16 to compete at regional track meet
By Sam Waller
Albany will have 16 athletes in individual events and two relays competing for trips to state this weekend at the Region II-2A track and field meet at Springtown.
The top two finishers in each event at the regional meet automatically qualify for state. In addition, the best third-place result from the four regional meets will earn a wild-card berth.
The Class 2A state meet is scheduled for Friday, May 12 at Mike A. Meyers Stadium in Austin.
Four Albany athletes – seniors Cole Chapman and Tye Edgar and juniors Adam Hill and Kiana Roberson – are bidding for return trips to state, Chapman for the third year in a row. Hill and Roberson both earned medals at last year’s state meet.
Other regional qualifiers on the boys side are pole vaulters Jayden Lucas and Luke Marshall, Jayce Tinkle in the 400, and Huffman Heatly in the 1600 as well as the 800 relay (Cason Fairchild, Edgar, Chapman, London Fuentes) and the 1600 relay (Fairchild, Samuel Rosas, Fuentes, Hill).
Also representing the Lady Lions are Briley Tabor in the pole vault, Ella Webb in the 100 hurdles, and Callan Edgar in the 1600.
Chapman is qualified in the high jump, long jump, and triple jump with Hill in the 110 hurdles and 300 hurdles, and Tye Edgar in the pole vault in addition to their relay duties. Roberson qualified in shot put and discus. Hill was the state 110 hurdles silver medalist last year, while Roberson won bronze in the shot put after getting in as a wild-card. Chapman went to state in the high jump as a sophomore and triple jump as a junior. Tye Edgar went in the pole vault last year.
Boys coach Rod Britting said the Lions enter the meet with several high seeds.
“Adam is in the top spot in both hurdles,” Britting said. “Cole is sitting in pretty good position in all three of his jumps. We’re third in one relay and fourth in the other, so if we run a good race, we’ve got a shot to advance.”
In the pole vault, both Edgar and Marshall have cleared 14-0 this season.
“A kid from Cisco is ahead of us, but Tye and Luke are tied for the second spot,” Britting said. “Jayden’s right in there behind them, so we’ve got a chance there, as well.”
A major issue for Edgar has been getting through district and area while battling a broken bone in his left hand. He wore a cast for the area meet.
“Tye’s not where we want him to be, but we’ve done some things to see if we can adjust the cast a little bit to help him out,” Britting said. “If he was healthy, he’d obviously be an odds-on favorite to advance.”
For Tinkle, a sophomore, and Heatly, a freshman, the priority is gaining experience in their first regional appearance.
“Jayce is sixth overall and Huffman is eighth or ninth,” Britting said. “They could possibly advance, but I think their biggest goal is to set personal bests and make the finals.”
On the girls side, Roberson, Tabor, and Webb all qualified for regional last year.
“Experience always plays a big part,” girls coach Ryder Peacock said. “They’ve been there and know what to expect, although it’s a little different because of the bigger field.
Roberson has been over 38 feet in the shot put the last three meets and over 130 feet in the discus in the last four. Tabor matched her season best in the pole vault, while both Webb and Callan Edgar ran their best times of the year.
“That’s what you want to see at this time,” Peacock said. “You train athletes to see their marks improve when the time comes.”
Peacock added that consistency has played a large part in the girls’ success.
“Kiana and Briley have been very consistent,” he said. “Briley is really close to breaking through and clearing that next bar. Callan continues to work hard at an event she picked up late in the season, and with Ella you could tell how much experience paid off for her at the area meet.”
