SCOUTING THE STATE MEET
An event-by-event look at the girls track and field state meet:
4×800 relay
Top seed (based on regional performances): Fort Wayne Concordia (9:14.66)
Local qualifiers: Center Grove (fifth, 9:30.89); Whiteland (sixth, 9:31.97)
Outlook: Concordia comes in as a solid favorite, seeded almost four and a half seconds ahead of Homestead and almost 11 seconds ahead of everyone else, but the Trojans and Warriors both come in well positioned to contend for medals. Center Grove’s Hallie Mimbela made a late charge past Whiteland to win the regional; the two county rivals could again be battling for positioning on the podium.
100 hurdles
Top seed: Dede Eberle, Bloomington North (14.12)
Local qualifier: Aubrey Runyon, Franklin (fifth, 14.87)
Outlook: Eberle and Warren Central’s Laila Smith (third, 14.46) are the likely favorites, and Runyon has shown the ability to run with both at times. The Grizzly Cub junior is likely to earn a podium spot, but can she put it all together at the right time and make a run at first place? She’ll need to summon all of her energy to spring the upset.
100 meters
Top seed: Savannah Lake, Greenfield-Central (11.76)
Local qualifier: Sydney Rodgers, Whiteland (fifth, 12.15)
Outlook: Expect the battle for first to come down to Lake and Warren Central’s Jila Vaden (second, 11.77). Rodgers would need to run the race of her life to hang with those two, but a spot in the final and the medal that would accompany it are very much within her reach.
1,600 meters
Top seed: Nicki Southerland, Delta (4:54.18)
Local qualifiers: None
Outlook: Southerland comes in seeded almost six seconds ahead of the field, so she has to be considered a clear favorite. Indian Creek sophomore Libby Dowty, who beat Southerland to win the state cross country title in the fall, qualified for this event but scratched to focus her energy on the 3,200.
4×100 relay
Top seed: Fort Wayne Carroll (47.51)
Local qualifiers: Whiteland (16th, 49.25); Franklin (22nd, 49.88)
Outlook: This could be one of the more compelling races of the day, with eight teams seeded within a second of one another at the top. The Warriors — who will likely put up a quartet of Rodgers, Annibelle Gillbert, Marissa Kratowicz and Elnora Stevenson — aren’t likely to factor into the title mix but could sneak onto the podium with a clean race.
400 meters
Top seed: Anissa Lammie, Hamilton Southeastern (55.58)
Local qualifier: Lauren Klem, Franklin (24th, 59.66)
Outlook: Lammie and Zionsville’s Omema Anyanwu (second, 55.67) are likely to duke it out for the top spot, with four others all within a second of the top seed time. Klem, a four-time state qualifier, isn’t likely to medal here but can use the race as a warmup for the 4×400 relay later in the day, where she and her Grizzly Cub teammates absolutely can.
300 hurdles
Top seed: Smith, Warren Central (43.90)
Local qualifier: Runyon, Franklin (14th, 45.99)
Outlook: Runyon finished behind Smith at the regional and is likely to do so again, but she is seeded less than half a second out of podium positioning. If she can win her heat or come close to it, a medal is very much within her reach.
800 meters
Top seed: Southerland, Delta (2:08.10)
Local qualifiers: Mimbela, Center Grove (11th, 2:16.34); Tori Jackson, Whiteland (12th, 2:16.55)
Outlook: A medal is a realistic goal for both Mimbela and Jackson, with the latter having already proven herself capable by finishing fourth last year. Southerland is seeded three seconds ahead of the pack and looks like a solid favorite to double up.
200 meters
Top seed: Ahniyah Bennett, Connersville (24.53)
Local qualifiers: Dee Biddings, Center Grove (ninth, 25.38); Stevenson, Whiteland (12th, 25.48)
Outlook: Neither Biddings nor Stevenson placed in the top three at a blazing fast regional, but both are in serious medal contention. They’ll again be chasing Bennett and Vaden (second, 24.61), who set the pace in the regional race and are likely to do so again on the bigger stage.
3,200 meters
Top seed: Ava Jarrell, Pendleton Heights (10:30.60)
Local qualifier: Dowty, Indian Creek (fourth, 10:56.76)
Outlook: Jarrell is seeded 19 seconds ahead of the pack after the regional, but Dowty has proven herself capable of keeping it closer than that, clocking a 10:18 while finishing third behind Jarrell and Southerland in an early-season distance showcase. Dowty surprised some by winning the state cross country crown; can she finish out her year with another unlikely title run? Roncall’s Charlie Fletter is seeded 22nd (11:21.62).
4×400 relay
Top seed: Hamilton Southeastern (3:51.92)
Local qualifier: Franklin (sixth, 3:58.88)
Outlook: The Royals, seeded 3.4 seconds ahead of the field, might be too fast for the Grizzly Cubs to catch, but a podium finish is very attainable. The quartet of Runyon, Ainsley Botkin, Hanna Stewart and Klem broke four minutes while finishing second to Warren Central at the regional; a similar run this time out could put them in the top five and help Klem finish her decorated high school career in style.
Pole vault
Top seed: Ann Elise Sloan, Evansville Christian (12-0)
Local qualifiers: Amy Luttrell, Greenwood (fifth, 11-6); Khloie Walker, Center Grove (sixth, 11-6); Hannah Smith, Center Grove (10th, 11-0)
Outlook: If Johnson County is going to produce a state champion, this is the most likely place for it to happen. Only six vaulters in Indiana have cleared 12 feet this year, with Luttrell and Walker both among them. Sloan and Noblesville’s Delaney Teachnor come in as slight favorites after clearing 12-6 this spring and making it over 12 feet last week, but Walker and Luttrell are among the top returning finishers after placing third and fifth, respectively, a year ago.
Long jump
Top seed: Vaden, Warren Central (20-4 1/4)
Local qualifier: Stevenson, Whiteland (eighth, 18-2 1/2)
Outlook: The Warren duo of Vaden and Smith (second, 20-0) are going to be tough for anyone to beat — but Stevenson, who medaled last spring as a freshman, could very well factor into the medal mix. She popped a 19-foot jump earlier this season and might need another one to crack the top five or so, but that’s certainly realistic.
Discus
Top seed: Hadley Lucas, Bloomington North (175-0)
Local qualifiers: Emma Gardner, Greenwood (seventh, 135-3); Carly VonDielingen, Whiteland (ninth, 132-7); Sophia Dyer, Whiteland (16th, 125-1)
Outlook: Lucas is as prohibitive a favorite as there is at this meet, seeded nearly 19 feet ahead of everyone else. Unless she fouls on every throw, she’s unlikely to get beaten. The local contingent, though, could certainly earn some hardware, with Gardner and VonDielingen both in strong position to medal if they can approach their respective season bests.
High jump
Top seed: Kira Smith, Warren Central (5-8)
Local qualifiers: None
Outlook: This is one of only two events without a county entry. Smith was the lone jumper to make it over 5 feet, 8 inches at the regional level, with Munster’s Nina Garner and Heritage Christian’s Kya Crooke close behind at 5-6.
Shot put
Top seed: Lucas, Bloomington North (53-4 1/2)
Local qualifiers: Gardner, Greenwood (ninth, 42-1); VonDielingen, Whiteland (12th, 41-0)
Outlook: Pretty much the same as the discus. Lucas is again an odds-on favorite, coming in almost five feet ahead of the next-best regional distance, but both Gardner and VonDielingen have a good chance to make it onto the podium. If either can start the day with a medal in the discus, that momentum could well carry over.
