100 Meter Dash
Lewis' Tenley Pickens took the lead near the half-way point and sped away for the convincing win with a 12.21 clocking. That gives her the 3rd Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. East Fairmont's Lily Larnerd claimed the 2nd spot in 12.46. Sissonville's MaKinley Britton was 3rd in 12.53. Williamstown's Shelby Smith was a close 4th in 12.59. East Fairmont's Breeona Pheasant and Bluefield's I'Yanna Patton were also under 13 seconds at 12.84 and 12.93, respectively. One of my predicted placers qualified for finals but false started in the final.
RunWV's Current Score: 7 of 8.

200 Meter Dash
It was a close race coming out of the turn, but Williamstown's Shelby Smith's strength at holding her speed pulled her well away from the field, taking the win in a stellar 24.99. That gives her the 3rd Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Sissonville's MaKinley Britton just edged out Point Pleasant's Josie Wray for 2nd, 25.67 to 25.69. Ripley's Kyndyll Butler and Lewis' Tenley Pickens both clocked 25.95 in taking 4th and 5th, respectively. Weir's Gabriella Spickard nipped East Fairmont's Lily Larnerd for 6th, 26.28 to 26.31.
RunWV's Current Score: 14 of 16.

400 Meter Dash
Williamstown's Shelby Smith led pretty much throughout. She made up the stagger on everyone to her outside by the 200 mark, and she took the win by over 2 seconds with a 57.44. That is the 9th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Ripley's Kyndyll Butler got by Weir's Gabriella Spickard late for 2nd place, 59.68 to 59.85. Shady Spring's Rebecca Lorincz took the 4th spot in 1:00.63 with Buffalo's Cami Samples in 5th in 1:00.95.
RunWV's Current Score: 21 of 24.

800 Meter Run
Herbert Hoover's Jenna Brown jumped out to the early lead and held it for about 330 Meters before teammate Maysen Fletcher made the pass into the lead. Fletcher would lead the field through the 1st lap at 1:05.36. Brown was in 2nd at 1:06.16. Weir's Naomi Young was in 3rd at 1:08.42 with Oak Glen's Lacey Cameron in 4th at 1:09.18. Elkins' Emilia Tenney was in 5th at 1:09.48. Shady Spring's Baylee Garrett was in 6th at 1:10.15 with teammate Bre Crouse in 7th at 1:10.41. Elkins' Julia Biola was in the 8th spot at 1:11.59. On lap 2, Fletcher would pull well away from the field to take the win by over 4 seconds in 2:14.29. That is the 2nd Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Tenney closed very well to take a commanding 2nd in 2:18.84, which is the 10th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Young held the 3rd spot in 2:22.67. Brown held on for 4th in 2:24.32, just ahead of Cameron, who was 5th in 2:24.87. Wheeling Central's Loni Kusic used a strong 2nd lap to move from 11th to 6th in 2:26.67. Garrett held the 7th spot in 2:27.47, and Biola, who had dropped out of the top 8, made a last couple strides pass to reclaim that spot in 2:27.63.
RunWV's Current Score: 27 of 32.

1600 Meter Run
Oak Glen's Lacey Cameron got out very quickly and led the field out of the break by several meters. At about 250 Meters, Herbert Hoover's Maysen Fletcher made the pass into the lead and led the field through the first lap at 1:11.20. Herbert Hoover's Jenna Brown moved into the 2nd spot at 1:13.15. Cameron was in 3rd at 1:13.85. Elkins' Emilia Tenney was in 4th at 1:16.46. Teammate Julia Biola was in 5th at 1:17.62. Philip Barbour's Kayla Baker was in 6th at 1:18.18. Williamstown's Ava Lightfritz was in 7th at 1:18.69, and teammate Cassie Sites was in 8th at 1:18.93. On lap 2, Fletcher ran away from the field to hit the halfway mark at 2:25.32. Tenney made the pass into 2nd and had taken control of the spot at 2:34.94. Brown was in 3rd at 2:37.05 with Cameron in 4th at 2:38.14. Biola remained in 5th at 2:41.69. There was a gap back to 6th, which was now held by Sites at 2:45.02. Baker was at her side in 7th at 2:45.07. Lightfritz was right on their heels in 8th at 2:45.54. On lap 3, Fletcher pulled further way, coming through at 3:40.22. Tenney was in firm control of 2nd at 3:51.70. Brown remained in 3rd at 4:02.43 and was generating more of a gap. Cameron remained in 4th at 4:05.27. Biola remained in 5th at 4:07.26 but was closing. Sites was still in 6th at 4:10.35. Hampshire's Bailey Nichols had moved from 10th to 7th at 4:10.76. Lightfritz was still in 8th at 4:12.45, in a tight battle for the spot. On the final lap, Fletcher closed the deal, taking the line in 4:53.16, a new Class AA State Meet Record and the 6th Best All-Time State Meet Performance, and the Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. She not only broke the record, but shattered it...knocking over 14 seconds off the previous Class AA Record. Tenney easily held the 2nd spot and nearly eclipsed the prior record herself, finishing in 5:08.81, the 4th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Brown easily held the 3rd spot in 5:19.47. Biola outdueled Cameron for 4th, taking the spot in 5:23.92 to Cameron's 5:24.61. Nichols made the pass into 6th and pulled away to finish in 5:27.16. Sites held the 7th spot in 5:29.84, just ahead of the late charging Baker, who took the 8th spot in 5:30.27.
RunWV's Current Score: 33 of 40.

