Sanaa Frederick winning the 100m at Friday night lights earlier this year

Well it appears Marist girls have quite a bit of breathing room looking at the team projections. They could win the whole meet just with their distance squad. But on top of that they've got jumpers, throwers, and relays as well. So they should be able to just let their girls go out and do their thing. After that it appears to be a battle for 2nd place between Jefferson and Druid Hills. Both teams have a stud with Law and Frederick who can score some big points in pursuit of the team runner up trophy. Jefferson is a little bit more balanced and is likely to score in more events, but Druid Hills has a little more firepower in their best events, the sprints and relays. After that it appears to be a battle for the final podium spot between Arabia Mountain, Baldwin, Fayette County, and Monroe. Arabia looks to be the strongest with their sprinters, hurdlers, and Relays. Baldwin is a little bit more balance and maybe has the most room to grow scoring in several disciplines. Fayette is going for a team effort similar to Baldwin. But don't count out Monroe who might have the home field advantage on this one. 

Sprints

Sanaa Frederick is the star here and looks ready to win her first and second state titles after coming up just short last year. She is undefeated in the 200 this year and has only lost once in the 100 when it mattered and that athlete is doing other events at state. However, should she open the door for anybody else, look for Marissa Palmer and Micyah Fonfield to challenge her in the 100 while Davenae Fagan and Rasunek Tyler-Thompson, who is the only athlete to beat her all year) to challenge her in the 200. In the 400 there are 3 girls all under 56 and it should be an intense battle between them down the final stretch. Fagan is the slight favorite by PR, but Amilliana Simmons and Marianna Wright are just as capable of getting the win. In the hurdles, Tyler-Thompson is the favorite for the 100 Kailey Elliot and Nafer Rapier also sub 15 and in it to win while Marianna Wright is the favorite for the 300m hurdles based on PR. However, remember we're using the new schedule here she has to race back to back in the 400 and 300m hurdles. Is that enough rest? It used to be with the old schedule but this new one might not allow enough for the time favorite to win it. If she's not rested enough look for Rapier or Josie Loggins to come through with the victory.

Distance

What is there to say about Marist girls that hasn't already been said over the years? Their distance squad is the best in the state and will likely put up a ton of points here. They don't appear to be quite good enough to go 1-2-3 in all of the events, but it wouldn't shock me if they did and 3 of the top 4 is very possible for them in each. In the 800 it'll be Johna Grisik, Nicole Pizzo and Kate Selover with Sydney Bohles and JaBresha Palmer looking to spoil the party. In the 1600 it'll be Grisik, Ruby Little, and Selover with Katherine Law very capable of stealing the win from them. And in the 3200 Law is the favorite by time, but Little and Pizzo, if she can handle the 800/3200 double, are certainly right there capable of winning. Maeve Waddell is their next star who is also racing and could put up a good time in 4th place.

Field Events

Jada Pittman from Jefferson is the favorite for the long jump with the very well rounded Tyler-Thompson close behind her. In the high jump Megan Taylor is the only one who has cleared 5-4 this year but there are several girls right behind her at 5-2 who could have a say in all of this. In the triple jump it's Areale Mitchell who is slightly favored to win it, but this might be the field event of the meet because there are 7 other girls within 9 inches of her best mark this year. This event is wide open and will come down to who has the best jump when it matters most. In the Pole Vault Ella Kulniszewski is favored as the only girl over 11-0 but both Lauren Henderson and Sadie Arnold have cleared 10-6 and have a shot at the title. Makayla Register has thrown over 40 feet this year and should come away with the win, but if it's not her day then look for Onoyeme Egure or Amber Brown to be on top of the podium. Brown and Register should both be battling for the win in the discus as well with Raven Williams, Christy Thomas, and Avah Morrison are easily within striking distance when they have their best throws.

