Kennedi Sanders dominates the sprints
As expected, 400m state record holder and national caliber sprinter Kennedi Sanders was an automatic 30 points to the MRA Lady Patriots point total with her season best performances in the 100m, 200m, and 400m.
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In the 100m, Sanders dashed in front of the rest of the field to a time of 11.75, hitting her first SB of the day. Next up was the 400m, in which Sanders hit another SB, running 54.62 seconds for the event and beat the field by a full five seconds. Finally, in the 200m, Sanders added yet another SB, running 24.02 seconds to add a third state title to her resume, marking eight in total to finish out her prep career.
These are the fastest times Sanders has run all season, and they were essentially time trials. This means that she is definitely nearing her peak fitness at the right time of the year, and will have her work cut out in front of her on Saturday at the 2022 Mississippi Track and Field Meet of Champions.
Expect another crazy summer from the MRA sprints superstar before she heads to LSU this Fall.
MRA breaks 50 year old MAIS State 4x100m relay record
What happens when you put four girls who are capable of finishing with podium positions in any event they compete in and put them together on a 4x100m relay?
Well in this case, a 50 year old MAIS state record falls.
MRA's star studded relay team ran a blazing 49.23 seconds to win the 2022 MAIS 6A High School Girls 4x100m relay title. This skates past the previous 4x100m record set by Pillow Academy with a time of 49.30 back in 1972.
Competing in that relay was sprint superstar Kennedi Sanders, the Long Jump state champion Evie Ewing (who also has podium finishes in the 200m and the 400m), Kassidy McMillian who absolutely destroyed the 100m Hurdles and 300m Hurdles, and Hunter Thompson, who placed sixth in the 100m Dash, as well as being a reliable leg for both the 4x100m and 4x200m relays.
What a phenomenal performance from these ladies, and could put the new record out of reach for fifty, or more years.
Exciting racing and upsets in 5A/6A 800m
In the upper classes of the MAIS High School Girls 800m at the 2022 MAIS Track and Field State Championships, our immediate reaction is that it was awesome, with some historically deep fields and even a few runners coming from under the radar and having breakout races.
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Starting with 5A, we have been writing all year how MAIS 5A High School Girls distance running is at its best it's ever been. The 2021 Mississippi Cross Country Meet of Champions showed that, and the distance races at the 2022 MAIS 5A Track and Field State Championships were yet another testament to that statement.
Going back to the 800m, all eyes were on heavy hitters such as Layla Warren of Simpson who had been having a fantastic day during the Championships thus far, as well as District Champions Briley Speights and Lillie Bertelsen.
However, in the end, winning her first race of the season and first ever state title in her last ever race, was Lamar School's Maggie Triplett, crushing the 2:30 barrier for the first time in 2:26.62. Less than a second behind was Speights who also broke the barrier in 2:27.40, and Warren in third who, you guessed it, broke the the barrier in 2:27.65.
Bertelsen, just a seventh grader, also broke the barrier, finishing in fourth place running 2:28.64.
It was a fantastic race from Triplett, who finished out her high school career on an extreme high note and will be a race she will likely cherish for many years to come.
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Event 152 Girls 800 Meter Run Class 5A
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Name Year School Finals Points
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1 Maggie Triplett Lamar School 2:26.62 10
2 Briley Speights Columbia Acad 2:27.40 8
3 Layla Warren Simpson Acad 2:27.65 6
4 Lillie Bertelsen Cathedral 2:28.64 5
5 Sydney Collins Madison St. 2:31.47 4
6 Lawton Poole Wash Sch 2:33.82 3
7 Macy Robertson Columbia Acad 2:36.14 2
8 Elizabeth James Sanders Bayou 2:40.55 1 ----
Onto 6A, just like 5A, they were many heavy hitters that could potentially take their first ever state title in that race. You had the Jackson Prep duo of Olivia Smith who was coming off of her first ever state title in the 1600m and was having arguable the meet of her life, as well as 2:24 800m runner Gracie Atkinson.
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You had the MRA duo of Riz McBride, one of the best sixth grade 800m runners in the country, and Sloane Vinson, a Southern Miss distance commit who had been on top of the MAIS High School Girls distance running scene for the last few years.
READ ALSO: Future Stars: Madison Ridgeland Academy's Riz McBride
But also nearly identical to 5A, from under the radar came the senior from PCS, Makayla Smith, winning her first ever state title in her last ever high school race, running the race of her life finishing in 2:23.71.
In reality, the 2021 MAIS 6A 800m runner-up really should not have been so under the radar. However, Smith had not competed in the last four weeks, and this was only her third race of the year.
