2023 McEachern Invitational Meet Preview

McEachern Invitational Meet Preview

The McEachern Invitational marks the last big invitational before the Region meet fiasco begins. Some athletes load up in their region events, some athletes pick one event to focus on while other athletes choose to run an off event. However, with 46 teams and over 1,500 athletes entered, the one thing that can be guaranteed is that the competition will be top notch. As athletes tune up for the post season and the weather looks to be somewhat favorable, we are in for some great competitions on Saturday.

Long Jump

The girls long jump looks to be a competition between Sky White of Sandy Creek and Chloe Perryman of Brookwood as they are the only 2 girls in the field who have jumped over 19-0 this season. Sky leads the field with a PR jump of 19-9 from a few weeks ago. Chloe has a PR of 19-6 but her season best jump is only 19-2.25, which she jumped a couple weeks ago at the Gwinnett County Championships. Others looking to shake it up at the top will be Alisa Gordon of Alexander and Ticora Gaskin of Westwood who have both jumped 18-8 this season.

Like the girls long jump, the boys long jump looks to be a competition between Braeden Ofosu-Kwarteng of Whitewater and Tito Alofe of Starrs Mill. These two recently went head-to-head at Friday Night Lights at Starrs Mill with Braeden coming out on top with a jump of 23-8.75 to Tito's 23-1.5. These two are the only athletes entered over 23-0 and almost a foot ahead of the 3^rd seed.

Triple Jump

In the girls triple jump, the class of the field is Ryan Lewis of Sandy Creek. She jumped 41-0 to win the Fayette County Championships and is the only athlete in the field who has cleared the 41-0 barrier. The next closest competitor is over a foot behind her at 39-10.75 and that is Alisa Gordon of Alexander. Alisa has a lifetime PR of 40-4 so if she can reach close to that mark, she will have a chance to upset Ryan on Saturday. Close behind Alisa is Maleah Tidwell of Campbell at 39-5. Maleah is the Cobb County Champion in the triple jump which was held at McEachern earlier this season. If she can channel more of that McEachern magic, she might find herself on top of the podium this weekend.

Just like the long jump, the boys triple jump closely mirrors the girls triple jump in that there is one competitor who is the class of the field and the overwhelming favorite. Ethan Crite of Roswell has -the best mark in the field at 47-3 which led him to win the Fulton County Championships a few weeks ago and is over a foot ahead of the next closest competitor. Should Ethan falter on Saturday, Tito Alofe of Starrs Mill and Nnadozie Onyirimba of McEachern will look to capitalize. Tito will be doubling back from the long jump and will look to improve upon his season's best mark of 45-11.5 from a couple weeks ago. He has a lifetime PR of 46-11 which puts him a lot closer to the leader. Nnadozie is close behind at 45-9 which he jumped a couple weeks ago to win the Cobb County Championships. He will be looking to defend his home track which as to give him a little extra motivation.

High Jump

In the girls high jump, the 5-0 barrier is a special barrier to clear. At the writing of this article, there are 12 girls entered with PRs at 5-0 or higher. Josie Collins of Athens Academy leads the field at 5-8 and is the only girl who has cleared 5-8. Filling out the podium spots looks to be Maren Cline of Roswell at 5-6 and Savannah Sparks of Harris County at 5-4. Should any of these 3 falter on Saturday, there will be 7 others girls who have all cleared 5-0 or better this season looking to snag a medal.

When looking at the boys high jump entries, I cant help but think that Tito Alofe of Starrs Mill will be very busy Saturday morning. He is entered in the long and triple jump where he is the 2^nd seed and the high jump where he is tied for the top seed at 7-0 with Malachi Yehudah of Langston Hughes. I am not sure how many competitions we have had in the state where we had 2 athletes clear 7-0 but that is a very real possibility Saturday. For me, this is one of the must watch events of the meet.