Relays

Look for Druid Hills to Battle Arabia and Stephenson in the 4x100 while Arabia will duke it out with Monroe and Fayette County on the 4x200. This meet could come down to the 4x400 for the final 3 podium spots so look for it to be the event of the meet. Druid Hills and Monroe have both gone under 4:00 so far this season so expect them to battle it out, especially if there are key points on the line. In the 4x800 the Marist girls have gone #2 all time in Georgia, but they're not running their A line up which could possibly leave them vulnerable. If they somehow struggle, it could be Jefferson, Luella, or North Oconee who takes home the top spot.

Can Marist get the team sweep? It's definitely not as easy for them on the boys side but it's possible. Just like with the girls they get most of their points with distance kids and their 4x800. But they've got some points coming in the jumps as well and they definitely have room to grow. But they've also got events where they're vulnerable. It'll be interesting to see how the others attack them. Jefferson looks most likely to take them down, but their top distance guy will need to take care of business in order to do so. They also probably need to improve in the jumps, sprints and/or relays or hope Marist opens the door for them. Stephenson and North Oconee are also dangerous for the win. Stephenson is heavy sprints and relays but thy've got plenty of potential for points in other areas which likely makes them the biggest threat if they show up big. North Oconee has a superstar who could put up 40 points himself if things go well. They have a little bit of support for Cross in the jumps and throws, but they'll likely have to do more than that in order to take the team win.

Sprints

Chance Cross is going for the sprints triple, and he just might be good enough to get it done. The new schedule is much more favorable for this than the old one, but he will still have to manage prelims and finals of all 3 events and that doesn't include his field event. But it would be the story of the meet if he pulled it off. The favorite in the 100 is Jace Coleman though who has looked good all year, and don't count out Ahmad Carter to disrupt things. Cross will be challenged by Coleman and also Abubakar Diarrassouba in the 200 and he will be challenged by Justin Warner and Jakeem Johnson. In the hurdles Muhammad Diaby is the only on who is under 15 this year. But Jesse Watkins and Jeremiah Carroll are knocking on the door of it and could snag the win if Diaby falters at all. In the 300 Davonte Jackson is the favorite and will be challenged by Diaby and Blake Austin.

Distance

Matthew Schroeder is a pretty solid favorite in both the 800 and the 1600 at this meet. But it's state and anything can happen. In the 800 Zahir Raheem is the only other athlete so far under 2:00 this year and in the 1600 he will have to deal with the Marist trio of Tommy Latham, Everett Markwalter, and Caden Strickland who could use some team tactics to take him down. In the 3200 Strickland is a solid favorite based on PR, but does he have the ability to run away from everybody or sit and kick? We will see. If not, then it could be Latham, Markwalter, or Will Goldsmith standing on top of the podium.

Field Events

The High Jump is without question the event of the entire meet. We've got a total of 14(!) athletes who have cleared 6-2 in this one. The top seed is Silas Griffin who has jumped 6-10 so far this year. He is closely followed by Chance Cross, Domonik Henderson, and JD Black who have all hit 6-8 on the year. Any one of them could win it but they've also gotta watch out for somebody who gets hot at the right time and clears a new PR at state as there are 3 more guys who have gone over 6-4 this year. Crazy! Misses will almost certainly come into play on this one! Mikel Bridges is the long jump favorite with Jordan Perry and Sammy Brown hot on his heels. In the triple jump Henderson is the only jumper over 46 feet but there are 5 more over 45 feet so anything can happen there too. In the Vault, John Harris will look to do his part for his team's pursuit of a trophy by winning the vault as the favorite. But he doesn't have much room for error as Destin Smith is right behind him along with 3 more right behind that. And finally the man of the meet is likely to be Logan Montgomery with his big throws in the shot put and discus. He is the heavy favorite in both with some big marks this year in both, but especially in the discus throwing it over 65 feet! Evan Guyton and James Jackson will likely battle for 2nd in the Discus while Patrick Gardner and Zahmerius Shiflet will battle in the shot put.