Meet: Boys A-AA State Meet Predictions
Date: For May 26-27, 2000
Location: Charleston, WV
Boys Individual Event Predictions
100 M 1. Jeff Lemasters Magnolia
2. Dennis Simmons Mercer Christian
3. Andy Fenton Williamstown
4. Michael Stonestreet Sissonville
5. Brandon Moore Shady Spring
6. David Briscoe Berkeley Springs
Lemasters won this event two years ago as a Sophomore, and his top
time of 10.80 is three tenths of a second better than anyone else.
Simmons has only recently appeared on our radar screen (but we did
not see many early season results from MCA) and could thwart Lemasters'
bid. Fenton has three excellent times under his belt. Stonestreet
ran away with the 100 at the Gazette Relays.
200 M 1. Jeff Lemasters Magnolia
2. Dennis Simmons Mercer Christian
3. Rich Shilling Oak Glen
4. Jacob Petry Moorfield
5. Michael Stonestreet Sissonville
6. Jeremy Howard Buffalo
Lemasters won this event two years ago also and finished second last year.
Simmons has a better top time, but he hasn't been there often enough to
warrant picking him over Lemasters. Shilling also has one outstanding
time, but Lemasters battered him at the regional meet. The next three
spots are wide open. Petry and Stonestreet have nearly identical times
(once the FAT adjustments are made), with Howard, Pocahontas' David Palmer
and Midland Trail's Aaron Brown close behind.
400 M 1. Rich Shilling Oak Glen
2. Dennis Simmons Mercer Christian
3. Jeremy Howard Buffalo
4. Jarrod Pittman Mt. Hope
5. John Saxton Weir
6. Jason Battin Williamstown
Shilling, Simmons, and Howard each placed last year. Shilling has run
50.6 or better on five occasions this year giving him the edge over Simmons
who has been under 51 only twice but matches Shilling's best time. Howard
appears to be a solid third. Pittman is a bit of a question mark. His
regional time of 51.3 is the only time we've seen from him all season long.
Saxton and Battin have been under 52 twice, but Saxton ran under 51 last
season.
800 M 1. Dusty Dent Gilmer
2. Daniel Boepple Scott
3. Derek Dailey Doddridge
4. Derek Miles Winfield
5. Matt Quinet Magnolia
6. Matt Apesos Weir
Dent has dominated this event this season. He's recorded four times under
1:59 and another at 2:00.1. Boepple is the only other competitor to run
under 2:00. Dailey has a pair of 2:01 races to his credit. Miles on shows
a 2:03 top time, but he ran a 2:01 and placed ahead of Dent and Dailey
last year. Apesos has a pair of 2:02 races, but Quinet topped him at their
regional meet.
1600 M 1. Dusty Dent Gilmer
2. Derek Dailey Doddridge
3. Chris Herron Liberty Raleigh
4. Ryan Parsons Williamstown
5. Adam Cross Sissonville
6. Matt Apesos Weir
Dent has owned this event as well. He has a top time of 4:28 and a total
of five times under 4:35. Dailey finished third last year. Herron impressed
at the Gazette relays with a 4:34, but the best other time we've seen for
him is his regional time of 4:46. The next three spots as four guys have
run between 4:37.08 and 4:37.32. None of them have run under 4:40 a second
time. Among the runners we didn't pick to place, look out for Doddridge's
Josh Sheets who broke out at the regional meet with a 4:37, an 8 second
improvement, and Gilmer's Anthony Ramezan who had a breakthrough performance
at the Gazette Relays and could be poised for another.
3200 M 1. Dusty Dent Gilmer
2. Denny Hayes Doddridge
3. Ryan Parsons Williamstown
4. Justin Simpson Oak Glen
5. Cole Carpenter Ritchie
6. Kevin Williams Weir
This is the third event that Dent has dominated this season. His top time
of 9:48 is eight seconds faster than anyone else. Hayes was awarded the
number two spot for his consistency. He has three times of better than 10:06.
Parsons and Simpson each broke 10:00 at their regional meet but only have
second best times of 10:17 and 10:21, respectively. Parsons was also
penalized in the picks because the pole vault will have only been completed
recently. Hayes and Carpenter placed third and fourth last season, respectively.
Williams is a relative newcomer to the 3200 and could surprise. Others
who could make some noise in this event include Adam Cross (10:16 at regionals
and 9:53 in the middle of last season) and Josh Sheets.
