Mallory Hodge holds on for the win in the 400 at Marietta right before spring break
Weeks of Mar 28 - Apr 9 Unsung Heroes: 2 Weeks: 2 Fast 2 Furious
Spring break season has come and gone here in Georgia, but that does not mean the track season is slowing down. In fact, things are just now heating up here-the high will get into the 80s this week in parts of the state! At this point in the season, athletes have already been performing well for over 2 and a half months, and the lucky ones will still be running for a month more. This week, we wrap up our celebration of schools of all sizes by taking a look at the largest schools, from classifications 6A and 7A. These Unsung Heroes might have what it takes to be some of the top athletes, in the toughest classifications, in one of the best track and field states in the country. Since most schools of this size took the week off, this episode contains performances from the past two weeks instead.
"Unsung Heroes" recognizes some great individual performances from this past week across the state of Georgia that might have flown under the radar or gone underappreciated. One winner is selected from each of three categories (sprints/hurdles, distance, and field events) for both boys and girls. Enjoy!
Girls Winners
Sprints/Hurdles
Mallory Hodge, Tucker (6A)
56.48 in 400m at 5th Annual GA Spring Break Showdown, 1st
24.34 in 200m at 5th Annual GA Spring Break Showdown, 2nd
At the beginning of April, there were two huge meets in Georgia for athletes about to head into spring break: the Spring Break Showdown and Friday Night Lights at Starr's Mill. The first was the annual GA Spring Break Showdown, and Hodge was the queen of the sprints at the meet this year. Hodge came into the season as a favorite to score in two events at the 6A state meet-but the 400 meters was not one of them. In fact, Hodge has run 3 PRs in three races in the 400m so far this year, and her best performance came this week in which she took down a field where seven girls broke the 60-second mark. Oh, and she ran a season best in the 200-meter dash as well with a time that ranks third in 6A. No big deal.
Distance
Alexa Hoppenfeld, Riverwood International (6A)
11:01.57 in 3200m at 5th Annual GA Spring Break Showdown, 4th
5:11.33 in 1600m at 5th Annual GA Spring Break Showdown, 11th
Hoppenfeld, a junior at Riverwood and the ace for the Raiders in XC in the fall, has enjoyed a breakout track campaign that places her in the top four in 6A in both the 3200 and the 1600. At the Spring Break Showdown, Hoppenfeld took advantage of the quick competition and secured personal bests in the 3200 and 1600. Her 1600 time was 9 seconds faster than her previous second best, and her 3200 time was 24 seconds faster than her previous time! If good competition is what helps Hoppenfeld run her fastest, that bodes well for her as the postseason approaches.
Field
Briana Parker-O'Connor, Hillgrove (7A)
117' 11" in Discus Throw at Allatoona JV Home Meet #5, 1st
109' 10" in Discus Throw at 5th Annual GA Spring Break Showdown, 1st
Hillgrove will be one of the teams in 7A best poised to grab a podium spot, with predicted points coming in the distance events, relays, and sprints. Parker-O'Connor will be critical for the girls to score points in the throws, and she has improved massively in her senior season to help that cause. This past week, she broke through barriers in the discus throw, competing in two meets. She beat her previous farthest throw by nine feet in one of those meets, and she threw eight feet further than that in her other meet! Now, her throw of 117' 11" at Allatoona ranks Parker-O'Connor fourth in 7A. If she keeps improving at this rate, Hillgrove could be scoring even more than five points in the discus at state in their quest to win the title.
Boys Winners
Sprints/Hurdles
Jaylen Marsh, Carrollton (6A)
48.96 in 400m at Friday Night Lights at Starr's Mill, 2nd
The 400 meters in 6A is incredibly competitive. Already this season, there have been 17 runners who have broken 50 seconds at some point, and 10 have broken the 49-second mark. To put that in perspective, last year's state meet final saw only 6 runners break 50 seconds and 3 break 49. Marsh finished fifth in that race last year, and this season he has only improved, as he finally passed the 49-second mark at the Friday Night Lights meet. Marsh will look to improve on last year's fifth-place finish at state last year and potentially win it all this time.
Distance
Carter Dehnke, Brookwood (7A)
9:42.01 in 3200m at Friday Night Lights at Starr's Mill, 5th
Dehnke is only a sophomore on the very strong Brookwood squad, but he has quickly blossomed into the team's best shot at scoring points in the distance events at state. Dehnke ran out of his mind under the lights at Starr's Mill on Friday, as he clocked his first-ever recorded 3200 in a speedy time of 9:42.01. After two seasons of running mostly in the 800m and 1600m, Dehnke may have found his best event, as he was able to take down multiple sub-16:00 5k runners in the process. If he could rank in 7A's top 11 in his first race at this distance, he may have the potential to break 9:30 with another month to train, which is a fantastic time for a sophomore.
Field
Lukas Gandy, East Paulding (6A)
12' 6" in Pole Vault at Paulding County Championship, 1st
Gandy is a senior at East Paulding, but he has been improving more rapidly this season than his others. Last year, he finished the season with an 8th-place vault at region 5-6A of 10 feet. This season, he has improved on that mark by 2.5 feet and just won the Paulding County Championship. Gandy's vault saw him climb the 6A rankings into a tie for sixth for the whole state, and just three more inches would rank him in clear fourth. Hopefully, Gandy can end his senior year with a region championship, and anything can happen in May.