Strand, Rhetta, Spicer Shine At Alabama State Indoor Championships

By Arthur L. Mack for DyeStat 

@AHSAA photo

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — The Alabama High School Athletic Association indoor track and field championships were conducted with new protocols at the CrossPlex and the state was one of the few to conduct a regular indoor season this winter.

Limited seating, pared down awards ceremonies, and a limited number of entries in each event were significant changes. The meet schedule was altered to allow for four six-hour sessions over two days.

Unchanged, however, was the high level of competition, as records fell and top athletes won multiple titles.

Class 7A: Hewitt-Trussville swept the boys and girls titles in impressive fashion. The boys edged Vestavia Hills 77.50 to 73, despite Vestavia Hills’ star Ethan Strand winning three individual events, as well as running the anchor leg on the winning 4x400 relay, which ran an impressive 3 minutes, 25.32 seconds. Rounding out the top five were Hoover (68) and Auburn and Huntsville, which scored 41 points apiece.

“I knew we had a chance, and I knew we could do it,” Hewitt-Trussville head coach Tom Eslinger said. “We also knew we were going against some pretty good teams, so anytime you have such quality teams going against each other, it’s going to be tough, but I knew we could do it.”

Eslinger had nothing but praise for jumper/sprinter Julian Collins, who had impressive performances. Collins won the long jump with a meet record leap of US#2 24 feet, 7.25 inches, and the triple jump (US#2 49-0). He also was fifth in the 60-meter dash (6.99), won by his teammate Armoni Goodwin in a meet-record 6.82. Collins also ran a leg on the third-place 4x200 relay team (1:31.08). 

“He’s one of a kind,” Eslinger said of Collins. “Not just in the long and triple, but he ran a heck of a leg on the 4x200 and the 60 as well. He does all the little things right all year long.”

The Hewitt-Trussville girls came from behind late in the meet and clinched the title with a second-place finish in the relay to edge Hoover 101-100.5. Rounding out the top five were Vestavia Hills (51), Spain Park (37), and Baker (36).

“I’ll be honest. I knew the girls (chances) were going to be a little bit tougher than we thought the boys were going to be,” he said. “We were behind a good bit in the last several events, and we had so many people step up. There were too many to mention, but it was in event after event. It was a complete team effort across the board.”

Kelsey Martin was a double winner for Hewitt-Trussville, winning the long jump (18-4) and the triple jump (38-6.75). Martin also finished second in the 400 in 57.30, just behind Spain Park’s Mackenzie Culpepper (57.25). Lea Townsend added another victory for the Huskies, winning the shot put with a toss of 42-3.50. The team scored in all but one event.

Strand was an overwhelming favorite to win three events. He did not disappoint, winning the 800 meters, 1,600, and 3,200. In the 800, he broke his own CrossPlex record of 1:52.91 he set last month, running US#1 1:51.08. Teammate Alex Leath was also under the CrossPlex record, running 1:52.72, while third-place finisher Gabe Scales of Huntsville was under the old state record of 1:54.38 with 1:54.25.

Strand also won the 1,600 in 4:17.47, just missing the Class 7A state record of 4:17.06 set in 2016. Then, in the 3,200, he ran 9:15.39 for another meet record. Auburn’s Maxwell Hardin, who finished second, was also under the old record, running 9:22.46. Strand’s come-from-behind anchor leg in the relay, which came just moments after the 3,200, clinched second place for the Rebels.

“It was on the table, but it wasn’t necessarily the 'A' plan,” said Vestavia head coach Brett Huber of Strand’s relay participation. “Actually, the final call on that was Ethan’s. The meet schedule is not what we wanted with the one day, but some of the schedule shook out. The kids got ready for battle and went out there, and that was a senior leadership moment for Ethan. He wanted to win all those, and run on the relay for his team to have a shot to make a difference.

“I can’t say enough about Ethan and how he’s grown as an athlete and student over the years. I’m really proud of him just for inside stuff that I see of him. We’re excited about the team performance. Hewitt’s a great team and Hoover’s a great team.”

Strand was not the only Vestavia Hills athlete with three wins. Crawford West won the girls 800 (2:12.93), holding off Culpepper, who ran 2:13.45, and also won the 1,600 and the 3,200 in state meet records of 4:59.58 and 10:58.27, respectively.

Other impressive performances in Class 7A came from Central-Phenix City’s Malik Johnson, who won the high jump (6-8), and his teammate Antonio Crisco, who edged Alabaster-Thompson’s Dominique Hall in the 400 meters, 49.44 to 49.99; Fairhope’s Holly Foley was first in the girls pole vault (12-3) and Hagan LeDrew won the boys shot put (54-1.75).

Mobile Baker’s Aaliyah Brown-Muhammad won the girls 60-meter hurdles (8.79). In addition, Enterprise’s Aniyah Kitt won the 60-meter dash in 7.74. Hoover’s Levi Arroyo won the boys pole vault (15-6). 

Class 6A: Sprint- and jump-laden Opelika won the boys division for the third straight year, scoring 81 points, fending off a challenge from Homewood, which finished second with 66 and Scottsboro with 52. Rounding out the top five were Mountain Brook (35) and Mobile’s St. Paul’s Episcopal (32).

Opelika was led by Jarell Stinson, who won the boys 400 in 48.85, with Decatur’s Jacob Glenn second (49.64) and Jayden Dunson of Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa third (50.37). Stinson also won the 60-meter dash in 6.94. LaDamian Rowell won the triple jump (47-5.50) and high jump (6-2), and the Bulldogs also got second- and third-place finishes in the long jump from Eric Watts (22-7.75) and Rowell (21-4.75), behind Javion Watkins of Tuscaloosa Paul Bryant, who won with a jump of 22-8.75.

