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Area tracksters head to regions

Randy Lefko
Posted 4/27/17

ORANGE PARK - Clay County track athletes covering the gamut of expertise from jumpers to distance runners will head out this week for region track championships bringing the shot at a top four finish …

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Area tracksters head to regions


Posted

ORANGE PARK - Clay County track athletes covering the gamut of expertise from jumpers to distance runners will head out this week for region track championships bringing the shot at a top four finish and a trip to the state meet to be staged at the IMG Academy in Bradenton May 4-5.

In the Class 4A ranks, at region 1-4A at Flagler Palm Coast on Thurs., April 27, Fleming Island senior 800 meter runner Cameron Dill responded to a season long battle with nagging injuries and much anticipation for his breakout race by blasting one of his best times of the season, a 1:58.43, to put himself in the company of three sub-two minute runners from the other districts in region 1-4A with a 1:57.19 the top time of the region.

“He (Dill) has had his eye on the 800 all season and Coach Chris Otero and I agree it is his stronger event heading into the state series,” said Fleming Island distance coach Karen Moritz, who in her first year has produced a handful of probable region and state meet qualifiers. “He has looked strong all week at practice and he’s hungry to PR and make it to the State meet.”

Dill moved to the 800 comes after his 13th place finish in last year’s Class 4A championships in 50.76. Ten runners bested two minutes in last year’s 4A 800 final with 1:52.91 the top time. Fourth place at last year’s 800 region final was 1:55.18, eventual state champion Justin Pacifico of Flagler Palm Coast who raced to the state title with his 1:52.91. Of the top 10 800 region finalists, eight have graduated.

Fleming Island’s second region top draw is the boys 4 x 400 relay squad that has Dill teaming with Spencer Shaw, Felipe Fernandez and Paris Williams to one of two teams with the top time of the region, a 3:22.89 split. Evans High of Orlando also ran 3:22.89 to win district 3-4A.

“All four of those men are competitors,” said Moritz. “They have been improving consistently each week and I think without a doubt they are capable of a sub 3:20 performance.”

Fleming Island has two top four district 400 runners in Fernandez and Shaw; third and fourth in the 400, respectively with splits of 50.34 and 50.52. Dill adds a third 50-second split with Paris Williams hitting 51.00 in the district final. Fleming Island will need at least two of the runners to break 50 seconds with the top four region finishers under 3:20 and the top six finishers at the state meet last year under 3:20. Fleming Island, with three of the four runners returning; Joshua Beckles being replaced with Williams, issued a 3:25.47 for sixth at regions last year.

Also heading to region 1-4A, Oakleaf High’s jump squads; both girls and boys, will be among the top leapers in the region led by Melvin Briley in the triple jump. Briley has triple jumped precariously close to the 50-foot mark that will probably be necessary to win a state title with his 46’-10” district jump the best jump of the region.

In 2016, Briley only jumped 43’-10” in the region final round to finish seventh. The winning jump was 47’.25” from senior Emanual Foster of Seminole. The state title was won in 4A last year at 46’-4.5” with the fourth place jump at 44’-2.5”.

In the high jump, multi-talented Anthony Norris comes in as high jump district champ and a state meet athlete from 2016 (fifth at 6’-4”), and can very easily make the top four in two events; high jump and long jump. Though Norris has been hampered with a banged up heel, he has improved steadily with that and kept up his jumping prowess. His 6’-0.75” wiinning high jump at districts is far below his capabilities, but he bested his long jump distance to finish third in that event to rank fifth in the region. Norris has the fifth best high jump for region 1-4A with his district jump, but his best puts him right in the mix for a trip to the state meet. Six-foot-six won the state meet in 2016.

In the 1-4A shot put, Oakleaf’s Jeff Allen threw the third best in the district; fifth ranked in the region with a 123’-7” with a 142’-6” the target distance.

In Class 3A, set for Tallahassee Chiles also on Thurs., April 27, Middleburg High has two top draws in sprinter Marcus Floyd and high jumper Bryce Quiett. Floyd, who ran in the state 400 as a freshman with a ninth in the 400 in 49.65 has clamped on to fast times in the 100 and 200 with a dominant triple jump offering three tickets to the state meet.

At the district 4-3A meet, Floyd won the triple jump on his only jump, a 45’-3” effort, that was the best jump of the region. In the sprints, Floyd topped the 100 with a best time in the region of 10.94 and the 200 in 22.25 for the fifth best time of the region with two sprinters under 22 seconds. Class 3A was won with a 10.92 in the 100 last year with 21.31 winning the 200.

In the high jump, Quiett soared to a personal best of 6’-6.75” to win handily, but a 6’-7.5” height won district 3-3A.

“My coaches; April and Craig Martin, have been closing in on the little things that make a high jump work,” said Quiett. “Each step has a purpose and we are getting close to a perfect jump. That one felt pretty close.”

Quiett’s female counter, teammate Kaley Petrosky, won her second district title also with a personal best at 5’-5” with one jumper at 5’-6” inches making Petrosky’s jump second best in the region.

“She has great technique and is very smooth in her approach,” said April Martin. “She is a good athlete in whatever event she enters, but we have her aiming to get to state in the high jump.”

In the shot put, Orange Park’s Shawn Bizzell nearly got a district title with his 47’-0.25” throw just two inches off the top throw and behind just four throwers. A good day and Bizzell heads to state.

In the long jump, Orange Park’s Keanen Restall had the third best leap of the region, 21’-5.5”, to win the district title.

At the district 3-2A track meet, Ridgeview senior Devon Fertil got his talents in the top four of the triple jump; second at 44’-0.50”, the discus, third at 127’-7”, and the 400 third at 53.21.

“Devon has been signed up to all four events for the last two seasons,” said Ridgeview coach Al Nesi, Jr. “Bolles spreads out the time frame for regional just like Districts. Devon is healthy and ready to go, just like all the other athletes at Ridgeview.”

In the triple jump, Fertil is ranked second in the region. In the discus, Fertil is ranked sixth. In the 400, Fertil is 12th ranked.

For the 2A sprints, Clay High’s Erykah Murray is within a half second of a state meet berth with her second place 12.62 100 meters being fourth ranked in the region. Murray also ran a fourth place 26.27 in the 200 which ranks 10th in the region.

Ridgeview sophomore hurdler Glenn Rodgers won a district title in the 110 hurdles in 15.80 which ranks him fourth in the region.

Clay and Ridgeview report to Bolles on Tues, April 25 for the region 1-2A championship meet.

In district 5-2A, where Keystone Heights competes, miler Alex Guy won his district title in 4:45.21 and could break into the top four where 4:34.42, 4:37.32 and 4:38.38 won district titles within the region.

Keystone Heights travels to Lake Highland Prep for the region 2-2A championships on Thurs., April 27.

In district 4-1A, St. Johns Country Day School freshman Kendall Sage won her district in the 100 with a 13.07 split and is ranked number two in region 1-1A with a 12.76 the best time of the region.

In the 400, Jett Isley is second ranked with his 52.16 with the district 4-1A champion’s 52.12 split just ahead of Isley. Isley had the fourth best seed time of the district final, but went two seconds faster and nearly took caught winner Tyre Singleton of the Florida School of Deaf and Blind.

Sage’s twin sister, Courtney, is within reach of the top four at region with her third place in 17.11 in the 100 hurdles the fourth best finish of the region with 15.68 and 15.76 the top two splits.

The Spartans return to Bishop Snyder on Tues, April 25 for the region 1-1A championship meet.