3200 Meter Run
Herbert Hoover's Maysen Fletcher took the lead immediately and led the field through the first lap in 1:17.57. Teammate Jenna Brown was in 2nd at 1:18.44. Elkins' Emilia Tenney was in 3rd at 1:19.73. Those three had a gap on the pack. Elkins' Julia Biola had a small gap on the main pack in 4th at 1:23.05. Grafton's Addison Sole was in 5th at 1:24.33 with Wheeling Central's Rylee Wright in 6th at 1:24.49, Williamstown's Cassie Sites in 7th at 1:24.64, and Frankfort's Paisley Raines in 8th at 1:24.81. The top 10 were under 1:25. The top 13 were under 1:26. At the end of 2 laps, Fletcher had taken complete control of the race, crossing at 2:35.34. Tenney had moved into 2nd at 2:43.96 with Brown close behind in 3rd at 2:44.30. Biola was in 4th at 2:51.59. Sole remained in 5th at 2:53.76. Sites was up to 6th at 2:54.32. Frankfort's Addison Tharp had moved into 7th at 2:54.58 with Raines in 8th at 2:54.77. The top 12 were under 2:56, so a lot of spots remained up for grabs. Fletcher continued to roll on lap 3, coming through at 3:52.29. Tenney had taken control of 2nd at 4:08.62. Brown was in control of 3rd at 4:12.63. Biola was alone in 4th at 4:19.67. Sole remained in 5th at 4:24.24 with Sites still in 6th at 4:24.47 and Tharp still in 7th at 4:24.72. Hampshire's Bailey Nichols had moved up in the pack from 12th to 8th at 4:24.98. The top 12 were under 4:26, so positions were still very much in contention. At the mid-way mark, Fletcher came through at 5:08.41 on her fastest lap yet. Tenney pulled further away in 2nd at 5:31.37. Brown was still in control of 3rd at 5:43.96 with Biola still in 4th at 5:49.04. Sites moved into the 5th spot at 5:55.19 with Sole right behind in 6th at 5:55.50. Nicholas was up to 7th at 5:56.30 with Williamstown's Lexi Wynn moving up to 8th at 5:56.60. The pack was starting to break up, but there were still 10 under 5:58. After 5 laps, Fletcher had stretched the lead to nearly 30 seconds at 6:25.67. Tenney held 2nd at 6:54.20. Biola picked up the pace and made a pass on Brown for 3rd at 7:16.68 to Brown's 7:17.12. Sites was in 5th at 7:25.84 with Sole still in 6th at 7:26.22. Nichols was still in 7th at 7:27.38 with Wynn still in 8th at 7:28.07. This group had now put 2 seconds on the trailers, and it looked like our 8 placers were probably set. After 6 laps, Fletcher was at 7:44.82, her first lap slower than a 1:17. Tenney was in 2nd at 8:19.08. Biola was in 3rd at 8:44.63, taking control of that spot with Brown in 4th at 8:49.00. Sites was in 5th at 8:55.91 but was gaining on Brown. Sole remained in 6th at 8:59.08 but had lost contact with Sites. Wynn moved up to 7th at 9:00.22 with Nichols at her side at 9:00.26. They now had 6 seconds over 9th. Fletcher came through lap 7 at 9:04.64. Tenney was in 2nd at 9:42.39. Biola was in full control of 3rd now at 10:11.71. Brown was in 4th at 10:21.34 with Sites closing in at 10:24.94. Sole remained in 6th at 10:32.01 with Nichols in 7th at 10:32.14 and Wynn in 8th at 10:32.26. On the final lap, Fletcher added a bit of pace and powered down the stretch to take the win in 10:19.41, a new Class AA State Meet Record. It's also the 3rd Best All-Time State Meet Performance and the Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance as with the 1600, she not only broke the record, but shattered it, taking just over 38 seconds off the old mark. Tenney easily held the 2nd spot, sneaking in under the 11:00 minute mark with a 10:59.22, which is the 3rd Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Biola was not threatened for 3rd, finishing in 11:32.05. Sites caught Brown and briefly made the pass, but the pair had quite the duel down the homestretch with Brown finally getting away late for 4th in 11:37.53. Sites had the fastest final lap in the field and took the 5th spot in 11:39.19. Nichols made the move into 6th and pulled away to take the spot in 11:50.58. Wynn got by Sole and took 7th in 11:54.04 with Sole taking 8th in 11:57.26.
RunWV's Current Score: 40 of 48.