Pole Vault

In the girls pole vault, Silvana Lopez-Ramirez of West Forsyth is by far the class of the field. She has a PR of 12-6 that helped her win the Forsyth County Championships and is a foot and a half above the next closest competitor. She was 3^rd at last years state meet at McEachern and is the top returner in 7A. She will look to use Saturday as preparation for the state meet in a few weeks where she will look to bring home a state championship in the pole vault. Looking to keep Silvana close is region foe Megan Fergusson of Lambert at 11-0.

Like the girls pole vault, the boys pole vault features a clear favorite in Will Fredricks of Marietta. The last time Will was at McEachern, he jumped 16-0 to win the Cobb County Championships. His seed of 16-0 is 2 feet higher than the next closest competitor. Should Will slip up on Saturday, Lucas Hoke of Athens Academy will look to snag the top spot. He comes in with a PR of 14-0 that he jumped a couple weeks ago.

Shot Put

The girls shot put looks to be one of the more competitive field events on Saturday with the top 4 girls having marks within 3 inches of each other. Kendra Ezeanii of Blessed Trinity comes in as the slight favorite at 39-9. Behind her are Maya Steins of Alpharetta at 39-8.75, Kyndal McKinney of Woodstock at 39-8 and Alayna Abrams of Marietta at 39-6. With only 3 medals up for grabs, this should be a great competition leading into the post season.

The boys shot put looks to be a battle between Max Herman of Marietta and Nicholas Pearson of Blessed Trinity. Max comes in as the slight favorite at 53-5 which he achieved a couple weeks ago at McEachern to finish runner up at the Cobb County Championships. Being only 2 inches behind, Nicholas will look to push Max to the final round and use this meet as momentum heading into the post season.

Discus

Where the girls shot put is a close competition, the girls discus looks to be a little more spread out. Maya Steines of Alpharetta will be doubling back from the shot put and is the top seed in discus at 130-0 which is almost 8 feet ahead of the next closest competitor. Looking to build on her momentum from recent meets and defend her home track will be Haleigh Cephus of McEachern. She is coming off of a runner up finish at the Cobb County Championships followed the next weekend by a PR and runner up finish of 122-8 at the GA Spring Break Showdown. If she can continue to build on these past 2 meets, we might see an upset on Saturday.

The boys discus features 3 boys who have all cleared 150-0 this season. Amarii Atchison of Alexander leads the field at 155-5 which helped him win the Douglas County Championships a few weeks ago. Close behind him are Raymond Carlton of Blessed Trinity at 153-5 and Alex Henry of Lithia Springs at 152-2. The battle for a medal will surely require a throw over 150-0. A dark horse athlete must be Max Herman of Marietta. He has a lifetime PR of 169-2 but has only thrown 149-4 this season. After a late start to the outdoor season after winning 2 national championships in the wight throw indoors, Max will look to use this meet as a springboard in to post season competition and inching a step closer to his lifetime PR.

3200 Girls

The girls 3200 looks to be a toss up in terms of who might grab a medal in the race. 7 girls come into the race having run under 12:00 this season. Sarah Harrison of Athens Academy comes in as the top seed at 11:34 which she ran back in February. If she can find her form from the early season, she will easily find a spot on the podium Saturday. Behind Sarah is Samantha Burmeister of Woodstock and Gabi Comsudes of Marietta who have both run 11:50 this season. Behind these three looking to grab a medal will be Elizabeth Shaylor of North Cobb Christian, Effie Ward of Harris County, Mackenzie Crowe of Alexander and Lily Flood of West Forsyth all having run between 11:54 and 11:59.

100/110 hurdles

The girls 100 hurdles features 3 girls who have broken the 15.0 second barrier this season. Kalani Witherspoon of Carrollton is the favorite with a top time of 14.09 this season. Diaman Lee of McEachern will look to not only grab a podium spot but also defend her home track with after winning the Cobb County Championships a few weeks ago on the very same track. The final girl under 15.0 seconds this season is Ariel Johnson of Fayette County who has a season's best of 14.97.

