STARKVILLE — Starkville High took hosting to a new extreme Saturday afternoon.
The Yellow Jackets and Lady Jackets helped Mississippi State University play host to the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 2A, Class 5A, and Class 6A North State championships.
The Yellow Jackets took full advantage, feeling right at home at the Spencer Stadium/Maddox Track complex on the MSU campus. The Starkville boys won the 5A title, while the Starkville girls placed fourth.
In each competition, the top four qualifiers advanced to the overall state track and field championships, while will be Friday and Saturday in Pearl.
“We had a good day of competition,” Starkville boys track coach Chris Barnett said. “I am really proud of the effort that our guys put forward. We had some earlier competitions at Ole Miss and Mississippi State, and I think that really helped our kids out.
“The opportunity to go to state is quite a reward for these kids and the hard work they have invested.”
While the top four finishers in each event advance to the state finals, the top eight finishers in each category earned points for the team total. Thus, the depth of the Yellow Jackets squad paid dividends toward winning the North State title.
The only first-place finish for Starkville came in the 4×400-meter relay, where the team of senior Kamau Bostic, senior Jalan Catledge, sophomore Damien Grady, and junior Jacoby Smith won with a time of 3:24.17.
“It is an exciting opportunity to advance to the state finals,” Bostic said. “We had a strong finish for everybody involved today. Some of our younger players really stepped up and performed. As a team, we had a good showing. I think everybody is excited about competing at state.”
The Starkville boys edged Canton by four and a half points for the title. West Point placed eighth, while New Hope was 10th. On the girls side, Oxford only won three categories but took the team title by a 64 1/2 points against second-place finisher Lanier. Starkville finished fourth, while West Point was sixth and New Hope was 11th.
In Class 6A, the Madison Central boys and Murrah girls won North State championships. The Columbus boys finished fifth, while the Columbus girls finished seventh.
The West Bolivar boys and J.Z. George girls won the North State titles in Class 2A.
GIRLS 6A
In the 100, Columbus eighth-grader Sky Samuel placed fourth at 12.32 seconds. In the 200, Samuel was second at 25.10. In the 300 hurdles, Columbus sophomore Kashaeyla Brooks took the top spot with a time of 45.35.
In the 4×200 relay, the Columbus team of Quaniesha Aaron, Kashaeyla Brooks, Cacovia Millsap, and Samuel placed third with a time of 1 minute, 42.66 seconds. In the 4×400 relay, the Falcons placed fourth as the team of Aaron, Brooks, Kameron Corrothers, and ShaRissa Spencer posted a time of 4:15.12.
In the triple jump, Spencer placed fourth.
GIRLS 5A
New Hope eighth-grader Mercedes Mattix finished third in the 100 (12.34) and in the 200 (25.44), while Starkville eighth-grader Madayshia Lofton was fourth at 25.95.
In the 800, Starkville junior MaryElizabeth Stringer took the spot with a time of 2:30.62. In the 1,600, Starkville seventh-grader Kate Mattox paced the field at 5:24.45. She also won the 3,200 at 11:58.24, while freshman Walker Mattox placed fourth at 13:25.33.
In the 100 hurdles, New Hope sophomore Kennedi Sanders placed third at 15.91.
Starkville captured the 4×100 relay as the team of Natalia Burns, Janna Rice-Gandy, Raleshia Gee, and Kasy Jett recorded a time of 49.13. The New Hope team of Lashya Davis, Shanae Hunt, Mercedes Mattix, and Shanice Nottage finished fourth at 50.16.
In the 4×200 relays, the Starkville team of Burns, Rice-Gandy, Lofton, and Aubreonna Mitchell placed second at 1:45.87. The New Hope team of Tierra Dentry, Chelsea Psalms, Sanders, and Tylesha Washington placed third at 1:46.31.
In the 4×400 relays, the Starkville team of Brianna Lawrence, Taylor Roger, Aleah Watt, and Daija Williams placed first at 4:11.54.
In the high jump, New Hope’s Sanders placed third. New Hope’s Taylor Brown placed fourth in the pole vault. In the long jump, West Point senior Keisha Walker was fourth.
BOYS 6A
In the 100, Columbus senior Byerson Cockrell placed second with a time of 11.18 seconds, while teammate Damian Baker was third at 11.25. In the 400, Cockrell led the way at 49.30.
In the 300 hurdles, Columbus freshman Alexander Lipscomb placed second at 41.13.
In the 4×100 relays, the Columbus team of Baker, Cockrell, DeAnthony Harris, and Rodreekas Hogan placed first with a time of 42.04.
BOYS 5A
In the 800, Starkville senior Kamau Bostic placed second with a time of 2:02.12. Starkville junior Damien Grady was third at 2:02.66. West Point senior Daryl Thomas was fourth at 2:03.15. In the 1,600, Bostic was second at 4:37.95, Grady was third at 4:44.76, and New Hope sophomore Silvanus Johnson was fourth at 4:50.20.
In the 3200, Starkville sophomore Alex Ross placed fourth at 11:09.33.
In the 4×200 relay, the Starkville team of Terrance McCarter, Gabe Myles, Scottie Pittman, and QuVarious Robertson placed second with a time of 1:29.63.
In the pole vault, Starkville sophomore Charlie Henderson placed fourth. Catledge placed second in the long jump and triple jump.
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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