A large contingent of parish athletes will be headed to Baton Rouge for the Class 5A state meet.
At least one individual or relay team qualified for the Ochsner LHSAA Outdoor Track and Field State Meet in 16 of 19 boys events and 12 girls events at the Region I-5A meet Wednesday at Northwestern State. The Class 5A meet is Saturday, May 4, at LSU.
The top three individuals and relay teams in each event qualified. So finishing second or third Wednesday was just as good as finishing first.
But there was plenty of winning by parish teams. Parkway won the boys division for the first time in school history with 87 points. District 1-5A champion Airline was second with 75, one point ahead of Alexandria.
District 1-5A champion Airline was fifth in the girls division with 43 points. Barbe won with 91 and Alexandria was second with 83.
BOYS
Parkway’s Devon Oliver and Airline’s Jeremiah Boudreaux were double winners.
Oliver won the discus with a toss of 176 feet, 4 inches. That was a whopping 14 feet, 1 inch farther than his winning throw in last year’s state meet.
Alexandria’s Douglas Hunter Rivet was second with a 170-8 and Airline’s Malik Word third with a 164-3.
Oliver also won the shot put with a 53-8 3/4. That would’ve been good enough to win last year’s state meet. Barbe’s Michael Fulton was a close second with a 52-9 1/2.
Boudreaux swept the hurdles, winning the 110 in 14.35 and 300 in 37.16. His teammate Zion Smith was second in both. He ran a 15.23 in the 110 and a 39.79 in the 300.
Boudreaux also finished second in the high jump. He, Acadiana’s Damon Lewis and Sam Houston’s Chris Collura all cleared 6-6. Lewis finished first on fewer misses.
Parkway’s Will Achee won the 200 in 21.64 seconds, which would’ve been good enough for a fourth-place finish in last year’s state meet.
Achee has mostly specialized in the 400, and he finished second in that event in 48.03. Barbe’s Darryl Washington won in 47.74.
Benton’s Miller Malley won the pole vault with a 13-6. West Ouachita’s Slade Sanford also cleared 13-6 but Malley won on fewer misses.
The Parkway foursome of Brennan Robin, Gabriel Falting, Achee and Brody Hochter won the 4X400 relay in 3:20.47.
Alexandria was second in 3:21.01. The Airline foursome of Phillip Hughes, Gabe Laval, Boudreaux and Lathan Woodland qualified with a third-place finish in 3:22.45.
Falting finished second in the 800 in 1:56.94 and third in the 1,600 in 4:33.86.
Robin was second in the 1,600 in 4:33.09. Ruston’s Thomas Rogers won in 4:32.04. Pineville’s Justin Descant won the 800 in 1:56.70.
The Parkway foursome of Alex Gomez, Jesus Cordova, Ben Ruliffson and Gary Smith was second in the 4X800 relay in 8:06.18. Alexandria won in 8:04.34.
Ruliffson finished third in the 3,200 in 9:54.97. Ruston’s Rogers won in 9:37.67.
Benton’s Jeffery King finished third in the javelin with a 183 3/4. He was the state runner-up last year. West Monroe’s Jaxon Talley won with a 193-7.
Benton’s Marc Perry was third in the triple jump with a 45 2 1/2. Alexandria’s Marquis Butler won with a 47-7.
Airline’s Ladarius Epps just missed qualifying in the 100. He finished fourth in 11.12, just .01 behind the third-place finisher.
GIRLS
Benton’s Addyson Hulett finished second in the 400 and pole vault.
She ran a 56.63 in the 400. Barbe’s Kennedi Burks won in 54.19.
Hulett cleared 9-6 in the pole vault. Barbe’s Scarlett Pettigrew won with an 11-0.
Benton’s Sadie Hamby took second in the javelin with a 129-4 3/4. Parkway’s Chloe Larry, last year’s state runner-up, also qualified, finishing third with a 123-7.
Airline’s Jaycie Wallace and Shelby Ledet all posted runner-up finishes.
Wallace ran a 25.64 in the 200. Lafayette’s Khia Williams won in 25.64.
Ledet cleared 5-2 in the high jump. Three other athletes also cleared 5-2 bit Ledet was second on fewer misses. Barbe’s Aniya Lavan won with a 5-4.
The Airline foursome of Ke’Zyrish Sykes, Wallace, Rikiyah Taylor and Janiyah Boudreaux finished second in the 4X100 relay in 47.87. Alexandria won in 46.88.
Sykes was third in the 100 in 12.37. Alexandria’s Jakyra Edwards won in 12.19.
The Parkway foursome of Allison Taylor, Racquel Rios Lauren Taylor and Sophia Bright was third in the 4X800 in 10:06.98. Ruston won in 9:52.92.
Haughton’s Aniya Hill took third in the discus with a 121-7. Barbe’s Jolie Jones won with a 138-9.
Parkway’s Jayla James finished third in the shot put with a 36-7. Jones won with a 38-4.
Airline’s Boudreaux was third in the triple jump with a 34-1 1/2. Southside’s Karmen Williams won with a 36-0 1/2.