In the boys 110 hurdles, we could see a 1-2 sweep from the Brookwood boys Bryce Dopson and Joshua Crum. They have run 14.76 and 14.89 respectively this season back at the Gail Devers Invitational. Looking to split up the Broncos will be Gandor Bah of Sandy Creek who has run 14.88 this season and is the only other athlete in the field who has gone under 15.0 seconds.

100

The girls 100 on paper looks to be quite competitive with 6 athletes entered at 12.10 or faster but when looking at season's best results, there is a clear favorite. Victoria Teasley of Alexander comes in with the fastest time this season at 11.54w. Her fastest non-wind aided time is 11.63. The next closest competitor this year is Ryan Lewis of Sandy Creek at 12.10. After these two athletes, it is a toss up as to who will grab the third and final podium spot.

The boys 100 is the exact opposite of the girls and looks to be one of the more competitive races of the day. There are 5 boys entered who have run under 10.63 this season and with McEachern being one of the fastest tracks in the state, we are bound to see some fast times on Saturday. Eric Singleton of Alexander is by far the class of the field. He is the Douglas County Champion at 10.34 seconds. Earlier in the season he ran a wind aided 10.34 on the McEachern track so I look for him to be even faster on Saturday. Behind Eric is the Langston Hughes duo of Maurice Gleaton and CJ Lockhart who have run 10.55 and 10.57 respectively this season. One athlete that cannot be overlooked is Chris Nelson of South Forsyth. He has run 10.61 this season but has a PR of 10.28 which he ran last season at this very same meet.

1600

The girls 1600 is led by the Lady Bronco duo of Macy Felton and Allie Wardle who are putting together stellar senior season. Macy comes in with the slight edge after running 5:06 to win the Gwinnett County Championships. Allie was right behind her in 5:08 to grab second. They have also both run under 2:20 for the 800 this year so if no one gaps them with a lap to go, they will be hard to beat. Claire Petersen will be right in the mix as she has very similar credentials. She has not run as many races this season so she might not be as sharp but she has run 5:07 and sub 2:20 this season which matches right up with Macy and Allie. One thing that might give her an edge is that she has a PR of 4:59 which makes her the only athlete in the field to have ever broken the 5:00 barrier.

The boys 1600 field features 7 boys who are entered at 4:20 or faster but only 4 athletes have ran those times this season. Cory Chambers of Milton comes in as the top seed and slight favorite after running 4:16 at the GA Spring Break Showdown. Noah Martinson of Carrollton has run 4:19 but might be one of the most consistent athletes in the field. He has run the 1600 3 times this season and they have all been within 3 seconds ranging from 4:19-4:22. Chris Connolly of Chattahoochee comes in with a PR of 4:19 that he ran to win the Fulton County Championships where he beat Cory. A final athlete to watch will be Cole Schmoyer of West Forsyth. He has run 4:20 this season and boasts a season best in the 800 of 1:57 which shows he has the speed to close with anyone in the field.

400

The girls 400 looks to be a battle between Tyler Lowe of Chattahoochee and Serena Tate of Brookwood. They have run 54.73 and 54.93 respectively this season and are the only athletes in the field to have gone under 55.0 seconds in 2023. Chasing these two will be the Cobb County Champion, Yasmine Williams of South Cobb who ran 56.46 on this very same track to win the county championship.

The boys 400 looks to be a little more competitive with 5 boys entered who have broken 49 seconds this season. Jaylen Marsh of Creekside leads the field after running 47.93 to finish runner up at the Fulton County Championships. The UNC commit has a lifetime PR of 47.67 that he will be looking to beat on Saturday as he tunes up for his final GHSA post season. Andrew Sirras of Milton and Caden Terrell of North Paulding have run 48.21 and 48.28 respectively this season and will look to challenge for a medal and going under 48 seconds for the first time.

300 hurdles

In the girls 300m hurdles, there are 4 girls who have broken 47.0 seconds this season. Caseyona Hight of Stephenson leads the field after running 45.17 to finish 2^nd at the Dekalb County Championships. Behind her is Cobb County runner-up Natalie Harris of Harrison who has run 46.27 this season. Two other athletes who will be looking to snag a podium spot on Saturday are Kiyah Boyd of McEachern and Kalani Witherspoon of Carrollton who have both run 46.54 and 46.98 respectively this season.

