Girls
Much like the 5A girls, the 6A girls state meet is shaping up to be an exciting two-team battle. Alexander and Westlake are no strangers to track and field success, with Alexander taking the title in 2018 and Westlake winning it last year. This year will be especially intriguing because the two teams will be competing directly against each other on the individual level in most events, especially in the sprints, relays, and jumps. Alexander, the slight favorite, is led by sprinter Adaejah Hodge, who has been one of the top athletes in Georgia across the 100, 200, 400, and long jump. Westlake is similarly led by a sprinter-jumper, Colleen Branch, and hurdler Jasmine Harmon. Carrollton and Cambridge are the co-favorites to secure third place. They combine to have four of the top six-ranked pole vaulters. Riverwood, North Atlanta, Pope, and Chattahoochee round out the top eight, and any of them could jump into the fourth slot if Carrollton or Cambridge slip up.
Projected Team Results
Alexander: 107
Westlake: 90.5
Carrollton: 39
Cambridge: 36.5
Pope: 30
North Atlanta: 29.5
Tucker: 28
Dacula: 26
Sprints/Hurdles
The top three projected runners in the 100 are Westlake's Colleen Branch and Alexander's Adaejah Hodge and Victoria Teasley, with Westlake's Imari Johnson in the mix as well. This event could go a long way to determining a team champion, as well as producing fast times. Adaejah Hodge has the fastest time in both the 100 and 200, as well as the second-fastest 400 time. Sydney Harris has the edge in the 400, but Adaejah Hodge and Mallory Hodge are close behind. Jasmine Harmon is projected to win both the 100 and 300 hurdles. She'll have to hold off Kalani Witherspoon in the 100 hurdles and Allyria McBride in the 300.
Distance
In the 1600, four runners come in with a season best below 5:10, led by Charlotte Dunn's 5:01. This is really anyone's race, though. Cortney Adams and Dunn are neck-and-neck in the 800 rankings and 5 seconds ahead of the rest of the pack. Alexa Hoppenfeld has an outside chance of pulling off the 1600/3200 double, as she ranks #1 in the 3200 (11:00.19) and #4 in the 1600 (5:09.62)
Field
Skylar Soli of Douglas County has had an excellent season in the throwing events, reaching marks of 44' 9.5" in the shot put and 128' 6" in the discus. Noelle Igberaese had a monster throw of 135' 7" in the discus at sectionals; she will be the favorite if she can re-create that at the state meet. Paris Ivery of Grovetown ranks #2 in the long jump (19' 5"), #3 in the triple jump (39' 4.5"), and tied for third in the high jump (5' 6"). Adaejah Hodge, Kayla Pinkard, and Danah Nembhard will try to hold her off in each of those three events, respectively. Liv Bollenbacher has the edge in the pole vault by over a foot, but anything can happen at state.
Relays
If the scores are close heading into the final day, the relays could determine the team winner. Westlake comes in as the favorite for the 4x100 and 4x200. They will likely score in the 4x400 and 4x800 as well. However, Alexander ranks second in the 4x100, 4x200, and 4x800, as well as first in the 4x400. In the 4x800, the top six teams are separated by only 11 seconds, and we may have not seen some teams at full strength yet.
Boys
The 6A boys meet will be one of the closest meets between the top three teams. Buford, Carrollton, and Shiloh all have chances to win. I'll describe the case for each of these teams. Shiloh has a balanced squad that is projected to score points in all disciplines. Christion Barker will likely both score points in the 300-meter hurdles and in the jumps. Nathan Solomon is the favorite for both the 1600 and 3200, and he could score big in the 800 as well. Carrollton is the defending champion and might score even more points this year than last. They have projected scorers in 14 out of 18 events, including first place in triple jump and pole vault. Finally, Buford will be looking for its first boys track title since 1982. They are led by sprinters Isaiah Bond and Tobi Olawole and some talented relay squads. Whoever wins, it will be well-deserved. Heritage and Westlake should compete for fourth place, with Allatoona, Alexander, and Langston Hughes rounding out the top eight.
Projected Team Results
Buford: 88
Carrollton: 74
Shiloh: 71
Heritage: 54
Westlake: 48
Allatoona: 41
Alexander: 30.5
Langston Hughes: 27
Sprints/Hurdles
I am personally very much looking forward to the 6A boys 400 meters. 22 boys broke the 50-second barrier this year, and in region 5-6A a 49.37-second 400 was not fast enough to advance to sectionals. 9 athletes have run 48.20 or better, led by an incredible freshman from Westlake, Sidi Njie. Isaiah Bond of Buford leads the way in the 100, but he unfortunately didn't qualify for state in the 200. That opens the door for Heritage's Rashun Fountain to be the favorite in the 200. Malik Mixon of Westlake could double in the hurdles, as he has PRs of 13.87 in the 110 and 37.11 in the 300. Christion Barker (36.75 in 300) and Bryce Southerland (14.05 in 110) will have the best chances of stopping him.
Distance
The 800 should be very entertaining. Four athletes have a PR within a second of the leader, Chance Jones of Dacula. It's difficult to tell who the favorite is here because runners may have just been running to qualify at region and/or sectionals, but I would give the top six athletes a real shot at taking home the title. Nathan Solomon of Shiloh, the 6A XC state champion, is the favorite in the 1600 and 3200 with great times of 4:15 in the 1600 and 9:13 in the 3200.
Field
There are six athletes with a season best over 45' 11" in the triple jump (led by Amare Hall's 46' 7.25"), which should result in an amazing battle at state. Riyon Rankin has been undefeated in the high jump all year long, and he will be the favorite again at state. Christion Barker and Rashun Fountain will take a break from their running events to duke it out in the long jump, and Kareem Nazim of Carrollton should be the favorite in the pole vault. Piers Cameron and Tahir Hines will be battling in the discus. Cameron remains the favorite in the shot put by about two feet over Emorrie Foskey.
Relays
Buford should be the easy favorite in the 4x100 with an outstanding time of 40.05 earlier in the season. They also have a lot riding on the relays for the team battle. Langston Hughes is the favorite in the 4x200, and Alexander is the favorite in the 4x800 with an 8:01 season best, which is the top non-7A time in GA by nearly three seconds. Finally, the 4x400 will be packed with contending teams. Shiloh, Carrollton, and Buford went 1-2-3 at sectionals, and Westlake won the other sectional meet.