100 Meter High Hurdles
Elkins' Marissa Brenwalt took the lead early and never looked back, taking the win by over half a second in 15.20, giving her the 6th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Grafton's Hadley Horne took the 2nd spot in 15.73 with Ripley's Braylinn Lutz also going under 16 seconds with a 15.89. Roane's Josie Cox was the only other one under 16.50 with a 16.28 for 4th.
RunWV's Current Score: 47 of 56.

300 Meter Low Hurdles
Grafton's Hadley Horne broke open a tight race over the final 2 hurdles to take the win in 45.41. Roane's Josie Cox was close and stumbled a bit over the final hurdle to make the final margin larger than the race actually was, taking the line in 46.55. Elkins' Marissa Brenwalt was 3rd in 48.14 with Shady Spring's Bella Gevenosky 4th in 48.61. Herbert Hoover's Penelope Byrd snagged 5th from the first Heat in 49.09. Teammate Alexia Quigley joined them under 50 seconds with a 49.71.
RunWV's Current Score: 53 of 64.

4x100 Meter Relay
The East Fairmont foursome of Breeona Pheasant, Kyra Hamilton, Caroline Corwyn, and Lily Larnerd led throughout and had made up the stagger on everyone to their outside by the 2nd exchange. The took the win in a strong 50.50. Point Pleasant took the 2nd spot in 51.30, breaking open a tight battle on the final leg. Wheeling Central got a great run in Heat 1 for 3rd place in 51.42. Sissonville took 4th in 52.21, just ahead of Weir, who also ran strong in Heat 1 for 5th in 52.26. Keyser was also under 52.50 in 6th with a 52.47.
RunWV's Current Score: 59 of 72.

4x200 Meter Relay
Williamstown took the lead late in the 3rd leg and with Shelby Smith on the anchor, it was over. The crew of Audrey Lefebure, Izzy Zide, Addison Richardson, and Shelby Smith pulled away to win by over 2 seconds in 1:46.27, giving them the 8th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. East Fairmont took the 2nd spot in 1:48.56 with Wheeling Central taking the 3rd spot from Heat 1 in 1:48.68. Hampshire was 4th in 1:49.11, just ahead of Ripley's 1:49.28 for 5th. Sissonville was the only other team under 1:51 with a 1:50.54 for 6th.
RunWV's Current Score: 66 of 80.

4x400 Meter Relay
Weir had a solid lead at the end of the first leg, coming through at 1:02. Robert C. Byrd actually matched that in Heat 1, so either could have been in the lead. I think East Fairmont was running 2nd in the 2nd Heat. At the end of 2 legs, Weir continued to lead at 2:07.33. East Fairmont was in 2nd at 2:08.07. Williamstown was in 3rd at 2:09.01. Keyser was in 4th at 2:09.47 (in Heat 1), Hampshire was in 5th at 2:10.04. Robert C. Byrd was in 6th (in Heat 1) at 2:11.15. Wheeling Central was in 7th at 2:11.52, and Shady Spring was in 8th at 2:13.33 (in Heat 1). East Fairmont made the pass into the lead late in leg 3 and led at 3:11.43. Weir was in 2nd at 3:12.62 with Hampshire moving up to 3rd at 3:13.70. Williamstown was in 4th at 3:15.13 with Wheeling Central in 5th at 3:15.99. Keyser was in 6th at 3:18.30, Robert C. Byrd in 7th at 3:18.36, and Shady Spring in 8th at 3:19.01. East Fairmont was not threatened on the final leg, and the squad of Torunn Radcliffe, Sara Noechel, Audrey Singer, and Adalynn Parilak took the title in 4:13.19. Weir held the 2nd spot in 4:15.19. Hampshire held the 3rd spot in 4:16.84. Wheeling Central moved up to 4th in 4:18.72. Williamstown was 5th in 4:19.65. Shady Spring won Heat 1, and finished 6th in 4:20.01. Keyser took 7th from Heat 1 in 4:23.48, adn Grafton took 8th, also from Heat 1, in 4:24.90.
RunWV's Current Score: 72 of 88.