Crawford Drake led Homewood, winning a competitive 1,600 final with a time of 4:20.96. St. Paul’s Stone Smith was second with 4:23.09 Scottsboro’s Cooper Atkins was third in 4:27.55. Cross Derriso cleared 15-6 to win the 6A pole vault for another first place for Homewood.

Helena’s Brady Barton prevailed in a tactical race in the boys 3,200, moving up from fourth and taking the lead with 400 meters to go and winning in a meet-record time of 9:14.99, well under the record of 9:17.71. Barton also won the 800 in 1:54.62.

Tuscaloosa Northridge won the girls title with 97 points, while Mountain Brook put on a late charge to finish second with 86. Rounding out the top five were Homewood (59), Mobile McGill-Toolen (45), and Fort Payne (38). Northridge was led by Rashni Walker, who won the long jump (17-8.75) and 60-meter hurdles (8.96). Walker also finished second in the 60-meter dash (7.96) and Jada Connor won the shot put (35-7.25).

Calera’s Jordon Bray won the 400 in 57.76, holding off Birmingham Huffman’s Faith Tarver (59.01) and Hazel Green’s Ijah Drake (59.55). Another strong performance came in the 800, where Cady McPhail of Chelsea won going away in 2:14.33. The second-place finisher was more than six seconds behind. McPhail also won the 1,600 (5:08.22) and 3,200 (11:05.30) as well, making her one of the weekend’s numerous triple winners.

Meanwhile, Homewood’s Brooke Walden won the pole vault in a meet-record 12-1.25, tying the record set by McGill-Toolen’s Margaret Ollinger in 2014.

Class 4A-5A: In the girls 60-meter dash, Brewbaker Tech’s Chanice Spicer blazed to a US#5 7.47, breaking the old record of 7.48. Satsuma’s Presleigh Montalvo was second in 7.94, while Jasmine Moore of Pike Road was third in 7.98. Spicer followed up with a state meet record and US#1 54.35 in the 400, breaking the old Class 4A-5A meet record of 56.09.

Spicer also won the long jump (17-2) and ran a blistering anchor leg on the 4x200 relay, which clocked 1:31.92. Those performances helped her team win the overall title with 67.5 points. Whitesburg Christian was second (61) and Randolph was third (50). Rounding out the top five were Montgomery St. James (46) and Mobile’s UMS-Wright (45.5).

St. James’ Presley Miles was a triple winner, taking first places in the 800 (2:17.85), 1,600 (5:22.24), and 3,200 (11:36.14).

On the boys side, hometown favorite Jevokan Rhetta of Parker not only broke his own state meet record with a US#2 6.72 in the 60 dash, it was also a new Crossplex facility record. Kameron Thomas of Birmingham Ramsay was second (6.95), while American Christian’s Brodie Kizzah was third (7.13). As with Spicer, Rhetta came back to win the 400, coming from behind to edge Thomas 49.27 to 49.66.

UMS-Wright won the boys championship, coming on strong late in the meet to win with 82 points, with Parker second (64) and Bayside Academy third (62). Rounding out the top five were Birmingham Ramsay (44) and Bibb County (41).

Leading the charge for UMS-Wright was Joseph Perry, who won the 1,600 (4:32.11) and the 3,200 (9:49.87), and also finished fourth in the 800 (2:02.12). Pfilip Hunt captured the long jump with a 20-9 leap, and Joseph Holston cleared 13-6 to finish second in the pole vault behind winner Braxton Sanford of Corner (13-9).

“It was a pretty big finish for us,” UMS-Wright head coach Pat Galle said. “The 3,200 was one of the events we knew we needed to get past Parker and Bayside. We knew it was going to be us, Parker, and Bayside at the end. Pfilip won the long jump at the same time while we were contesting the 3,200. It was a big finish for us.”

Parker also got first-place points from William Shelton in the 800 (1:56.27). The Thundering Herd also won the 4x200 in 1:31.92. Meanwhile, Bayside had three first-place finishes from Patrick Daves — in the 60-meter hurdles (7.99), the triple jump (45-1.50) and the high jump (6-0). 

Class 1A-3A: Winfield City won the boys competition with 108 points, with Montgomery Catholic the runner-up with 88. Rounding out the top five teams were Providence Christian (45), Ohatchee (43.50) and Altamont (29).

The Providence Christian girls won with 87 points, while Westminster-Oak Mountain was second with 76.

Top performances came from Conner Patterson of Providence Christian, who was a double winner in the 400 and 800 meters, clocking 51:32 and 1:58.20, respectively. He also finished strong to take second in the 1,600 (4:37.95), just behind Catholic Montgomery’s Hollis Johnson (4:33.31). 

Westminster-Oak Mountain’s Hallie Porterfield was a triple winner in the girls competition, securing the 3,200 in 11:24.22. She also won the 1,600 in 5:24.49, holding off a late challenge by Providence Christian’s Grace Crim (5:25.12), and earlier in the day, won the 800 in 2:17.71, defeating her closest rival by just over eight seconds.

Mobile Christian’s Ja’Niyah Boykin won two events, capturing the long jump (17-3) and the 400 in 59.02, edging Providence Christian’s Leah Dorsey (59.46) and Birmingham Altamont’s Carson Hicks (59.57). Earlier in the day, Hicks won the 60-meter dash in 8.05, while Boykin finished second (8.21).