Even with the added round before state, this year’s number of state qualifiers almost rivaled the total from two years ago — 25 — while trumping the 14 state participants from last season.
Unlike in 2010, when two Bartow girls won state championships, no male or female athlete was quite that lucky this go-round.
However, with 10 qualifiers making their way to the state podium after top eight finishes, the 2012 track season demonstrated the county’s talent base.
Led by female athlete of the year Caroline Haupt of Cartersville and male athlete of the year Deo Adams of Woodland, here are members of The Daily Tribune News All-County Track and Field Team.
GIRLS WHEELCHAIR
ATHLETE
Christina Young, Cass
There is not another athlete in the county or state like the Lady Colonels’ Young, literally and figuratively. With no competition for her in the wheelchair division, Young faces a more difficult task than perhaps anyone on this list as her push and drive has to come completely from within — there is no challenger to bring out her best. Looking to set high marks at the state meet, Young pulled off season bests in the 200 meter and 800 meter races, with times of 35.50 seconds and 2 minutes, 37 seconds, respectively. Having performed at her best in high school, the University of Illinois signee should find the competition at the college level rather welcoming. Young also qualified for state in the shot put.
GIRLS DISCUS THROW
Lacey Fritz, Woodland
With former state champion and three-time state qualifier Diana Wimpy off in college, Fritz fared well as a replacement for the Lady Wildcats. The junior recorded a season-best throw of 95 feet and 2 inches. She claimed victory in the Bartow County Championship and qualified for sectionals in the event.
BOYS DISCUS THROW
DaMek Lewis, Woodland
Lewis, a freshman, rushed off to a good start for the Wildcats — winning county with a throw of 123-4 — but slowed down by season’s end. He threw 115-6 at the Region 7-AAAA meet, which earned a seventh-place finish.
GIRLS SHOT PUT
Janee Callahan, Cass
Callahan saved her best outing for last, showing growth from start to finish with a throw of 38-6 1/2 at the girls state meet. The sophomore’s performance at state — she placed eighth — set a school record and capped a great season for the county winner.
BOYS SHOT PUT
Aramis Ellis, Cass
Ellis dominated early on for the Colonels, including at quad meet at Woodland where he threw a season-best distance of 53-8. At the Region 7-AAAA meet, the Bartow champion finished fifth after a throw of 41-0 1/2, missing out on the inaugural sectionals by one place.
GIRLS HIGH JUMP
Briana Brown, Woodland
Brown held steady in her event with a jump of 5-4, which helped her throughout a sophomore campaign that saw her win county and qualify for the state meet in Albany, where she had the highest finish among local girls with a second-place showing. Brown is her school’s record holder in the high jump.
BOYS HIGH JUMP
Zach Coker, Adairsville
When the county meet took place in March, Coker didn’t even register among the top five finishers in the high jump, but for good reason — he didn’t start competing in the event until a little later in the season. By region time, Coker had begun to get a better feel for the event, making it through region as well as sectionals. He tied for fifth at state with a personal record jump of 6-6, which would have given him a championship in just about any other classification besides Class AA and AAAAA. Coker, a football signee for the University of West Georgia, also qualified for sectionals in the shot put.
GIRLS TRIPLE JUMP
Amber Bowen, Cass
Bowen, who also is an all-county volleyball and basketball player, put her athleticism to great use this season, qualifying for the sectionals in two events — the 100 meter hurdles and the triple jump. Bowen made it to state in just the triple jump, but her participation in the hurdles the week before compromised her a bit due to a lingering injury. After a season-best jump of 34-9, Bowen reached a distance 4 feet shy of that previous leap at state. The junior won county this season.
BOYS TRIPLE JUMP
Deo Adams, Woodland
Not even his best event, Adams shined in the triple jump, winning county, finishing second at region and qualifying for sectionals and state. He jumped 44-5 at the Class AAAA West Sectionals at Starr’s Mill, a personal best that earned him seventh.
