Class A Boys
100 Meter Dash
South Harrison's Freddy Canary got out well and led from the gun in taking the win in
a new State Meet Record time of 10.92. That time is the 8th Best All-Time Class A-AA
State Meet Performance. St. Marys' Anthony Johnson wasn't far back in
2nd place with an 11.03. Wahama's Wesley Jones was the only other one under 11.50 with
an 11.49 finish. Doddridge's Dillon Underwood was the only other one under 11.60 with
his 11.55.
RunWV's Current Score: 6 of 6.
200 Meter Dash
South Harrison's Freddy Canary defended his title, again using an excellent start to
get the early lead. His time of 22.10 set a new State Meet Record and is Tied for the 7th
Best All-Time Class A-AA State Meet Performance. St. Marys' Anthony Johnson nearly
ran him down while also breaking the old record by finishing in 22.13, which is the 9th Best
All-Time Class A-AA State Meet Performance. These
two were way ahead of the rest of the field as no one else was under 23 seconds. Madonna's
Tavon Jeter was close to that mark with a 23.03. Tyler Consolidate'd Tyler Anderson
and Wahama's Wesley Jones were in 23.20 in taking 4th and 5th, respectively.
RunWV's Current Score: 12 of 12.
400 Meter Dash
St. Marys' Zac Long took the win with a consistent run. By appearances, he took the
lead at around the 200 meter mark and pulled away over the course of the last 200 meters to
win in 51.14. Wheeling Central's Chase Harler nabbed 2nd place from the 1st heat on
a strong finish, moving from 3rd to 1st in his heat over the last 100 and finishing with a
51.45. Wahama's Wesley Jones also closed very well in the 2nd heat, moving from 5th
to 2nd in his heat in the last 100 to finish in 51.54. The next three spots were decided by
just 0.06 seconds over two heats with Wheeling Central's JaQuan Jackson taking 4th in
52.08, Clay-Battelle's Logan Forquer taking 5th from the 1st heat in 52.12, and Magnolia's
Brooks Parsons taking 6th in 52.14. Last year, only five came in under 53 seconds.
This year 9 did it.
RunWV's Current Score: 17 of 18.
800 Meter Run
It was a big pack of about 10 all coming through the first lap in 59 or 60 seconds. Doddridge's
Hunter Riffle led the field with Wirt's Logan Kerby in 2nd. St. Marys' Walker
Hashman made a move toward the end of the first lap to squeeze up to 3rd. Williamstown's
Chase Uppole was in 4th. Buffalo's Devin Rich was in 5th with Tucker's Luke
Poling in 6th. There was a lot of movement on the 2nd lap. Kerby moved past Riffle at
about 450 meters. Uppole and Hashman followed quickly, first Hashman, and then Uppole with
Uppole moving past Hashman. Rich moved into 4th at 500 meters. Meanwhile, on the backstretch,
Hashman edged in front of Uppole. That held to the 600 meter mark. At 650, Kerby started to
make his push for the finish, but Hashman followed. By 700, Kerby had started to pull away.
Kerby continued to pull away from the pack down the stretch to take the win by over 2 seconds
in 1:59.87. Rich closed the last 150 really well to move up into a solid 2nd in 2:01.96.
Uppole squeezed past Hashman late in what would turn out to be a Championship saving pass to
finish in 2:02.88. Hashman nearly stole the meet for St. Marys with his 4th place finish
in 2:03.32. Gilmer's Caleb White closed well to take 5th in 2:04.24 with Pocahonatas'
Connor Pyles doing the same to take 6th in 2:04.88. No one else was under 2:06.
RunWV's Current Score: 21 of 24.
1600 Meter Run
The pack went out quickly. In an odd start, Buffalo's Hayden Harrison got out slowly
and was a distant 13th at the breakline. But he took off on the backstretch and rocketed into
the lead at the 200 meter mark. By the end of the first lap, things had sorted out a bit
with Doddridge's Hunter Riffle leading the pack through in 1:04. Harrison was in 2nd
with the same time. Wirt's Logan Kerby was in 3rd, also at 1:04. Buffalo's Devin
Rich was in 4th at 1:05. Wahama's Travis Kearns was in 5th at 1:06, and I think
it was Sherman's Jesse Canaday in 6th also with a 1:06. On the 2nd lap, Harrison moved
to the front in the first turn. That held through midway through the 2nd turn when Riffle retook
the lead. Harrison retook the lead shortly before the end of the 2nd lap. At the end of two laps,
it was Harrison, Kerby, and Riffle, each passing at 2:16. Rich remained in 4th and in striking
distance at 2:18. Kearns was in 5th at 2:19, and Doddridge's Trey Heaster had moved into
6th at 2:19. On the 3rd lap, on the backstretch, Riffle moved back into the lead, and then
Harrison responded and took it back before the turn. On the homestretch, Kerby made his play
for the lead and held it to the end of the 3rd lap, corssing in 3:26. Harrison was less than
a stride back with the same time, and Riffle was another stride back, also with the same time.
