MHSAA 6A GIRLS

High School Girls Field Events

In the high school girls' field events, Vicksburg High School took control of the jumps with their star jumpers Zion Knox and Rodrianna Hall. As an eighth grader, Knox took the victory in the triple with her mark of 35-08. Close behind her jump was Hall with her mark of 35-04. Over in the long jump Hall and Knox doubled back for 2nd and 4th place, respectfully. Columbus High School senior Christina Fulton took the overall win with her long jump mark of 16-10.5, winning by a single inch. 

In the high jump, it was a battle of the 9th graders, as the entire podium was all freshmen. Laikyn Moore of Picayune Memorial High School took the victory with her leap of 5-02, beating out her teammate Kimora Banks and Madison Jones from Terry High School. Banks and Jones tied for second with marks of 5-00.

Discus showcased West Harrison High School's Sydnei Barber and Brianna Harris who placed 1st and 2nd, respectfully. Barber hit a mark of 122-10.50, landing her as the second-best MHSAA 6A discus thrower ever in Mississippi. In shot-put, we saw Takayla Pope of South Panola High School take a dominant win with her throw of 38-01.25. This freshman grabbed a two-foot personal best to finish her season as the 3rd best thrower in Mississippi this year.

High School Girls Track Events

In the high school girls' track events, Adria Burrel and Morgan Bradley battled it out in both the 100-meter and 200-meter races. In the 100 meter, Morgan Bradley of Jim Hill High School narrowly beat Burrell by 0.05 seconds, winning with a time of 12.17. However, Adria Burrel of Warren Central High School came back with a fight and won the 200 meter-race with a time of 25.57. Burrell beat Bradley by only 0.02 seconds and also fought off an impressive field of athletes, the top seven of which finished within 0.4 seconds of the winning time.

In the 400-meter race, Shaniyah Walker of Vicksburg High School split a blazing 57.41, earning her first state title and first-ever sub-58 performance. She finishes the season as the 2nd fastest runner in the state this year and one of only three athletes who have gone below 58. Up in the 800-meter race, Jazmine Taylor of South Panola High School upset the field with her time of 2:30. She was seeded 4th going into this race and ended up beating her personal best by 9 seconds to secure her victory. 

Our distance runners brought the heat as well with a close battle in the 1600-meter race. Kyli Truss of Neshoba Central High School battled Paula Sims of Pascagoula High School in a kick-finish to decide the state title. In the end, Truss came away with the win in a time of 5:41.61, beating out Sims' time of 5:41.82. This wasn't the end of the story for Paula Sims though, as she doubled back in the 3200-meter race. Sims ran away from the competition and won with a time of 12:58.

In the hurdles, Callaway High School's freshman Ja'Niyah Taylor managed to win both the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles. With times of 15.14 and 45.18, she was untouchable in both events. Look out behind her though, as seventh-grader Judawn Porter of Hattiesburg High School snagged 2nd place in the 300-meter hurdles. This middle schooler ran a split of 46.16 and is the fastest 7th grader to ever run this event in Mississippi history. Not only that, but she also broke the middle-school girls' record for this event and sits as the 2nd fastest middle schooler in the entire country this year.

High School Girls Team Race

In the overall scoring for the girl's team race, Hattiesburg High School narrowly beat Vicksburg High School, with the final totals coming from 73 to 71. With Hattiesburg High School absolutely crushing the 4x400m race and winning by almost ten seconds, they secured the win for themselves. 

MHSAA 6A BOYS

High School Boys Field Events

In the high school boys' field events, Justin Knight of George County High School won a close long jump battle with Maddox Brown of Hattiesburg High School. Knight won the day with his mark of 23-02.25, beating out Maddox Brown's 23-01. Knight came back for the high jump and tied for first place with Kelton Jones of Grenada High School. Both athletes hit 6-08, making them two of the best jumpers in the state.

In the triple jump, Demetrius Taite of Pascagoula High School claimed the state title with a massive jump of 46-04.75. In third place, Romen Williams of Ridgeland High School hit a mark of 44-04. He also snagged third in the long jump as well, earning him multiple podiums that day. For the pole vaulters, Brayden Detienne-Falls claimed the state title with his vault of 12-06, beating out Abel Sanders from Center Hill High School.

Our throwers did not disappoint with a big upset coming from Forest Hill High School's Shaquentin Lofton. Up until this year's state meet, Lofton had only won a single discus event. However, by improving his discus throw by over twenty feet in the last three weeks of competition, he managed to earn his second win at the biggest stage in Mississippi. His throw of 145-2 earned him his first state title and showcases the fact that you should never count yourself out of taking the win. 

High School Boys Track Events

In the high school boys' field events, Jamari Page of Ridgeland High School started of his day hot with a victory in the 100-meter race. Page came through the line in 10.69, winning the race comfortably. For the 200m race, it was a battle between Chance Jenkins and Dwight Palmer. In the end, Jenkins of Grenada High School finished ahead and won the race with a staggering 21.67. Palmer finished close behind with a time of 21.77. Our 400-meter race showcased an insanely close battle between Jaston McWilliams of Terry High School and Jason Walker of Callaway High School. McWilliams beat Walker at the line with a winning time of 49.22, winning by a mere 0.06 seconds.

In an even closer battle, Jalen Hardiman of Hattiesburg and Jarvis Sellers from Pascagoula went head to head in the 800-meter race. With an exhilarating sprint finish, Hardiman won the race in a blazing 2:00.30, beating out Sellers by 0.03 seconds. Hardiman has been on the up-and-coming all year and now has a state title to his name, cementing him as a dominant figure in the MHSAA 6A middle-distance arena. Upping the distance to the 1600-meter race, there was yet another photo-finish race. After battling it out for 4 laps, Caden Louder from Olive Branch won the race with a split of 4:35.13, defeating Tylar Ross of Ridgeland High School, who finished in 4:35.26. In the 400, 800, and 1600, the winning times were decided by less than one-tenths of a second. 

In the final distance event, Angel Garcia-Martinez from Hattiesburg dominated the 3200-meter race with a victorious time of 9:52. Close behind him was ninth grader Preston Mundy from Olive Branch, who claimed second with a time of 9:59.

Next up in the hurdles we saw one of the most exciting races of the entire day. Jamari Page of Ridgeland High School came back after his 100-meter win and decided to demolish the 110-meter hurdles. With an unfathomable time of 13.82, Page broke the MHSAA 6A state record and stands as the third-fastest 110-meter hurdler in Mississippi history. Up in the 300-meter hurdle race, Koury Vample came on top after a close three-way race between Romen Williams and Jaden Webb. His time of 39.30 earned him the win after coming just short of a state title in last year's competition.

Hattiesburg dominated the relays with victories in the 4x100, 4x200, and 4x800.

High School Boys Team Race

With no competition in site, Hattiesburg High School claimed the team state title with a collective 115 points. They crushed the relays and had serious contenders on every side of the track and field events. 

Coming in second, Ridgeland High School scored 85.50 points.