In the first edition of the 2026 Mississippi Future Stars series, we highlight one of the best, if not the best, young hurdlers in the state. Hailing from Hattiesburg High School, freshman Judawn Porter has been on a tear to start her debut season.
She opened the year with a huge showing at the Hattiesburg High Opener, winning the 100m hurdles, 300m hurdles, and the long jump. In the long jump, she recorded a mark of 17-11, which currently ranks as the No. 6 mark in Mississippi this season and stands as the top performance by a freshman. In the hurdles, it was already clear that Porter had even more in store as the season progressed.
At the Brookhaven Speed Trials, Porter clocked a 45.33 in the 300m hurdles, narrowly missing her all-time personal best while securing the state lead by half a second. She is the fastest freshman in the state this season by more than four seconds and currently ranks as the fifth-fastest freshman in Mississippi history in the event.
Just a few days later, she returned to the track at the Southern Miss High School Invitational, where she ran 15.45 in the 100m hurdles. That performance earned her a third-place finish and currently ranks as the ninth-best mark in Mississippi this season.
When you combine all of her performances so far, Porter sits in the top 10 in Mississippi in three different events and leads all freshmen in each of them. She may only be a freshman, but on the track, age does not matter when you are posting marks like these. Keep an eye on Judawn Porter as she continues her season and begins chasing even bigger marks and possibly records along the way.
In the first edition of the 2026 Mississippi Future Stars series, we highlight one of the best, if not the best, young hurdlers in the state. Hailing from Hattiesburg High School, freshman Judawn Porter has been on a tear to start her debut season.
She opened the year with a huge showing at the Hattiesburg High Opener, winning the 100m hurdles, 300m hurdles, and the long jump. In the long jump, she recorded a mark of 17-11, which currently ranks as the No. 6 mark in Mississippi this season and stands as the top performance by a freshman. In the hurdles, it was already clear that Porter had even more in store as the season progressed.
