The Francis Marion Track and Field team took their middle schoolers to compete against other middle schoolers in the Eastwood Middle School Invitational at Paul Bryant High School’s track on April 2nd. Most the season, all the Ram middle schoolers compete against varsity athletes that can be tough when comparing themselves to athletes who have been competing in track for many more years than they have, so this opportunity was fun for them to see how they compare against athletes with similar experience levels. While all the athletes did well, Damarian Woods, a first-year track athlete, out shown all the athletes present. He won both the high jump and the 400m dash, while placing 2nd in the triple jump.
The Running Rams then took their whole squad to compete against 20 teams ranging from 1A to 7A at the King of the West Invitational at Central High School in Tuscaloosa. The girls team placed 7th and boys placed 8th overall. The ladies were only defeated by 4A and larger teams, while the boys had only Holy Spirit place higher than them other than 4A and larger teams. The following individuals placed 5th or better in their events. A’- Naja Tubbs placed 2nd in the shot put, Tracianna Moore placed 4th in the triple jump, the 4x100m relay girls placed 4th with a time that is the 48th fastest time in Alabama of all divisions, Michael Hopkins placed 5th in the 110M hurdles, Kingston Hinton placed 4th in the high jump, and Jeremiah Kynard placed 5th in the triple jump. Jadarius Carlisle, though he didn’t place in the top 5, set a new Francis Marion record of 12 minutes and 10 seconds in the 3200m race.
These races ended the regular season for the Rams as they now prepare for sectionals on April 25th in hopes of bringing home a section championship for the third year in a row. Sectionals will be in Loachapoka for anyone who can come out and support!
