STATE INDOOR TRACK: St. James repeats as 1A-3A champs

COMBINED REPORTS

St. James junior Presley Miles accounted for 40 points to personally outscore 16 of the teams in the Trojans’ classification to help the school repeat as 1A-3A state champions in the Alabama High School Athletic Association state indoor track and field meet at the CrossPlex in Birmingham on Saturday.

Miles repeated her performance from a year ago, winning the 400, 800, 1600 and 3200-meter events, earning 10 points in each event for a first-place finish. Even without her teammates, her points would have been enough for sixth place in the state.

With her teammates, the Trojans easily won the state with 120 points, far outdistancing second-place Whitesburg Christian, which had 99. It was St. James third indoor track state title – all with three different head coaches – after winning the event in 2002 and last season.

And while Miles was spectacular again in running away with the 1600-meter and 3200-meter runs, she actually turned in better times last year when she left the hospital after a bout with the flu to run in the event. She ran the 400-meter in 59.03 seconds last year and 59.06 this year; ran the 800 in 2:18.47 last year and 2:22.25 this year; and ran the 1600 in 5:18.47 last year and just 5:21.23 this year.

Her only improvement in time came in the 3200-meter run, where she ran the event in 11:10.48 last year and 11:09.10 this year.

Teammates Logann Dean, Kendall Hardaway, Hannah Richardson, Kendal Wright and Margaret Anne McNeill accounted for the remaining 80 points, with Dean placing fourth in the 60-meter dash, third in the 60-meter hurdles, fifth in the pole vault and fifth in the long jump; Hardaway earning eighth in the 60-meter dash and sixth in the long jump; Richardson taking fourth in the 400-meter dash and fifth in the 800; Wright placing second in the 1600-meter run and fifth in the 3200; and McNeill winning the triple jump and finishing second in the 60-meter hurdles and sixth in the high jump.

Trojan relay teams also placed second in the 4x200, fifth in the 4x400 and fifth in the 4x800.

Pike Road finished tied for third in the 1A-3A girls’ standings with 46 points and Montgomery Academy was eighth with 26 points.

For Pike Road, Nia White and Kaan Oliver finished one-two in the 60-meter dash. White also won the long jump and was seventh in the 400, finishing the event with 22 points while Oliver won the 60-meter hurdles with a state-record time of 9.05 and was third in the 400-meter dash, accounting for 24 points.

For Montgomery Academy, Mattie Freeman finished eighth in the 800; Emma Grace Broach was third in the high jump, eighth in the 60-meter hurdles and sixth in the triple jump; Isabella Baker was second in the pole vault; and Avery Arden Pemberton was seventh in the pole vault. The Eagles’ 4x800-meter relay team also placed fourth.

In 4A-5A, LAMP finished seventh with all 28 points coming from Kathy Hammond, who was first in the 1600-meter run with a time of 5:25.93, first in the 3200-meter run with a time of 11:32.05; and second in the 800-meter with a time of 2:23.73, just 1.36 behind Jasper’s Maci Beaty.

Catholic finished 23rd with six points, all attributed to Ann Cobb, who was fourth in the 400-meter and eighth in the 800-meter.

Trinity was 18th, with all 10 points by Chandler Ford, who finished first in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 9.29. Tallassee’s Chloe Baynes, who finished second, was third in the triple jump to give the Tigers all of their 14 points for a 13th-place finish.

Local teams didn’t fare as well in the boys’ division. In 1A-3A, Bayside Academy won the championship with 85 points, while Montgomery Academy was 10th with 23 points and St. James was 23rd with two as Lucas Huckabee was seventh in the shot put.

Montgomery Academy was seventh in the 4x800-meter relay and picked up 17 points as Lawson Pemberton and Kyle Kyser took the top two spots in the pole vault. Jackson Kelly earned the remaining four points with a fifth-place finish in shot put.

In 4A-5A, Scottsboro won the title with 86 points. Trinity and Catholic finished tied for 20th with eight points each and LAMP was 29th with two points, placing seventh in the 4x800-meter relay.

Trinity’s Jay Tymes was fourth in the 60-meter dash and the remaining points were earned by the 4x200-meter relay team, which finished sixth. Hollis Johnson earned all eight points for Catholic, finishing third in the 3200-meter run and seventh in the 1600-meter run.