110 HH 1. Doug Dillaman Tyler
2. Levi Hall Fayetteville
3. Wes Morton Winfield
4. John Decker Oak Glen
5. Justin VanKirk Ravenswood
6. Jared Davis St. Marys
Dillaman has five times of 14.7 or better. Hall has a pair of 14.5 showings,
but has not been as consistenly fast as Dillaman. Morton and Decker are
nearly inseperable. VanKirk appears to be a solid number 5. Davis was
given the final nod over Brandon Welch of Tygarts Valley due to his superior
regional performance.
300 IH 1. Levi Hall Fayetteville
2. Doug Dillaman Tyler
3. Derrick King Ravenswood
4. John Decker Oak Glen
5. Curt Simcox Oak Glen
6. Jordan Taylor Ritchie
Hall should not only win the event, but he's also established himself as
the threat to beat the state record of 38.33 set last year by Ritchie's
Jon Huffman. Dillaman and King should be a tight race for second. Dillaman
has been under 40.5 three times compared to King's once which was enough
for us to give him the edge. Decker could conceivable move up a spot if
either Dillaman or King falter. Simcox and Taylor were given a narrow edge
over the Welch brothers from Tygarts Valley and Josh Walker of Winfield
for the fifth and sixth spots. Simcox has been under 42 three times, while
Taylor has done it twice. Brandon Welch has also been under 42 twice, but
Taylor's sub-42's are slightly better than Welch's.
4x100 M 1. Shady Spring
2. Williamstown
3. Sissonville
4. Moorefield
5. Winfield
6. Doddridge
With Magnolia dropping the baton in the regional meet, this event became
anyone's race. Shady has been consistently fast with three clockings under
45 seconds. Williamstown has five showings of 45.5 or better. Sissonville
was very impressive at the Gazette Relays. Moorefield has a strong unit
that could jump up a spot if the other three teams don't pass the baton well.
Winfield was given the edge over Doddridge with three times under 46 seconds
compared to only two for Doddridge. St. Marys, Oak Glen, and PikeView
could make things interesting.
4x200 M 1. Magnolia
2. Shady Spring
3. Oak Glen
4. Williamstown
5. Doddridge
6. Weir
Magnolia should run away with this race. The battle for second between
Shady Spring and Oak Glen should be extremely tight. Shady has been slightly
faster all season long. Williamstown has the potential to pull off a minor
upset of Shady or Glen. Doddridge gets the edge over Weir for have twice
run under 1:36 compared to only once for Weir. Poca and Moorefield also
have very legitimate chances to place.
4x400 M 1. Ravenswood
2. Williamstown
3. Oak Glen
4. Magnolia
5. Doddridge
6. Weir
Ravenswood turned in an outstanding time of 3:31 at their conference meet.
Williamstown has a 3:33 with a not-fully-loaded unit. Oak Glen could jump
up and win this thing. With a 50 second anchor leg and a pair of 40-41
second 300 hurdlers on their squad, the potential is definitely there.
Magnolia was given the edge over Doddridge despite Doddridge having a top
time over two seconds faster. Going beyond the top time, Magnolia has
a better series of times. Weir was given the sixth spot, although Mt. Hope
certainly showed they are a team to be reckoned with in their regional
meet.
4x800 M 1. Doddridge
2. Gilmer
3. Magnolia
4. Weir
5. Winfield
6. Sissonville
Doddridge and Gilmer both have the potential to go under 8:20 when fully
loaded. Doddridge's runners are more consistent than Gilmer's and that was
enough to give them the top spot. Magnolia is always peaking at the state
meet and look to be reasonably strong coming in. Weir is solid. Winfield
has some upward potential with a couple strong legs.
Shuttle 1. Oak Glen
2. Tyler
3. Ravenswood
4. Winfield
5. Poca
6. Meadow Bridge
Oak Glen is the defending champion and have all four members back. Tyler
showed their ability at the regional meet. Ravenswood and Winfield have
both been under 60 seconds twice and should have a tight race for third.
Poca has a slight advantage across the board on Meadow Bridge. St. Marys
and Weir could also jump up and grab a place. Weir has a best time of 59.38
but have only a series of high 1:01's to back that up.
