These six Savannah-area athletes won GHSA State track and field championships
Savannah athletes had strong performances at the GHSA State Track and Field meets held Thursday through Saturday at four locations throughout Georgia with six locals bringing home seven gold medals.
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Savannah Christian's Jamari McIvory won two Class 3A state crowns as the junior won the 200 meters with a personal best time of 21.65 and repeated as a state champion in the 400 (48.10). He also anchored the Raider 4x400 relay team that finished fourth.
"I trained hard and was focused for this meet," McIvory said. "I peaked at the right time, and this gives me a lot of confidence going into my senior year."
His teammate, Jadyn Singleton, won a gold medal in the girls long jump with a leap of 18-4.75 and the junior was also sixth in the 100 meters (12.37) and was seventh in the 200 (25.52), while running a leg on the Raider 4x100 relay team that finished fifth. SCPS senior Maggie Byrd finished second in the high jump with a leap of 5-4, after winning the event at the Class 1A Private meet the last two seasons.
Last year, Singleton was third in the long jump and fifth in the 100 and 200 competing in the 1A Private classification.
"There was definitely better athletes and more competition in Class 3A, but I think that pushed me to do my best and I really enjoyed the meet," Singleton said. "I've been doing a lot of work on my technique in the long jump. There are so many different factors to think of in that event, and I think it paid off for me this year."
Johnson senior Samari Dowdy, who was second last season in the Class 3A 100 meters, closed out his high school career atop the podium after winning with a time of 10.72. He also ran the anchor leg on the Atom Smasher 4x100 relay team that won a silver medal and the anchor leg on the 4x200 relay squad that took 5th.
"I finished seventh at state my first time and then second last year, so me and my family said I had to come out and take first place this year, and that's what we did," Dowdy said. "I had a lot of support from my mom and my little brother, and Coach (Steven) Smith helped me a lot. He showed me how ways to run faster and really pushed me and kept me in the right mindset."
The 4x100 team lost by two one hundredths of a second (.02) to Carver-Columbus as the Atom Smasher squad of Damine Smith, JaQuay Foster, Jadon Pugh and Dowdy set a personal best of 42.16.
"They said he just got me by a shoulder at the finish line, but we ran our best time, and also set a PR in the 4x200," Dowdy said. "We had a great meet."
Savannah Country Day senior John Ryan, who has signed to run with Brown University, was second in the Class 3A 800 meters (1:57.25) and second in the 1600 (4:23.38).
Savannah Arts had a pair of state championship performances in the Class 2A meet. Senior Lyric Olson repeated as the 800 meter champion (she won last year in Class 3A) with a time of 2:09.60. Her teammate, senior Ava Coffey, took home a gold medal in the 3200 meters (11:38.15) and finished fifth in the 1600 with a time of 5:22.99.
Nathan Anderson, a senior from Woodville-Tompkins, also finished his high school career with a state title in the 300 meters hurdles. He won the Class A Division I race with a time of 39.11 after finishing second last year in the Class 2A finals.
Jenkins freshman Blessed Diogo had an excellent showing in the Class 5A meet as she was second in the triple jump with a mark of 37-7.5, while finishing fourth in the 100 hurdles (15.10) and seventh in the 300 hurdles.
Local finishers in top 8
CLASS 7A
BOYS
3200 -- 7th - Memphis Rich, Richmond Hill 9:33.63
300 hurdles -- 7th - Kendrick Joshua, Richmond Hill 39.56
GIRLS
400 -- 4th - Akira Burt, Richmond Hill 55.05
4x200 Relay -- 3rd - Richmond Hill (Jasmine Wood, Akira Burt, Kailyn Heileman, Jayla Lawrence) 1:38.25
4x400 Relay -- 5th - Richmond Hill (Kalyn Heilman, Jayla Lawrence, Alexa Hamlin, Akira Burt) 3:52.74
Pole vault -- 7th - Autumn Smiley, Richmond Hill 11-0
