Boys 60m Dash - Issam Asinga (Montverde Academy) US #1 6.59
The final day of The Legends of Alachua County Track Meet in Gainesville at the Alachua County Sports Center's Jimmy Carnes indoor track saw many national elite performers including two new US #1 performances by Montverde Academy senior Issam Asinga in the 60 meter dash with a 6.59 clocking as part of a 1-2-3-4 sweep with his teammates in the finals.
Meanwhile, IMG Academy senior Layla Haynes time trialed a 1:31.37 virtually solo effort to take over as the national leader in the girls 600 meter run for her first indoor race of the 2023 season. After running under 2:10 for 800 meters in several races last outdoor season, Haynes definitely appears to lower that time even more this spring based on her stellar 600 meter run on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the current US #1 and US #2 ranked sprinters in the girls 60 meter dash in Montverde Academy duo of Micayah Holland and Adaejah Hodge ran just off their season best times from the VA Showcase two weeks ago when Holland won in 7.21 followed by Hodge as the runner-up in 7.25. They ran nearly as a fast and still faster than the US #3 ranked Shawnti Jackson's 7.34 season best on Sunday with Holland clocking a 7.25 first place performance and Hodge just a stride behind her at 7.29.
The 60 meter hurdles finals were loaded including a girls finals race with three of the state's very best from last spring's outdoor season when they all went under 14 seconds in the 100 meter hurdles between Chelsi Williams of George Jenkins, Skye Tolbert of Niceville, and Brittney Jennings of Sandalwood. Williams would come out on top in their rare indoor clash at the 60 meter hurdles with a US #6 clocking of 8.46 followed by Tolbert in second at US #11 8.54, and Jennings in third at US #14 8.54.
The boys 60 meter hurdles saw a mild upset between two competitors who clashed twice in the prelims and finals in Montverde Academy's Kai Graves-Blanks and Lake Mary's Markel Jones. Graves-came into the meet ranked US #6 from his 7.88 victory at the VA Showcase two weeks ago, while Jones was competing in his first indoor meet after finishing as a 4A state runner-up last May in the 110 and 300 meter hurdles. In the prelims, Graves-Blanks was able to just hold off Jones as the top qualifier for the finals with both clocking times of 7.96 and only thousandths of a second separating both. In the finals, Jones got the better of Graves-Blanks running a US #8 time of 7.90 in his debut indoor meet while Graves-Blanks improved upon his preliminary performance in second place at 7.93.
Wyatt Townsend of Chiles won the boys 3K with a time that converts almost exactly to his outdoor 3200 meter personal best from last March's FSU Relays of 9:22 as he pulled away from the field in the last half of the race with a time of 8:44 in the 15 lap indoor event.
Girls 3000m Run - Ava Hendrix (Lake Minneola) US #70 10:31.84
Lake Minneola sophomore Ava Hendrix was second place twice in the 3K over the last two weekends in Gainesville at the Jimmy Carnes Invitational and RADD Sunshine Showcase before finally enjoying a victory this weekend as she set a torrid early pace and crossed the line first in 10:31 to post an almost identical time from one week ago.
Matthew Raucci of Tavares High School posted the fastest time overall in the 600 meter run after competing in the 800 meter run earlier in the day and also coming out of a slow heat as well with a US top 25 performance of 1:23.58.
Raucci just missed the high school facility record in the 600 meter run which was set the week prior by Buchholz's Riley Smith in 1:23.05, who also happened to celebrate another win this weekend but in the 800 meter run as he rallied late in the last lap to just pass Daniel de Monte (2nd, 1:55.81) of Bolles on the final straightaway In the 800 meter run earlier. Smith's thrilling win at 1:55.72 is not far off his outdoor best from last year as a sophomore at 1:55.02.
IMG Academy freshman Huntley Buckingham won a pair of races last weekend at the RADD Sunshine Showcase in the 1K and 3K, while added another first place finish this indoor season to her resumé in the 800 meter at the Legends of Alachua County meet by chasing down Natalie Nelson (2nd, 2:20.43) on the final lap after a slow start for a personal best time of 2:18.33.