4x800 Meter Relay
Elkins pulled into the lead late on the 1st leg, getting a 2:26 from Julia Biola. Williamstown just edged past Shady Spring into 2nd on the exchange with both at 2:27. I think it might have been Keyser in 4th at 2:31. Maybe Herbert Hoover in 5th at 2:32 with someone else right with them. At the end of 2 legs, Elkins remained in the lead at 4:58. 4:58. Williamstown was in 2nd at 5:00. Keyser was in 3rd at 5:07. Shady Spring was in 4th at 5:09. East Fairmont was in 5th at 5:12. I think Weir was in 6th at 5:13. Williamstown made the pass into the lead very early in leg 3 and led heading into the final leg at 7:31. Herbert Hoover got a 2:23 leg from Jenna Brown to move all the way up to 2nd at 7:40. Shady Spring was in 3rd at 7:43. I think Wheeling Central had moved up to 4th at 7:47 with Elkins in 5th at 7:49. Herbert Hoover's Maysen Fletcher made up the 9 second gap and made the pass into the lead before the end of the first lap. I didn't write down that lap, but if I remember right, she went out in 60. It might have been 62. She'd pull further away over each stretch of the race, clocking a 2:10 split on her leg to give the Herbert Hoover foursome of Audree Born, Isabella Harris, Jenna Brown, and Maysen Fletcher the win in 9:51.00. Williamstown easily held the 2nd spot in 10:00.08. Elkins moved all the way back up to 3rd on a 2:19 anchor leg from Emilia Tenney to finish in 10:09.45. Wheeling Central got a ferocious final 100 meter kick from Rylee Wright to move into 4th in 10:14.70, just ahead of Shady Spring in 10:15.46. East Fairmont held the 6th spot in 10:20.33, outkicking Weir for the spot with Weir in 7th in 10:21.06. Keyser held the 8th spot in 10:27.26.
RunWV's Current Score: 78 of 96.

Shuttle Hurdle Relay
The North Marion group of Isabella Richards, Lily Pudder, Ella Harvey, and Maylie Bland fended off Weir to take the win in 1:06.13. Weir was a close 2nd in 1:06.92. Shady Spring was not far off the mark with a 1:07.35 for 3rd. Hampshire was 4th in 1:09.68. Only Keyser in 5th at 1:11.59 was under 1:12 among the rest of the field.
RunWV's Current Score: 84 of 104

High Jump
Nicholas' Adriene Truman repeated as champion in a tight battle. She was one of 3 jumpers to clear 5'2 on their 2nd attempt, but Truman got the win on fewer total misses with 2. East Fairmont's Sara Noechel cleared 5'2 and had 3 total misses for 2nd, and Herbert Hoover's Ahaziah Smith cleared 5'2 and had 4 total misses. Oak Glen's Samantha Wilson cleared 5'0 on her 2nd attempt for 4th. Hampshire's Hisely Keiter and Wheeling Central's Alexa Loy both cleared 5'0 on their 3rd attempt and had 3 total misses to tie for 5th.
RunWV's Current Score: 91 of 112.

Pole Vault
North Marion's Maylie Bland cleared 10'6 on her 2nd attempt to secure the win, and then cleared 10'7 on her 2nd attempt to better the mark. That also ties her for the 8th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Williamstown's Grace Boone cleared 10'0 with no misses for 2nd place. Berkeley Springs' Kaitlin Hageny cleared 9'6 on her 3rd attempt with no prior misses for 3rd. Williamstown's Izzy Zide also cleared 9'6 on her 3rd attempt with one prior miss for 4th. Ripley's Dezzie Steele cleared 9'0 with no misses for 5th. Point Pleasant's Katie McCutcheon cleared 9'0 on her 3rd attempt to take 6th.
RunWV's Current Score: 99 of 120.

Long Jump
East Fairmont's Caroline Corwin went 16'2.50 on her 2nd attempt, and that mark held up through the competition for the win. Nicholas' Adriene Truman went 16'1.50 to solidify 2nd place. Oak Glen's Kensington McConnachie went 16'0 on her opening jump, and that held up for 3rd. Point Pleasant's Josie Wray also went 16'0, but lost the tie-breaker to McConnachie by a half-inch. Elkins' Marissa Brenwalt went 15'8 on her first jump for 5th. Hampshire's Avory Steinmetz went 15'6.50 for 6th.
RunWV's Current Score: 104 of 128.