Rich was 4th in 3:30. Sherman's Jesse Canaday had moved into 5th at 3:33 with Charleston
Catholic's Greg Hart moving into 6th at 3:35. On the final lap, Kerby held the lead
through the first turn. Harrison accelerated coming out of the turn, but Kerby held him off.
Riffle started to move about midway down the backstretch and made the pass on Harrison. With
200 to go, the three were still within about 2 meters of each other. Through the turn, Kerby
and Riffle started to open a gap on Harrison. Riffle put on a burst coming out of the turn
to pull up to Kerby's shoulder. He made the pass with about 50 meters to go and pulled away
for the win in 4:28.24 to Kerby's 4:29.22. Harrison easily held the 3rd spot at 4:30.63. Rich
wasn't challenged for 4th and finished in 4:37.73. Hart made the late pass on Canaday for
5th, with Hart finishing in 4:43.05 and Canaday in 4:43.35. Everyone else was nearly 7 seconds
behind.
RunWV's Current Score: 26 of 30.
3200 Meter Run
It was an aggressive start in the rain with Buffalo's Hayden Harrison taking the first
lap in 1:05. Doddridge's Hunter Riffle and Wirt's Logan Kerby were close behind
with matching times. Buffalo's Devin Rich was in 4th at 1:08. Doddridge's Trey
Heaster was in 5th at 1:10, with Sherman's Jesse Canaday right on his shoulder with
the same time. The 2nd lap didn't see much movement as Harrison, Riffle, and Kerby maintained
the top 3 spots with matching 2:18 times. Rich was in 4th at 2:25. Notre Dame's Tyson
Childers had moved into 5th at 2:27 with Canaday in 6th with the same time. At the end
of 3 laps, Harrison still led at 3:32 with that time equaled by Riffle. They had opened just
a slight gap on Kerby who came through at 3:33. Those 3 had continued to extend their lead
on the rest of the field with Rich remaining in 4th at 3:44. Canaday and Heaster had closed
up on Rich to pass in the same time. At the halfway point, Harrison came through in 4:45 with
Riffle still close at 4:46. They had gotten away from Kerby who came through in 4:50. Rich
had regained control of 4th in 5:01. Canaday and Heaster still held the 5th and 6th positions
at 5:03. On lap 5, Harrison and Riffle continued to pull away from everyone else with Harrison
maintaining the lead, but with both passing at 5:59. Kerby remained in 3rd at 6:11, but Rich
had started to close the gap, going from 11 seconds back to 9 seconds back at 6:20. Heaster
and Canaday crossed nearly simultaneously at 6:23. On lap 6, Harrison started to open a gap
on Riffle, crossing at 7:12 to Riffle's 7:14. Kerby still held 3rd at 7:35, but Rich had closed
the gap to 5 seconds at 7:40. I believe that Canaday and Heaster still held the next spots at
with Canaday opening a bit of a gap on Heaster. On lap 7, perhaps sensing the gap, Harrison
picked it up a notch, dropping this lap to a 1:11 while Riffle slowed. This allowed Harrison
to open a 7 second lead heading into the final lap at 8:23 to Riffle's 8:30. Kerby was still
holding the 3rd spot at 8:57, but Rich had closed to within a second at 8:58. Canaday had
taken complete control of 5th at 9:01 with Heaster in a battle for 6th with Childers at 9:07.
On the final lap, Harrison sealed the deal, closing in 68 to finish in 9:31.47. Riffle cruised
into the 2nd spot with a 9:46.55. Rich easily made the move around Kerby to take the 3rd spot
in 10:05.52. Kerby held the 4th spot at 10:10.32 with Canaday fairly close behind in 10:13.27.
Heaster pulled away from Childers to claim the 6th position in 10:22.88.
RunWV's Current Score: 32 of 36.
100 Meter High Hurdles
St. Marys' Anthony Johnson took snagged the lead coming off the 8th hurdle and edged
away for the win in 15.13. Wheeling Central's John Burkhalter was 2nd in 15.21.
Madonna's Tavon Jeter was 3rd in 15.38. Williamstown's Tim Wichkham led much
of the first 3/4 of the race before clipping 8 and clubbing 9 to fall to 4th in 15.62.
Doddridge's Garrett Devericks joined them under 16 seconds with a 15.84.
RunWV's Current Score: 37 of 42.