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Event 153 Girls 800 Meter Run Class 6A
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Name Year School Finals Points
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1 Makayla Smith Pres. Christ Sch 2:23.71 10
2 Olivia Smith Jackson Prep 2:26.78 8
3 Gracie Atkinson Jackson Prep 2:27.41 6
4 Riz McBride MRA 2:29.48 5
5 Rachele Chung Pres. Christ Sch 2:36.43 4
6 Sloane Vinson MRA 2:40.78 3
7 Avery Rankin Hartfield Acad 2:45.32 2
8 Kienzle Smith Jackson Acad 2:53.79 1 ----
Even so, 2:23 is a remarkable run from Smith, and one we certainly didn't see coming but one she should certainly be proud of. Smith now leads the entire MAIS in the High School Girls 800m, and is the number four 800m runner in all of Mississippi.
As the saying goes, a rising tide lifts all boats, and the tide is rising in MAIS High School Girls distance running.
MAIS 5A 300mH duel
Another very exciting race at the MAIS 5A Track and Field State Championships was the High School Girls 300mH, thanks to the duel between Chloe Shomon and Caty Matthews.
Both competitors had been crushing the postseason and had astronomical PR's on the best day to so. You could say that each one had the race their lives as they hit the MileSplit USA Second-Team standard in the event, seemingly coming out of nowhere to do so.
The end result... Shomon in 46.40 to Matthews' 46.62.
All in all, it was phenomenal race that knocked our socks off at MileSplit Mississippi, and will be potentially looking forward to a lot more thrilling races between these two.
Ella Rankin crushes the 3200m
Defending her title as the best long distance runner in MAIS 6A was Ella Rankin of Hartfield, who ran a state leading time in the 3200m of 11:43.8 to win her x state title in MAIS 6A as just an eighth grader.
Rankin took the state leading time from Brookelyn Morgan of Tupelo, who just won the MHSAA 6A High School Girls 3200m title, by just half of a second.
Next up for Rankin is the 2022 cross country season, where she will likely chase after the sub-19 5k barrier as well as to try and defend her cross country state title in MAIS 6A.
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Sarah Carnathan defends High Jump Title, breaks MAIS 6A Record
Sarah Carnathan, the high jump stud from Jackson Academy, defended her specialty event, jumping 5-5.25 at the 2022 MAIS 6A Track and Field State Championships and remaining undefeated in her senior season.
Getting somewhat of a late start to her season, Carnathan's first competition wasn't until March 23 at the 2022 MRA Classic, and only had three meets under her belt going into the MAIS 6A Championships.
That didn't stop her from adding another state title to her resume, however, as well as breaking the MAIS 6A State record and snagging a MileSplit USA Second-Team Standard.
Next up for Carnathan is Austin Peay State University, where she will continue her academic and athlete career and will continue to high jump and play volleyball for the Lady Governors.
Blair Walsh defends MAIS 4A Discus Title
Leading the entire MAIS in the Discus was Amite School Center's Blair Walsh, throwing a PR of 125-6 to win the MAIS 4A title, her second time to do so.
Walsh's mark also hit the MileSplit USA Second-Team standard in the High School Girls Discus, and is currently ranked fifth in the entire state of Mississippi with her mark.
The future for Walsh is unknown, but she is a just a junior, and we can expect her to potentially come back and three-peat in 2023 and go for the MAIS 4A State Meet record, a mark that she was only three feet from getting this year.
Honorable Mentions
We unfortunately can't talk about everybody that competed at the 2022 MAIS Track and Field Championships, but there were still several performances that caught our attention.
- Rihanna Love of North Sunflower won the 100m, 200m, and Long Jump in the 2022 MAIS 3A High School Track and Field State Championships.
- Benton's Lindsey Hogue soloed marks of 5:46 and 12:40 in the 1600m and 3200m, adding two more state titles to her accomplished resume.
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- Sara Pace dominated the MAIS 5A High School Discus competition, throwing 118-11 and remaining undefeated in her specialty event for the entire 2022 track and field campaign.
- Jackson Prep became the first private school of the year to break 10 minutes in the 4x800m, getting dangerously close to the MAIS Overall record of 9:56.02.
- Olivia Smith of Jackson Prep had a breakout meet, winning the 1600m in 5:26 and finishing second in the 800m and 3200m. Smith now ranks inside of the Top 10 in Mississippi in the 800m, 1600m, and 3200m.
MRA's Evie Ewing hit the MileSplit USA Second-Team Standard in the Long Jump, winning the MAIS 6A title with a mark of 17-6.5. Ewing also podiumed in the 400m, running 1:00.48.