GIRLS LONG JUMP
Ariana Lovins, Woodland
Following an effort that earned her the top female performer award at the Bartow meet, Lovins concluded her season by qualifying for sectionals, where she turned in a personal record of 16-2 1/2 for 14th.
BOYS LONG JUMP
Kadeem Buford, Cass
One of the Colonels’ best bets at earning a state qualifier, Buford jumped 21-7 to win county and placed just outside of a top-four, sectionals-qualifying spot at region. He jumped 20-2 3/4 for sixth place.
GIRLS POLE VAULT
Samantha Patterson, Woodland
Patterson qualified for state for the first time as a sophomore, eventually placing ninth in state with a vault of 9-6. The season best for the county winner was 10-0, which also is a school record.
BOYS POLE VAULT
Bryce Marratta, Woodland
Another strong pole vaulter in his school’s track and field program, Marratta qualified for state, too. The freshman cleared 12-0 at the Georgia Olympics in Jefferson, placing him seventh in the state. The county winner’s best vault of the year was a 12-6 at sectionals; he placed third there.
GIRLS 100 METER DASH
Idraiah Thompson, Woodland
Thompson simply outdid herself in Year 2, running a personal best time of 12.46, a school record, while winning region as well as county. She finished in the top 12 at state.
BOYS 100 METER DASH
C.J. Woods, Woodland
For the second straight season, a Woodland freshman sprinter vaulted to the top — this time for the Wildcats. Woods won region, too, en route to a spot in the sectionals and eventually at state. He ran an 11.28 for 12th at state. He ran a 10.94 in a March meet against McEachern for his best time of the year.
GIRLS 100 METER
HURDLES
Caroline Haupt, Cartersville
Haupt has dominated the hurdles events at county for a few years now, which didn’t change this season either as the Lady Purple Hurricane swept the 100 and 300 meter hurdles. Haupt won the 100 hurdles at region and placed second at sectionals, before completing the event in a record time of 14.73 for fifth at state — the all-time best for the future Appalachian State Mountaineer.
BOYS 110 METER
HURDLES
Olajuwon Harris, Cartersville
Harris peaked when it mattered most this season, his final as a prep. The Cartersville hurdler ran a 14.91 in the 110 meter hurdles at state, utilizing a personal record to separate himself from a pack of hurdlers with a third-place finish. Harris, a Bartow champ in the 110 hurdles, made it to sectionals in the 300 but couldn’t advance despite a season-best time of 40.96.
GIRLS 200 METER DASH
Idraiah Thompson, Woodland
Thompson continued her assault on the Lady Wildcats’ record books, breaking her own previous mark by running a 25.14 at state to place 12th. She won the event at both county and region.
BOYS 200 METER DASH
C.J. Woods, Woodland
Woods made his first trip to state a memorable one, qualifying for three events, including the 200. A time of 22.81 gave him a finish of 10th, while weeks earlier the county winner’s season-best time of 22.52 moved him out of region and into sectionals.
GIRLS 300 METER
HURDLES
Caroline Haupt, Cartersville
Haupt won the 300 meter hurdles at the Bartow meet before placing third in her region. Haupt went to the sectionals at Carrollton High, running her best time ever, a 46.81. She finished out of the top eight qualifying spots for state.
BOYS 300 METER
HURDLES
Deo Adams, Woodland
Shaking off an ankle injury days earlier, Adams was a fifth-place finisher at state, where he ran a 39.44. A couple of weeks prior to state, at sectionals, Adams’ personal record of 38.61 yielded second place. The county and region champion has signed a scholarship to play football for the University of Pikeville in Kentucky.
GIRLS 400 METER DASH
Renee Arnold, Woodland
Arnold grabbed victory at county by finishing in 1:03. She had some other good showings throughout the season, including at region where she placed ninth with a 1:04.