300 Meter Intermediate Hurdles
St. Marys' Anthony Johnson had the lead by the 2nd hurdle and was in complete control
coming out of the turn and sped home for a new State Record time of 38.81, which is Tied
for 5th Best All-Time Class A-AA State Meet Performance. Williamstown's Tim Wickham
edged South Harrison's Austin Barker for 2nd 40.58 to 40.63. Magnolia's Jared Kacor
joined them under 41 seconds in 4th at 40.71. Paden City's Deven Price ran an excellent
race in the first heat to snag 5th place in 41.14.
RunWV's Current Score: 41 of 48.
4x100 Meter Relay
A very close battle saw the Tyler Consolidated unit of Josh Peck, Trent Shepherd, Federico
Perez, and Tyler Anderson make the pass for the lead with less than 20 meters to go to
take the win in 44.74. Magnolia made the pass into 2nd within the last 5-10 meters to finish
in 44.83. Williamstown was 3rd in 44.90. That group was over a half-second ahead of the rest
of the field with just Wheeling Central and St. Marys going under 46 seconds among the rest
of the teams.
RunWV's Current Score: 46 of 54.
4x200 Meter Relay
It helps to have a State Record holder as your anchor as South Harrison took the come-from-behind
win, taking the lead with about 50 meters to go as the group of Chase Jenkins, Adam Bennett,
Austin Barker, and Freddy Canary scored a 1:32.88. Wheeling Central just edged Williamstown
at the line 1:33.39 to 1:33.41 to 2nd. Tyler Consolidated was the only other team under 1:35
and Doddridge was the only other team under 1:36.
RunWV's Current Score: 52 of 60.
4x400 Meter Relay
On the opening leg, it appeared to be Magnolia and Williamstown holding the top spots with
Magnolia perhaps having a slight lead. On the 2nd leg, Williamstown and Magnolia were battling
while Wheeling Central was sneaking up from behind on an excellent 51 second leg from John Burkhalter.
At the line, it was Williamstown in the lead at 1:46 with Wheeling Central matching that time
and Magnolia just another step behind in 1:47. St. Marys was in 4th at 1:49. On the 3rd leg,
Magnolia opened a gap, but Wheeling Central closed well down the stretch to slip into the lead
at 2:38. Magnolia was 2nd in 2:39. Williamstown held the 3rd spot in 2:40. St. Marys was
4th in 2:46. Wahama was running 5th in 2:48 with Buffalo 6th in 2:49. On the final leg, it
was Wheeling Central holding off Magnolia with both beating the State Meet Record. Wheeling
Central's quartet of Bray Price, John Burkhalter, Chase Harler, and JaQuan Jackson set
a new standard at 3:31.30 with Magnolia 2nd in 3:31.75. Williamstown easily held the 3rd
spot at 3:34.22. St. Marys was solidly 4th in 3:38.55. Buffalo moved up to 5th in 3:41.52,
and Pocahontas moved into the 6th spot at 3:42.93.
RunWV's Current Score: 50 of 66.
4x800 Meter Relay
Williamstown led at the end of the first leg at 2:04. Wirt was right behind, also in 2:04.
I think it was St. Marys in 3rd at 2:08 with Tucker in 4th at 2:09 and Tyler Consolidated in
5th and Pocahontas in 6th. On the 2nd leg, it was Charleston Catholic getting a strong leg
from Thomas Hart to take the lead at 4:12. Wirt was in 2nd at 4:14. Williamstown was
in 3rd at 4:17. Tucker edged into 4th at 4:19 with Buffalo right behind with the same time.
Neither notes nor camera work show me who was 6th at the time. On the 3rd leg, Wirt regained
the lead before the end of the first lap and opened a gap. The came through at 6:23 and with
Logan Kerby on the end, the deal was pretty much sealed. Buffalo had moved into 3rd
at 6:26 with Charleston Catholic close behind in 6:27. Williamstown was in 4th at 6:30 with
Tucker in 5th at 6:32. Pocahontas was in 6th at 6:35. On the final leg, Wirt was not challenged
as they received a sub-2:00 leg from Kerby to take the win in 8:22.85 for the unit of Lee Sims,
Brady Ohrn, Justin Rood, and Logan Kerby. Buffalo received a 2:01 (maybe slightly under)
leg from Devin Rich to preserve 2nd in 8:27.69. Charleston Catholic easily held the
3rd spot in 8:31.26. Pocahontas received a 2:02 leg from Connor Pyles to move into
4th, passing and then holding off Tucker 8:37.61 to 8:37.76. Williamstown held the 6th
spot at 8:39.94. No one else was under 8:50.
RunWV's Current Score: 61 of 72.
