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3 AHS athletes medal at state

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By Sam Waller

Albany athletes came home with three medals – one gold, one silver, and one bronze – from the Class 2A state track meet, held Friday, May 13 at Myers Stadium in Austin.

Senior Sarah Cotter won the girls high jump, sophomore Adam Hill was second in the boys 110 hurdles, and sophomore Kiana Roberson was third in the girls shot put.

“Going to the state track meet, it’s always a goal to bring something back,” boys coach Rod Britting said. “You’ve got nine people there, and they’re usually the nine best in the state. It’s definitely a plus to get on the medal stand.”

Albany finished 15th in the girls team standings with 16 points and tied for 21st in the boys team standings with eight points.

“Both girls did a good job,” girls coach Ryder Peacock said. “They either tied or improved on their personal best.”

Cotter completed a rare double by winning the high jump. Earlier this spring, Cotter won the Class 2A girls singles title in tennis. Friday’s win made her one of only a handful of athletes who have claimed state gold in different sports in the same spring season.

“These are two sports I’ve been working at all my high school life,” Cotter said. “To win a state title in both is obviously a dream and something I’ve been working for. It’s so cool to have that work finally pay off.”

Cotter matched her personal best of 5 feet, 6 inches, winning by three inches over Meredith Magliolo of Schulenburg and Amber Harris of Beckville. Her first miss came at 5-7 after she’d already clinched the title.

“After I cleared the first height, the track felt good under my feet, and the weather was good,” she said. “I was just in a good mindset the whole day. After the first height, I knew it was going to be a good day. I had a feeling I was going to jump my best, and I did.”

Peacock said Cotter was in control of the event from start to finish.

“She never struggled and was pretty dominant,” he said. “She stayed clean the whole way through, and I thought that put a lot of pressure on the other girls.”

Hill placed second in the boys 110 hurdles with a personal-best time of 14.79 seconds, finishing 0.38 seconds behind Beckville’s J’Koby Williams.

“It wasn’t as nerve-racking as I thought it would be,” Hill said of his state debut. “I’d already gotten to the spot I wanted to be, and I just had to run my race.”

There was some confusion after the race as Hill was originally posted as being disqualified. Britting said the matter was eventually cleared up.

“Adam was in Lane 6 and the kid in Lane 5 stumbled and pushed over a hurdle,” the coach said. “The officials announced DQ for Lane 6. Adam had a clean race, and it was just a misunderstanding for a minute. Everything worked out.”

Roberson uncorked the best throw of her career, 38-4¼, on her first attempt.

“After that first throw, I kind of just knew it was third place,” Roberson said. “It’s like an adrenaline boost, and it gets me ready for next year. I have high expectations.”

Roberson reached the awards stand after qualifying for state as a wild card.

“We knew she had a chance if she could get hold of one and put it out there,” Peacock said. “She threw really well and set the tone early. We were excited to see her get on the medal stand.”

Also competing at state were Tye Edgar, who finished seventh in the boys pole vault, and Cole Chapman, who was ninth in the boys triple jump.

Edgar cleared 13-6, advancing on his first attempt at three heights before going out at 14-0.

Britting said Edgar was agonizingly close to staying in the competition.

“Tye was over the bar about a foot and his pole knocked it off,” Britting said. “The next jump, he hit it going up so we moved up a pole, and it hit it going down. It wasn’t a matter of how high he was jumping, it was just where the bar was sitting when he did it.”

Chapman jumped 42-7¼, nearly three feet off his personal best, a day after throwing 100 pitches in winning Albany’s area playoff baseball series opener.

“If Cole had been fresh, it would have been a different story,” Britting said. “His distance at regional (45-6) would have taken third place.”

The good news, Britting said, is that all three boys qualifiers return for the 2023 season.

“Hopefully, they can go back, and the experience will pay off,” he said. “Maybe next year, they’ll be more relaxed.”