Warren Central sprints to victory in season-opening track meet

Published 8:43 pm Tuesday, February 20, 2024

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Warren Central sprinter Tr'Mhyiah Truly breaks out of the starting blocks in the girls' 4x200 meter relay Tuesday at the Warren Central Viking Invitational. Truly and her teammates Ka'run Henderson, Meré Smith and Adria Burrell won the race with a time of 1:52.02. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Koury Vample clears the final hurdle during the boys' 300 meter hurdles event at the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet on Tuesday. Vample won the race with a time of 40.26 seconds. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central's Zack Evans runs to victory on the final leg of the boys' 4x200 meter relay at the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet on Tuesday. Evans and his teammates Ricky Neal, Dwight Palmer and Cameron Eaddy won the race with a time of 1:32.34. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High sprinter Jadarius Parson leaves the blocks at the start of the boys' 4x200 meter relay Tuesday during the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central's Abigail DeJesus checks her time after winning the girls' 1,600 meter run at the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet on Tuesday. DeJesus won with a time of 7 minutes, 2.87 seconds. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Diamond Jackson competes in the girls' 1,600 meter run Tuesday during the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central's Will Bates and Tyler McKinney, Vicksburg's Joshua Brown, and Jefferson County's KeDavian Catchings leave the starting line for the boys' 1,600 meter run during the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet on Tuesday. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Vicksburg High's Joshua Brown competes in the 1,600 meter run during the Warren Central Viking Invitational track meet on Tuesday. (Ernest Bowker/The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central’s track teams racked up some reps, experience, points and a pair of victories at their first meet of the season.

Warren Central’s girls’ team finished first in nine events, the boys won 11, and both squads claimed the team championship at the Warren Central Viking Invitational on Tuesday.

Warren Central’s girls’ team totaled 196 points to lead the five-team field. Vicksburg High was second, with 179 points. Jefferson County was third with 95 points, Crystal Springs was fourth with 51, and Yazoo City brought up the rear with 37.

Leading the way for the Lady Vikes was Adria Burrell, who sprinted to victory in the 100 and 200 meters, as well as the 4×200 meter relay. She clocked times of 12.53 seconds in the 100 and 26.53 in the 200.

Burrell teamed with Ka’ryn Henderson, Meré Smith and Tr’Mhyiah Truly to win the 4×200 relay in 1 minute, 52.02 seconds.

Smith also earned a first-place ribbon in the 100 meter hurdles with a time of 19.20 seconds, and Henderson won the high jump with a leap of 5 feet.

Henderson’s high jump victory was one of three for the Lady Vikes in the field events. Mariah Burnett won the shot put with a throw of 31 feet, 9 inches, and Arionna Jenkins the discus with a throw of 82 feet.

Abigail DeJesus was a double winner in the distance events, with victories in the 1,600 and 3,200 meter runs. The Lady Vikes’ 4×800 meter relay team was also victorious.

For Vicksburg High, Shaniyah Walker won the 400 meters in 1:00.76, and Kadaji Allen the 800 meters in 3:00.86.

The Missy Gators also won the 4×100 and 4×400 meter relays. The team of Rodrianna Hall, Amiyah Hall, McKenzie Edmond and Jakayla Brooks won the 4×100 in 52.21 seconds. The 4×400 relay clocked a time of 4:40.74.
In the boys’ meet, Warren Central swept all four relays to total 255 points and run away with the team championship.

Jefferson County edged Vicksburg 132-109 for second place, Yazoo City placed fourth with 62 points and Crystal Springs was fifth with 35.

The 4×100 team of Dwight Palmer, Cameron Eaddy, Garrett Orgas and Zack Evans won with a time of 44.20 seconds. The same group, with Stanley Doyle replacing Orgas, won the 4×200 in 1:32.34.

Doyle, Chester Savage, Jonathan Henderson and Michael Godshaw won the 4×400 meter relay in 3:51.64.
Savage, Godshaw, Roosevelt Harris and Ashton Wright rolled to victory in the 4×800 relay with a time of 10:09.42.

Doyle also won the 400 meters with a time of 52.36 seconds, and Palmer won the 200 meters in 22.76 seconds.
Jonathan Henderson, the defending MHSAA Class 6A champion in the high jump, got his season off to an outstanding start by clearing 6 feet, 6 inches to win easily. Jefferson County’s Royale Shelvy was second with a height of 6-2.

Harber Williams pole vaulted 8 feet, 5 inches to win that event, and Gavin Davenport threw the discus 110-6 to add another field event first place ribbon to the Vikings’ pile.

Other Warren Central winners were Rohan Caples in the 800 meters (2:16.93); and Will Bates in the 3,200 meters (12:40.97).

Vicksburg’s only winner was Koury Vample. The senior medaled in both hurdles events at last year’s Class 6A state meet and had no trouble winning them Tuesday. He clocked times of 14.75 seconds in the 110 meter version and 40.26 seconds in the 300.

Vample won the 110 meter hurdles by two seconds and the 300 by four seconds.

The Gators were missing a number of athletes who are still attached to the school’s boys’ basketball team during its playoff run.

About Ernest Bowker

Ernest Bowker is The Vicksburg Post's sports editor. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post's sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-tenured reporters in the paper's 140-year history. The New Jersey native is a graduate of LSU. In his career, he has won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.

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