Shot Put
Point Pleasant's Hannah Baker sent her 2nd attempt 38'4.50 to move into the lead, and she never lost it. Williamstown's Reagan Corbett just missed it on her final attempt with a throw of 38'3.75. Grafton's Scarlett Reid also saved her best for last, going 37'4 on her final attempt to move into 3rd. Williamstown's Kendra Johnson threw 36'4.50 for 4th. Everyone else was at least 3' behind these 4 with Shady Spring's Reagan Mann the only other one to top 33' with her throw of 33'4.25.
RunWV's Current Score: 110 of 136.

Discus
Point Pleasant's Hannah Baker threw 134'5 on her 2nd attempt and no one was able to come close to it the rest of the way. That gives her the 7th Best All-Time State Meet Performance and the 2nd Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Williamstown's Regan Corbett hit 129'10 on her final attempt to take 2nd and get the 7th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Keyser's Autumn Kerchner threw 127'2 on her final attempt to take 3rd and get the 8th Best All-Time Class AA State Meet Performance. Independence's Bella Green also had her best throw on her final attempt with a throw of 119'7. Only Elkins' Katherine Hinchman topped 105' among the rest of the field with a throw of 107'11 for 5th.
RunWV's Current Score: 116 of 144.

The final score of 116 of 144 means that 80.6% of the people picked to place did indeed place. That's 3 worse than last year. I only got all 8 in one event; the Pole Vault. Congratulations to those that proved me wrong.

Exceeding Predictions
The following athletes exceed the predictions by 3 or more places and deserve special mention.

Tenley Pickens, Lewis -- 100 M (picked 5th, got 1st)
Gabriella Spickard, Weir -- 200 M (not picked, got 6th)
Kyndyll Butler, Ripley -- 400 M (picked 5th, got 2nd)
Loni Kusic, Wheeling Central -- 800 M (not picked, got 6th)
Jenna Brown, Herbert Hoover -- 1600 M (picked 7th, got 3rd)
Bailey Nichols, Hampshire -- 1600 M (not picked, got 6th)
Bailey Nichols, Hampshire -- 3200 M (not picked, got 6th)
Penelope Bryd, Herbert Hoover -- 300 LH (not picked, got 5th)
Wheeling Central -- 4x100 Meter Relay (picked 6th, got 3rd)
(Isabelle Cox, Morgan Ondrejko, Kayleigh Whittington, Ally Jefferson)
Weir -- 4x100 Meter Relay (not picked, got 5th)
(Myleigh Clevenger, Ella Kaufman, Maleea Faulks, Gabriella Spickard)
Wheeling Central -- 4x200 Meter Relay (picked 8th, got 3rd)
(Isabelle Cox, Claire Kerr, Ally Jefferson, Morgan Ondrejko)
Hampshire -- 4x400 Meter Relay (picked 7th, got 3rd)
(Giovanna Matthews, Rufina Haines, Madilyn See, Lynnea Clark)
Shady Spring -- 4x800 Meter Relay (not picked, got 5th)
(Baylee Garrett, Raelyn Carr, Bre Crouse, Gwynn McGinnis0
East Fairmont -- 4x800 Meter Relay (not picked, got 6th)
(Adalynn Parilak, Kailee Haymond, Anna Wycoff, Audrey Singer)
South Harrison - Shuttle Hurdle Relay (not picked, got 6th)
(Irelyn Radabaugh, Alyssa Clutter, Savannah Holden, Adria Nuzum)
Sara Noechel, East Fairmont -- High Jump (picked 8th, got 2nd)
Samantha Wilson, Oak Glen -- High Jump (not picked, got 4th)
Kaitlyn Hageny, Berkeley Springs -- Pole Vault (picked 7th, got 3rd)
Caroline Corwin, East Fairmont -- Long Jump (picked 7th, got 1st)
Adriene Truman, Nicholas -- Long Jump (picked 8th, got 2nd)
Avory Steinmetz, Hampshire -- Long Jump (not picked, got 6th)
Katherine Hinchman, Elkins -- Discus (not picked, got 5th)
Cassandra Weikle, Point Pleasant -- Discus (not picked, got 6th)

The following teams deserve kudos for scoring seven points or more higher than predicted.

Class AA Girls
Nicholas          +10
Herbert Hoover    + 9.33
Lewis County      + 9
Hampshire         + 8.50
Shady Spring      + 8
Wheeling Central  + 7.50