Behind the Buford girls' state-high score of 80.5 points, Mill Creek’s girls finished eighth with 28.33, followed by Archer (28), which tied for ninth with Lowndes. North Gwinnett (27) was 11th and Dacula placed 15th with 20 points.
Starring for Mill Creek was sophomore Joy Orgbon, who took home a state title in the pole vault at 11 feet, 6 inches.
The Hawks' Amarachi Chukwu was second in 100-meter hurdles (14.15 seconds) and seventh in 300 hurdles (44.56). The Hawks’ 3,200 relay team consisting of Emi and Gia Hoang, Elizabeth Morales-Carbajal and Khary Tremble placed fourth (9:45:57).
Archer’s 800 relay team of Wynter Houston, Lailah Green, Dimeshia Dukes and Braalyn Whitehead finished third (1:39.79), along with the 3,200 squad (9:44.18) of Symeon Summerville, Reneya Jimenez, Jade Jarmon and Bree Brooks.
Individually, Green was fifth in the 400 (55.25) and freshman Brooklynn Johnson was seventh in the long jump (18-5) for the Tigers.
“This group gave it everything it had,” Archer head coach Ethan Kasson said. “I am so proud of their performance. At Archer, we’ve done everything from winning the region to winning the county. A state championship is the next thing we have left to accomplish.”
For North Gwinnett, Kendal Godfrey was second in the long jump (19-7 1/2), while Cadee Benz placed third in the 3,200 run with a time of 10:57:32. Benz was fifth in the 1600 (4:59:12). In the pole vault, Maggie Norris (10-0) and Brooklyn Martin (9-6) finished fourth and tied for fifth, respectively.
Dacula senior Dallas Guy wrapped up her high school career in style, before she takes off for Berkeley to compete for California in hurdles at the collegiate level. Guy was the individual winner on Tuesday in the 100 hurdles (13.57) and 300 hurdles (42.49) scoring 20 points for the Falcons — much to the delight of head coach Craig Edwards.
“Where do I even start? Dallas is just a wonderful athlete, but she’s an even better person,” Edwards said of the two-event state champ. “I've had the pleasure of being able to work with her alongside coach Roland Whitley, who is her hurdles coach, over the last four years and today’s state championship is the culmination of four years of hard work.”
For Edwards and Whitley, watching Guy ascend to the podium on two occasions is as rewarding a feeling as a coach can have.
“There are so many athletes who compete and never get to the level of state champion,” Edwards said. “Over the course of four years, she's always been on the podium as a state champion finalist, but now to be able to stand on top of the podium as a number one state champion, it’s just phenomenal. Hopefully one day she comes back as a Dacula Hall of Famer.
"She’s been a great asset to the school as a student-athlete. She’s already signed to attend UC Berkeley, which just tells you how seriously she takes her academics as well as her athletic ability.”
The Norcross boys had a banner day for the program, tallying 44 points — good for third of the 42 competing schools and first of Gwinnett teams. Behind the Blue Devils were Grayson (37) at fourth overall, Collins Hill (35) in fifth and Buford (30) tied with Newton for seventh.
Norcross head coach Nathaniel Brooks saw standout sophomore Jayson Jones win the 200 (20.81) and 400 (46.12), while the Norcross 800 relay team of Jones, Elijah Nunn, Dejon Lewis and Jordan Isabu won the event with a 1:26.03. Pole vaulter Harrison Kyle earned 10 points with an individual title (15-6).
“Harry Kyle came in, did everything he needed to do and just handled business today and we appreciate that effort he put in,” Brooks said. “And then I think that was the fastest race we’ve ever seen in the 4x200. We weren’t projected to get as many points in that as we did, but we knew what we had and we were just focusing on getting some clean handoffs. We just knew we had something special today from the start.”
Grayson’s boys were paced by a second-place showing in the 3,200 relay, as Muhaned Ahmed, Kunga Sikalumbi, Jayden Wilburn and Joshua Buck ran a 7:54.35, just behind West Forsyth’s 7:52.91. The Rams also got impressive showings from senior Jamari Cole, who finished third in the 300 hurdles (37.64), right ahead of teammate Daniel Thomas (37.92), who was fourth. Thomas also placed fourth in the 110 hurdles (14.60).
On Grayson’s heels was Collins Hill, which was led by a familiar face who wrapped up a stellar high school career. Senior Jameson Pifer, running on his future track at the University of Georgia, added to his illustrious prep legacy with state titles in the 1,600 (4:08.25) and 3,200 (9:10.90). As much as head coach Chris Stephens will miss coaching Pifer, it’s a rewarding feeling knowing his graduating senior has so much left to gain.
“For me as a coach, it’s never bittersweet. It’s just joy,” Stephens said. “Because I know the future is so bright for him. This is far from the end for him. It’s just about seeing my guys reach their goals. It’s never about me. It’s ... Click here to read full article
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