The boys of the Metro East reigned supreme at last weekend’s Illinois State Track and Field championships at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston.
Cahokia extended its dynasty as it won its sixth consecutive Class 2A state championship. East St. Louis returned to the winner’s circle as it won the Class 3A state championship, the 11th in the school’s illustrious history.
Defending Class 3A state champion Edwardsville finished second in the Class 3A state meet to its Southwestern Conference foe East St. Louis.
With Cahokia performing without its injured star jumper Ja’Mari Ward, the Comanches utilized their overall depth to take home the state title. Jumper Anthony Roberts finished second in the triple jump and fourth in the long jump. McKinley Bell was fourth in the shot put and Tyran Lyons was fifth in the 400-meter dash.
Much of Cahokia’s damage was done in the relays, where they won three state titles and accounted for 36 points. The Comanches won the 4×100-meter relay in a winning time of 42.29 seconds. They also won the 4×400 in 3 minutes 20.54 seconds and the 4×800 in 8:00.03. They also finished third in the 4×200.
East St. Louis also used its depth and relay dominance to capture the Class 3A state crown. The 4×100 relay team of Jarrell Anderson, Roosevelt Davis, Kevin Johnson and Marlowe Mosley circled the track in a winning time of 41.64. The 4×400 crew of Mosley, Davis, Johnson and Sanchez Rhodes finished first in 3:15.35. The Flyers also captured second in the 4×200-meter relay.
In the open events, Deonte Anderson and Mosley finished third and fourth in the 400-meter dash, respectively. Anderson also finished seventh in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. Davis also finished fifth in the 200 while Mosley was sixth.
Edwardsville accomplished its state runner-up finish on the strength of its dynamic duo of A.J. Epenesa in the throws and Travis Anderson in the hurdles. Epenesa finished a dominant season in the discus by winning the event with a state-meet record throw of 205 feet 11 inches. The University of Iowa football recruit also finished second in the shot put.
Anderson also scored big in the hurdles, winning the 110-meter high hurdles in 13.71 seconds. He also finished third in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. The Tigers also finished sixth in the 4×100 and got a seventh-place finish from Devonte Tincher in the long jump.
The other individual state champion from the metro east area was Belleville East senior William Session, who won the 300-meter intermediate hurdles in a time of 37.46. Session is headed to Indiana to run track next season.