Shot put -- 7th - Jada Brown, Richmond Hill 38-3.5
CLASS 6A
BOYS
4x100 Relay -- 6th -- Effingham County (Timmy Brown, Cory Dekle, Jeremiah Chance, Dekari Walker) 42.42
4x400 Relay -- 5th - South Effingham (Devin Hallman, Kaleb Hughes, Isiah Campbell, Amari Branch) 3:20.51
GIRLS
High jump -- 5th - Riley Browne, South Effingham 5-2
CLASS 5A
GIRLS
200 meters -- 7th - Ta'tyana Anderson, Bradwell 25.41
400 meters -- 7th - Ivey Hall, Jenkins 58.40
100 hurdles -- 4th - Blessed Diogo, Jenkins 15.10
300 hurdles -- 7th - Blessed Diogo, Jenkins 45.96
4x100 relay -- 4th - Bradwell 48.45
4x200 relay -- 2nd - Bradwell 1:41.78
High jump -- 3rd - Ta'tyana Anderson, Bradwell 5-4
Long jump -- 3rd - Jacoria Leonard, Bradwell 17-8
Triple jump -- 2nd - Blessed Diogo, Jenkins 37-7.5
BOYS
1600 -- 8th - Hart Tedder, Jenkins 4:28.43
3200 -- 7th - Hart Tedder, Jenkins 9:44.95
300 hurdles -- 7th - Billy Johnson, Jenkins 39.46
Long jump -- 6th - Braylin Shields, Jenkins 21-11
CLASS 4A
GIRLS
100 -- 3rd - Marissa Palmer, New Hampstead 11.83
4x100 relay -- 6th - New Hampstead 48.71
BOYS
High jump -- 5th - Henry Sink, Benedictine 6-2
Shot put -- 8th - Elijah Blige, New Hampstead 48-2
CLASS 3A
GIRLS
100 -- 6th - Jadyn Singleton, Savannah Christian 12.37
200 -- 7th - Jadyn Singleton, Savannah Christian 25.52
400 -- 3rd - Haely Grant, Calvary Day 57.70; 6th - Anna Pollak, Savannah Country Day 58.62
4x100 relay -- 5th - Savannah Christian (Leighton Scallop, Carly Wanamaker, Payton Livingston, Jadyn Singleton) 49.22; 8th -- Liberty County (Zy'Kira Anderson, Isabella Melendez, Mylan Tanner, Maritza Troche) 50.16
High jump -- 2nd - Maggie Byrd, Savannah Christian 5-4
Pole vault -- 7th - Riniya Roberts, Liberty County 8-0
Long jump -- 1st - Jadyn Singleton, Savannah Christian 18-4.75; 7th - Le'Ryah Bryant, Johnson 16-07.25; 8th - Zy'Kira Anderson, Liberty County 16-07
Triple jump -- 7th - Zy'Kira Anderson, Liberty County 34-7.5
Shot put -- 7th - Kirah Smiley, Liberty County 36-3.5
Discus -- 6th - Jaidyn Hayes, Liberty County 113-04
BOYS
100 -- 1st - Samari Dowdy, Johnson 10.72
200 -- 1st - Jamari McIvory, Savannah Christian 21.65; 8th - James Summersett, Liberty County 22.99
400 -- 1st - Jamari McIvory, Savannah Christian 48.10
800 -- 2nd -John Ryan, Savannah Country Day 1:57.25
1600 -- 2nd - John Ryan, Savannah Country Day 4:23.38
4x100 -- 2nd - Johnson (Damine Smith, JaQuay Foster, Jadon Pugh, Samari Dowdy) 42.16; 5th - Liberty County (Jamar Joseph, James Summersett, Kyan Parker, Keyshawn Hollis) 42.68
4x200 -- 3rd - Liberty County (Markel Adside, Keyshawn Hollis, James Summersett, Jamar Joseph) 1:28.31; 5th - Johnson (Jaquay Foster, Jadon Pugh, Favion Kirkwood, Samari Dowdy) 1:28.99
4x400 -- 4th - Savannah Christian (Gary Scott, Jaden Ward, Witt Hayes, Jamari McIvory) 3:26.58; 8th - Johnson (Thomas Robinson, Josh Quarterman, Amauri Miles, Nathaniel Thompson) 3:28.51
4x800 -- 7th - Savannah Country Day (Charles Pope, Kent Burnett, Devin Beauchamp, John Ryan) 8:34.33
High jump -- 6th - Shiv Patel, Savannah Christian 6-2
Pole vault -- 4th - Isaac Vanduynhoven, Liberty County 13-6
Long jump -- 3rd - Favion Kirkwood, Johnson 21-6
Shot put -- 5th - Elijah Griffin, Savannah Christian 49-7
Discus -- 2nd Devereaux Benoit, Liberty County 152-3
CLASS 2A
GIRLS
100 -- 6th - Monica Manker, Savannah Arts 12.34
200 -- 6th - Monica Manker, Savannah Arts 25.41
800 -- 1st - Lyric Olson, Savannah Arts 2:09.66
1600 -- 5th - Ava Coffey, Savannah Arts 5:22.99
3200 -- 1st - Ava Coffey, Savannah Arts 11:38.15
100 hurdles -- 8th - Kenzie Kurdys, Savannah Arts 19:56
CLASS A, DIVISION 1
BOYS
300 hurdles -- 1st - Nathan Anderson, Woodville-Tompkins 39.11
4x200 relay -- 6th - Woodville-Tompkins 1:51.58
4x400 relay -- 8th - Woodville-Tompkins 3:34.75
GIRLS
100 -- 8th - Deriyah Sanders, Woodville-Tompkins 13.23
4x100 -- 3rd - Woodville-Tompkins 49.93
Discus -- 8th - Makayla Oates, Savannah High 95-11
Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact him at Dknight@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah athletes shine at GHSA state track and field meets