Shuttle Hurdle Relay
Doddridge's unit of Dawson Evans, Hunter Hayes, Dillon Underwood, and Garrett Devericks
took the lead on an excellent 2nd leg from Hunter Hayes and led the rest of the way
to take the win in 59.81. Williamstown wasn't far back in 1:00.13 with Paden City and Tucker
joining them under 1:01 with times of 1:00.50 and 1:00.99 with Tucker scoring their time
from the 3rd heat. Magnolia was 5th in 1:01.16, and Tyler Consolidated was 6th in 1:01.37
from the 3rd heat, taking the spot by just 0.02 over South Harrison. Every other team was
nearly 5 seconds behind those 7.
RunWV's Current Score: 67 of 78.
High Jump
Valley Wetzel's Tucker Cain was the only jumper able to clear 6'0 in repeating as
champion. Doddridge's Chase Dunaway, Moorefield's D.J. Zirk and Calhoun's
Ben Frederick each cleared 5'10 in taking 2nd through 4th, respectively. One of
my predicted placers did not jump.
RunWV's Current Score: 72 of 84.
Pole Vault
Valley Wetzel's Tucker Cain was the only vaulter to clear 13'0 in taking the win.
The Tyler Consolidated duo of Jarett LeMasters and Levi Morgan both cleared
12'6 in taking 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Doddridge's Dawson Evans and Williamstown's
Austin Raines each cleared 11'6 in taking 4th and 5th, respectively.
RunWV's Current Score: 77 of 90.
Long Jump
In an excellent showing for Class A long jumpers, it was Valley Wetzel's Tucker Cain
outleaping the competition by 8.5" to take the win in 21'8.75. That's 3 field even wins for
Cain on the weekend. The next 6 spots were separated by just 6.25" with Madonna's Tavon
Jeter taking the 2nd spot at 20'11.25. Paden City's Zachary Yeater was 3rd at
20'11. South Harrison's Freddy Canary was 4th with a 20'10.75. Richwood's Caleb
Clendenin was 5th in 20'6.75, and Wheeling Central's John Burkhalter was 6th in
20'6.25. Tyler Consolidated's Tyler Anderson came up on the short end of the stick
with a jump of 20'5, which was better than his jump last year that gained him a runner-up finish.
RunWV's Current Score: 81 of 96.
Shot Put
Gilmer's Nathan Stout crushed his State Meet Record from a year ago with a toss of 59'8.25,
which is the 3rd Best All-Time State Meet Performance and the 2nd Best All-Time Class
A-AA State Meet Performance. It also won the event by nearly 10'. Williamstown's Ben
Harris was easily 2nd with a toss of 49'10.25. Moorefield's Zack Liller was the
only other thrower to surpass 45' in taking 3rd. Moorefield's Alex Eye and St. Marys'
Jacob Cox were the only other ones over 44' in taking 4th and 5th, respectively. No one
else was over 42'0.
RunWV's Current Score: 86 of 102.
Discus
Gilmer's Nathan Stout set another State Meet Record with his throw of 167'0, which is
the 9th Best All-Time Class A-AA State Meet Performance, and he needed most of it as
Moorefield's Alex Eye poppped a throw of 164'0 to take 2nd. Those two ened up over 20'
ahead of the rest of the field. Tucker's Eddie Kachmarek was 3rd with a throw of 143'3.
Williamstown's Trevor Hoosier was 4th at 142'9. Buffalo's Nick Parsons was the
last to top 140' with his throw of 140'2. Williamstown's Riley Allen didn't miss by
much with his throw of 139'0.
RunWV's Current Score: 90 of 108.
The final score of 90 of 108 means that 83.3 % of the people picked to place did indeed place, one of my better showings. Congratulations to those that proved me wrong.
Exceeding Predictions
The following athletes exceed the predictions by 3 or more places and
deserve special mention.
Chase Harler, Wheeling Central -- 400 M (picked 6th, got 2nd)
Walker Hashman, St. Marys -- 800 M (not picked, got 4th)
Austin Barker, South Harrison -- 300 IH (picked 6th, got 3rd)
South Harrison -- 4x200 M (picked 4th, got 1st)
(Chase Jenkins, Adam Bennett, Austin Barker, Freddy Canary)
Pocahontas -- 4x800 M (not picked, got 4th)
(Kyle Lester, Jacob Jones, Tyler Owens, Connor Pyles)
Chase Dunaway, Doddridge -- High Jump (picked 6th, got 2nd)
Tavon Jeter, Madonna -- Long Jump (picked 5th, got 2nd)
Freddy Canary, South Harrison -- Long Jump (not picked, got 4th)
The following teams deserve kudos for scoring seven points or more higher than I predicted.
Class A Boys Doddridge +14 South Harrison +14 Madonna +12 St. Marys + 7 (2nd straight year on this list) Tucker + 7 (2nd straight year on this list)