming back and winning this event in 4:17.66. Prentice helped lead five athletes under 4:20, including two junior athletes from North Central (WA). Meanwhile in the 3200m run, Joey Baywater (Lake Stevens, WA) ran 9:23.07 for a seasonal PR, leading five athletes under 9:28 in the process.
New York Relays (NY)
New York Relays: Official Website / Meet Page
The road to the Olympic Trials started for Chanelle Price (Easton, PA) Saturday at the New York Relays. The senior all-star ran an incredible 2:03.98 to easily win the 800m dash. Price has said numerous time already this year and last that her main goal this season is to try and qualify for the Olympic Team. After such a great race Saturday, Price's time left her only 1.6 seconds off her all-time PR for the event, leaving her with a very good indication of the direction she is headed in.
14th Annual Miele Invitational (OH)
Miele Invitational: Meet Page / Results
Each week for the past month the results in Ohio have shown athletes getting better and better, especially now that the weather has become more "spring-like" rather than the cold and wetness of the winter. At Saturday's 14th Annual Miele Invitational, some great performances were put up, led by Aeron Payne's (Beaumont School, OH) 100m and 200m dash wins. Payne won the girls sprint races in 11.90 and 24.05 in wind-legal conditions.
Following Payne's performances was the impressive triple by Kendall Gregory (Strongsville, OH). Gregory won the 400m dash in 48.90, placed second in the 200m dash in 22.12 and helped lead his school's 4x400m relay squad with a 47.90 400m split. Another great multi-event performance came from Foot Locker finalist Emily Infeld (Beaumont School), who won the 1600m run in 4:57.55 and 800m dash in 2:14.07. Rob Jones (Cuyahoga Falls, OH) won both boys hurdle events as well. Jones cruised to victories in both events, winning the 110m hurdles in 14.60 and the 300m hurdles in 38.79.
Shippensburg University H.S. Invitational (PA)
Shippensburg University H.S. Invitational: Meet Page
Foot Locker All-American Neely Spence (Shippensburg, PA) (pictured right from PennTrackXC.com) has been fairly quiet since the cross country season ended. Few races and lots of training figured when she finally had a chance to open up outdoors that her times would be pretty remarkable. Well, Spence got the chance to really open her stride Saturday at the Shippensburg University H.S. Invitational and she did not disappoint. Spence won both the 1600m run and 800m dash in record times, running a U.S. #2 mark int he 1600m with a 4:48.51. Spence then came back to run a meet record time of 2:15.38 and clinched the best distance double of the weekend nationally from a female runner.
Mt. SAC Relays (CA)
Mt. SAC Relays: Meet Page / Results
Leading the way Friday evening at the Mt. SAC Relays were the boys and girls 3200m run and 4x1600m relay. In the boys 3200m run, Foot Locker finalist Chris Schwartz (Foothill, CA) led from start to finish, winning the race by six seconds in 9:05.43. On the girls side, Meghan Marvin (Clovis, CA) won with a strong kick in 10:46.57. In the 4x1600m relays, Arcadia (CA) edged Campolindo (CA) 17:47.71-17:49.33 to win the boys race, while Carondelet (CA) easily won the girls relay in 20:46.02.
The Mt. SAC Relays are known for their heart-pumping college events, especially the distance races. However, this year's high school edition was completely off the hook with incredible performances put up in the relays and sprints. Leading the way as usual was perennial sprint powerhouse Long Beach Poly (CA), who won three fantastic relays and looked good in a variety of other events.
In the boys 4x400m relay, Long Beach Poly beat a deep field of teams with their winning mark of 3:18.94. Following up that performance came a narrow victory over Dominguez (CA) in the boys 4x100m relay, with LBP beating the Compton squad 41.36-41.47. However, Dominguez earned a big-time win in the boys 4x200m relay in 1:26.95. Meanwhile, the Long Beach Poly girls beat their rival Long Beach Wilson (CA) 1:40.08-1:40.75 in the 4x200m relay.
In other relay action, Deer Valley (CA) ran 3:50.49 in the girls 4x400m relay, outleaning Rancho Cucamonga (CA) who finished second in 3:50.50. The Distance Medley Relays were impressive as well with Saugus (CA) bouncing back from their huge 4xone-mile relay last weekend at Arcadia, this time winning the DMR in 11:51.58. The Loyola (CA) boys also bounced back from their 4x800m relay last weekend at Arcadia, this time winning the boys DMR in 10:16.46.
In the individual track events Long Beach Poly looked nearly as explosive. Freshman superstar Akawkaw Ndipagbor (Long Beach Poly, CA) won the 200m dash in 24.11w, edging out the strong challenge from Jessica Davis (Highland, CA), who finished runner-up in 24.18w. In the boys race, Rodney Storrs (Santiago, CA) continued his strong season with a win over Long Beach Poly's Joey Hughes 21.38-21.40. Meanwhile, hurdles showed some great results, as Jacinta Doyle (Meridian, CA) won the girls 300m hurdles in 42.27 and Bill Burgess (Notre Dame, CA) won the boys 300m hurldes in 37.98. Both athletes scored U.S. top ten marks. In the 100m and 110m hurdles, Ashtyn Baltimore (Marlborough, CA) won a competitive girls 100m hurldes in 14.16, while Devron Walker (Dominguez, CA) won the boys 110m hurdles in 13.88.
In the field events, New York's Steve Crouse (Colonie, NY) won the triple jump with a mark of 48-00. Crouse and his Colonie H.S. teammates have stayed out in California for the past week it seems after competing at the Arcadia Invitational the prior weekend. In the girls long jump, Karyn Dunn (Diamond Ranch, CA) won the event with her wind-aided mark of 20-4.25.
Downers Grove South Invitational (IL)
Downers Grove South Invitational: Meet Page
Chris Derrick (Neuqua Valley, IL) ran a 8:48.9 3200m time at the Downers Grove South Invitational Friday night, beating a strong field by nearly twenty-five seconds. Derrick cruised to the victory with a reported 2:05 last 800m. Derrick led four athletes under 9:16, as teammate Jim Riddle finished in 9:11, Steve Sulkin (York) in 9:14 and Brian Denk (Hinsdale South) in 9:15. Later in the evening Derrick ran 4:14 for 1600m, winning by six seconds over Illinois state cross country runner-up Tom Achtein (York).
For Specific State Coverage Click Here