BOYS 400 METER DASH
Twan Terrell, Woodland
Terrell, who has a football scholarship to play at Cornell University, legged out a win at county and ran a personal best 50.65 at region, which garnered him third place. He came in 10th at sectionals after running a 50.79.
GIRLS 800 METER RUN
Dorie Brunzelle, Cartersville
Brunzelle had one of the better outings at the Bartow meet, joining just a handful of girls this year as two-time county winners — with victories in the 800 and 1600 meter runs. Brunzelle ran a season-best time of 2:30 at region, sliding into fourth place and qualifying for sectionals.
BOYS 800 METER RUN
Roger Herrera, Cartersville
Herrera was outkicked by teammate Tommy Morrison, who won county by five-tenths of a second, but he heated up in the region meet to place second with a personal record of 2:04. The junior’s time dipped by 5 seconds at sectionals.
GIRLS 1600 METER RUN
Dorie Brunzelle, Cartersville
Brunzelle’s peak time in this event came back in March at the county meet, where she ran a 5:41. A week before the Bartow meet, the senior ran another of her season’s best offerings, a 5:44 at the Ronnie McClurg Rotary Invitational. She placed third with a 5:45 at region, qualifying for sectionals.
BOYS 1600 METER RUN
Tommy Morrison, Cartersville
Like Brunzelle, one of Morrison’s better times — it actually was his best — came in Dalton at the Ronnie McClurg invite. The junior finished that mile run in 4:46. He won county in 4:49.8, nipping his teammate, Herrera, in that race, too — by eight-tenths of a second.
GIRLS 3200 METER RUN
Ashley Barrera, Woodland
Barrera placed favorably at county in her best race, finishing the two mile in 12:25. She ran a season best 12:02 at region for third place, qualifying the junior for sectionals.
BOYS 3200 METER RUN
Jaison Morning, Cass
Morning’s biggest triumph of the year came at the Bartow meet as he clinched the title with a personal record of 10:28. Additionally, the freshman ran a 10:55 at the Woodland Invitational and an 11:13 at the Northwest Whitfield Invitational.
GIRLS 4x100
METER RELAY
Aubrey Branch, Jasmin Askew, Renee Arnold
and Idraiah Thompson
of Woodland
The Lady Wildcats’ 4x100 relay team was one of four relay teams to win for the school at the county meet. A botched handoff at region may have been the only thing to prevent a trip to state for the team, which had a season-best time of 50.46 in 2012.
BOYS 4x100 METER RELAY
Josh Young, Trey Thompson, Twan Terrell and C.J. Woods of Woodland
In addition to winning county, the Wildcats’ 4x100 relay team rode its momentum to a region victory as well, qualifying for sectionals and state. The team placed sixth at state, running a 42.43. Its best time of the year was a 42.19.
GIRLS 4x400
METER RELAY
Renee Arnold, Rachel Mez, Katie Harris and Idraiah Thompson of Woodland
Woodland’s county-winning girls 4x400 relay team placed third at region with a personal best of 4:09, which qualified the team for sectionals.
BOYS 4x400 METER RELAY
Josh Young, Trey Thompson, Twan Terrell and Deo Adams of Woodland
Following up a county win with a runner-up finish at region, the Wildcats 4x400 relay team moved on to sectionals and eventually state, where it placed 14th. Its season-best time of the year was 3:23.
HONORABLE MENTION
GIRLS — ADAIRSVILLE: Baylee Edwards, Tinsley Smith; CARTERSVILLE: Kirsten Horstman, Blake Perry; CASS: Miranda Whittington; WOODLAND: Catie Camron, Gabby Pearson, Christina Taggart.
BOYS — ADAIRSVILLE: Austin Harrell, Christian Howell; CARTERSVILLE: Lawson Crowe, Ty Downer, Troy Hickom, Kyle Parker, D’Andre Quattlebaum; CASS: Greg Edwards; WOODLAND: Xavier Hendricks, Logan Rempe, Qua Stocks, Brandon Thompson.