L Jump 1. Mike Bowyer Moorefield
2. Levi Hall Fayetteville
3. Jared Davis St. Marys
4. Kent Taylor Liberty Raleigh
5. Pat Bay Richwood
6. Eric Antolini PikeView
This is historically our worst event. The last two years we didn't even
pick the eventual winner to place. Last year, the guy we picked to win
didn't place. That being said...it looks like Mike Bowyer is the strongest
in the field. He's the only one with four 20' jumps. He managed 20'3 at
the regional meet when other 19'+ jumpers weren't even hitting 17'. We've
only seen two jumps for Hall, but they've both been over 20'. Davis hit
his best jump at regionals and his second best jump at his conference meet.
Taylor had the best regional jump of anyone in the event. Bay has a 21'
leap and a pair of other 20' jumps. We've only seen three jumps from Antolini,
but one covered 20'9 1/2, and the other two were just short of 20'. Others
who could grab a place include Derek Oldfield of St. Marys, Jason Baxter
of Magnolia, Matt Volino of Oak Glen, and Elijah Colgrove of Williamstown.
H Jump 1. Jared Davis St. Marys
2. Rich Shilling Oak Glen
3. Mike Bowyer Moorefield
4. Greg Preston Magnolia
5. Eric Belancic Wheeling Central
6. Levi Hall Fayetteville
Davis is the clear-cut favorite in this event with a pair of 6'7 jumps and
another at 6'6. No other competitor has cleared 6'6 even once. Shilling has
three 6'4 jumps to his credit and has placed in the event the last two years.
Bowyer, Preston, and Belancic each have a 6'5 jump under their belt. Bowyer
and Preston have 6'4 jumps to back theirs up while Belancic sports only a
6'2 jump for his second best effort. Hall was awarded sixth place over
Ravenswood's Justin VanKirk on sheer athletic ability. Hall seemed more
likely to us to break out and go higher than 6'2.
Discus 1. Carl Gable Lincoln
2. Lucas Henger Ritchie
3. Sam Dooley Mount Hope
4. David Blair Magnolia
5. Ryan Burdette Poca
6. Jody Wolverton Webster
Gable is the clear favorite with 5 tosses of over 150' this season. Henger
is probably the most technically sound thrower in the group and has a pair
of 150' throws to his credit. Dooley placed third in the state meet last
year (ahead of both Gable and Henger) and if either falter just a bit, he'll
be right there to take the victory. Blair has five throws over 135'. Burdette
has a 142' and a 138' under his belt. Wolverton tossed 139' at his regional
meet. Don't rule out John Paul Blankenship of PikeView, Nick Stewart of
Independence, Joe Williams of St. Marys, or Nathan Skaggs of Mt. Hope.
Shot 1. Robbie Hardt Poca
2. Nathan Skaggs Mount Hope
3. Sam Dooley Mount Hope
4. Lucas Henger Ritchie
5. Josh Nicewarner Bridgeport
6. Daniel Furbee Tyler
Hardt has four throws further than anyone else's best, and among those
was a mammoth toss of 56'6 1/2 that is the furthest of anyone in the state
regardless of division. Skaggs is the latest in a long line of Mount Hope
standouts. They tend to throw their best at the state meet, and if Hardt
is off his game even just a little, Skaggs will win. Dooley is a solid
third. Henger is given the nod over Nicewarner for having far greater
consistency. Furbee was given the sixth spot over Justin Whetzel and
Carl Gable for the same reason.
P Vault 1. Connor Robertson Winfield
2. Ryan Parsons Williamstown
3. Michael Powell St. Marys
4. Matt Smith Fayetteville
5. Jason Buttrey Williamstown
6. Travis Lett Poca
Robertson, Parsons, Powell, and Buttrey all placed in the pole vault two
years ago. Last year, Robertson, Powell, and Buttrey duplicated the feat.
This year, with Andy Fenton out of the mix, Robertson comes in as the favorite
having cleared 14'9 earlier this season. Parsons has cleared 14' five times.
No other competitors have cleared 14' even once. Powell has a pair of 13'6
vaults on his resume. Smith has cleared 13'6 and has a 13' vault to back
it up. Buttrey was given the nod over Lett for the number five spot even
though Lett has a 13'6 vault to his credit. Buttrey has cleared 13' more
than once, and Lett has not. Sam Dooley is certainly a threat in this event.
He cleared 13'6 at the state meet last year for third place. Billy Moore
of St. Marys has cleared 13'0 twice this year but is very inconsistent.