Just like in the 110 hurdles, we could see a Brookwood 1-2 sweep in the 300 hurdles. Bryce Dopson and Joshua Crum lead the field with PRs of 37.16 and 37.84 respectively and are the only athletes in the field who have gone under 38.0 seconds. Dopson has to have the advantage as he ran that time to win the Gwinnett County Championships a few weeks ago. Joshua has not run the 300 hurdles this season and only opened his season up a month ago at the Gail Devers Invitational, but with a 37.84 PR, he cannot be overlooked. Looking to break up the 1-2 Bronco sweep will be Dmitry Wells of Langston Hughes who ran 38.92 to win the Fulton County Championships

800

The girls 800 looks to be a race for second. Isis Symone Grant of Sandy Creek is the class of the field. She has not raced yet this outdoor season but comes in with a 2:07 PR which puts her at the top of the rankings in any meet. She did have a strong indoor season running 56.23 for 400 and 2:09.26 for 800. If Symone is not in top form, one athlete who could grab the top spot on Saturday is Maya Davis of Athens Academy. Maya has run 2:17 this season which led her to win the Athens Clarke/Oconee County Area Championships. She also boasts 56.86 400m speed along with 5:03.56 1600m strength. So regardless of how the race plays out, she is in a good position to take home the gold if she is in the mix with 200m to go.

When it comes to the boys 800, you might have a better chance of picking the winner by putting their names in a hat and picking one at random. There are 23 boys entered under 2:00 with the top 5 boys all seeded within 1 second of each other from 1:55.26 to 1:56.13. However, only 3 of those boys have run those times this season. My favorite is Sumner Kirsch of North Atlanta. He has been on an absolute tear this season. He most recently ran 4:12 for 1600 at the GA Spring Break Showdown so we know the strength is there. There is a good chance his season's best of 1:55.69 will go down on Saturday. Chasing him will be Will Jennings of Carrollton who has run 1:56.04 and Zach Patell of Milton who has run 1:56.13 already this season. After these 3, there are 10 boys who are entered at 1:57.

200

The girls 200 is led by the Brookwood duo of Serena Tate and Janai Jones. Serena has run a wind aided 23.97 and non-wind aided 24.35 this season which led her to win the Gwinnett County Championships. Janai ran 24.62w to finish 4^th at the Gwinnett County Championships and has a non-wind aided season's best of 25.11. Looking to break up the Brookwood sweep is Destiny Jenkins of Lithia Springs who is the Douglas County runner up and boasts a PR and season's best of 24.93.

The boys 200 features 5 boys who have all run 21.66 or faster this season. Devin Clark of Marietta leads the field with his 21.36 PR that he ran to finish runner up at the Cobb County Championships. He is fresh off a PR of 11.09 in the 100 and has sub 47.0 second 400m strength so if he is anywhere close to the front coming off the curve, he will be hard to beat. Looking to put himself atop the podium on Saturday is the Fulton County runner up Maurice Gleaton from Langston Hughes who has run 21.54 this season. While he does not have the 400m strength that Devin has, he has run 10.55 in the 100 this season. The question is can he build up a big enough lead the first 100m to hold of Devin. This will be a race to watch on Saturday! Other athletes who will be looking to snag a podium spot and have all run 21.66 or faster this season are Carl Murray of North Atlanta, Jace Coleman of Stephenson and Ben Akomolafe of East Paulding.

3200 boys

The boys 3200 looks to be a 3-man race between Jackson Scruggs of Athens Academy, Diego Santiago of Chattahoochee and Charlie Thomas of Brookwood. All have run in the 9:30s this season and have broken 4:30 as well in the 1600. One athlete who will look to put themselves in the mix and grab a medal is Eli Corn of East Paulding. He has only run 9:49 this season but has a lifetime PR of 9:35 and has run 4:24 for 1600 this season which puts him right in the mix with the other 3 mentioned previously.