Baldwin girls crush Region 4-AAAA track competition

Published 5:00 pm Tuesday, May 3, 2022

DEXTER – With victories in eight events, Baldwin High’s girls track and field team became the dominant 2022 Region 4-AAAA champions tallying 230 points last week at West Laurens High School.

All top four finishers in the various competitions are moving on to Class AAAA sectional qualifying this weekend at North Oconee High School in Bogart.

Spalding was second in the girls 4-AAAA standings with 127 points and West Laurens was third at 117.

A two-time region winner for Baldwin girls was Nafer Rapier in both hurdles races. She took the 100-meter in 15.19 seconds, bettering her preliminary time of 15.68. She also claimed the 300-meter in 47.89 seconds.

Other sprint races were done in preliminaries leading up to a final race. Not only did Baldwin girls have winners but they improved their times from the first run to the second. Jordyn Bolston won the 400 meters final in 59.69 seconds when her prelim run was 1:00.33. Amilliana Simmons was second, but she also dropped her final time to 59.86 seconds from 1:01.06. Jazmine Walker was third giving the Bravettes the top three of the 400.

Baldwin also claimed the first three spots of the 800 meters, the win going to Jasmine Williams at 2:35.29. Second was Josefa Tchmnakouna and third was Jaeda Grant.

Baldwin’s best field event showing was from Jamilah Sessoms, champion of the pole vault (6-8).

Three relays went to the Baldwin girls: 4×200 (1:48.74) Ashanti Williams, Maysalee Saulsberry, Jazmine Walker and Krishiya Veal; 4×400 (4:03.74) Ja’Myah Cummings, Rapier, Bolston, and Amilliana Simmons; and 4×800 (10:38.96) Cummings, Tchmnakouna, Jasmine Williams, Simmons.

Baldwin’s 4×100 meter group fell 0.3 seconds behind Spalding for the win.

Two will move on to sectionals from Baldwin in the 200 meters. Madison Ruff placed second and Veal third in the finals.

In other field events, Walker took second twice in the high jump and long jump. Tchmnakouna was runner-up in the triple jump.

Other Baldwin girls sectional qualifiers are: Jazmine Williams, third in the 1,600 meters; Madison Ruff, third in the long jump; Morgan Ruff, third in the shot put and fourth in the discus throw; Kassidy Neal, fourth in the shot put; Nafer Rapier, fourth in the high jump; Amiyah Harden, fourth in the 300 hurdles and Jaeda Grant, fourth in the 1,600 meters.

Baldwin High’s boys track and field team also brought home a team trophy finishing second in Region 4-AAAA at 151 points behind champion Perry High’s 199. Spalding was third at 127.

Emanuel Dixon claimed two individual region titles taking the 800 meters in 2:08.78 (2:14.96 in preliminaries) and the 1,600 meters in 4:44.03. Armontae Palmer’s 6-foot high jump with the fewest attempts was enough to win first place over two others.

In relays, Baldwin won the 4×200 (1:33) Roderick May, Jadan McNealy, Garrison Holland and Palmer and the 4×400 (3:30.77) Palmer, McNealy, Dixon and Deiondre Parks. The Braves took second in the 4×800.

McNealy had two second-place runs. Though he won the 200-meter preliminary, he would take second in the final at 22.56 seconds. He was also second in the 400 meters at 51.15 after running 53.74 in preliminaries. Palmer placed third in the 200.

Parks took second in the triple jump while Omarian Fraley threw second best in the discus. Brandon Dixon placed second in the 300-meter hurdles.

Yahsean Dennison qualified for sectionals twice taking third in both the 800 and 1,600.

Fourth place Baldwin finishers were LaBraydon Burden in the 110 hurdles, Solomon Burney in the 300 hurdles and Holland in the discus.