Orange County sophomore Ashontae Jackson (pictured above by Ashontae Jackson) is quite a talent and capable of dominating the Region II Championships as a favorite to win three individual titles. Jackson is a top seed in the long jump (17'4.25"), 55 meter dash (7.37), and 300 meter dash (40.92). She will be a heavy favorite in all her events as the 300 meter dash has no other athlete other than Jackson under 43 seconds this season.
The Louisa County boys and girls are in great position to make a sweep of the Region II team titles on Wednesday at Fork Union's Estes Athletic Center. The Louisa girls should have a much closer competition with Jefferson District rival Western Albemarle and defending Region II champions Brentsville, while the Louisa boys should be runaway winners in a meet which should be dominated by the Jefferson District schools in the team standings.
Boys Preview
The Louisa County boys are so loaded that they have at least a half dozen individuals capable of scoring double digit points individually on their own. Top athletes for the Lions include Corrin Harris, Dante Davis, Andre Hunter, and Thomas Baker. In almost every event, Louisa County will have a contender.
Five of the top seven entrants in the long jump are from Louisa County led by Corrin Harris at 22'1". Harris is the second seed in the triple jump behind his teammate Andre Hunter with both having leaped over 44 feet this season. Louisa hurdler Dante Davis is a strong contender to win the Group AA state title and will be the heavy favorite to win the Region II title in the 55 meter hurdlers with a 7.68 clocking.
The 300 meter dash will be a strong event on the track for Louisa with the fastest two entrants in the region with Tyler Jackson at 36.60 and Gunnar Carroll at 36.65. Jackson and Carroll will both be featured on Louisa County's 4x200 and 4x400 meter relays (3:33.52), which both own the fastest times in the region heading into the meet.
Thomas Baker will be a longshot to win a regional title in the distance races going up against Western Albemarle's stars with Tyler Stutzman in the 1600 and Kyle Satterwhite in the 3200, but Baker could at least pull in runner-up finishes and 16 points from the two races. Stutzman, the state leader in the 1600 (4:13) and 1000 (2:29), will be competing in both races at the Region II Championships.
Stutzman is one of many individual athletes in the meet who could go onto win Group AA state titles in two weeks at Liberty University. Charlottesville High School has two athletes more than capable of walking away with state crowns later this month with Justin Jackson in the high jump and Melvin Carter in the shot put.
Fluvanna's Jamal Spears also shown the speed this season to warrant consideration for himself as a hopeful to win a Group AA state title in the 55 meter dash with a 6.51 season best clocking.
Western Albemarle should be the next best squad in the region after Louisa, but Fluvanna and Charlottesville could get out to good early starts in the field events to make it close to determine the regional runner-up squad.
Girls Preview
Orange County sophomore Ashontae Jackson is quite a talent and capable of dominating the Region II Championships as a favorite to win three individual titles. Jackson is a top seed in the long jump (17'4.25"), 55 meter dash (7.37), and 300 meter dash (40.92). She will be a heavy favorite in all her events as the 300 meter dash has no other athlete other than Jackson under 43 seconds this season.
The Louisa County girls may not have the number of individual regional contenders as their male counterparts, but their relays will certainly be formidable to go after first place finishes and key a regional team championship run. Their 4x200 (1:49.97) and 4x400 (4:12.84) lead the region with their 4x200 almost holding a full 3 second advatange on the next fastest relay in Region II.
Hannah Best and Raven Serio are the top individuals for the Louisa County girls as Best is one of the top 3 seeds in both the 1600 and 3200 meter runs, while Serio is expected to place high in the 55 meter hurdles, long jump, and triple jump.
The Western Albemarle girls figure to be close on the heels of Louisa. The pole vault is an event which should gain the Lady Warriors plenty of momentum with the top four vaulters in the region led by two vaulters over 10 feet in Nicole Harding (10'6") and Sarah Garner (10'3").
Distance runners Claire Johnson and Hilary Wayland will lead the Western girls on the track with Johnson as a top seed and favorite in the 1600 with a season best of 5:22, while Johnson and Wayland are both featured in the 1000 meter run along with teammate Katie Farina as all potential top 6 state qualifiers in the race. The three girls also be competing on the 4x800 meter relay, which is a top seed by a considerable margin as the only squad under 10 minutes this season at 9:55.
Brentsville would likely be in a better position to challenge for the regional title, but without their top distance runners Allison Bartels and Maggie Gentry, it will be a tougher task. Danyelle Kent-Robinson will do her best to help the Lady Tigers keep pace with Louisa and Western Albemarle as the favorite in the 55 meter hurdles (8.64) and high jump (5'4"). While Orange County's Jackson will be the heavy favorite in the 55 and 300 meter sprint races, the 500 meter dash should be a bit more open for numerous contenders though Brentsville senior Kelsi Ostergren will be the top seed at a 1:21.54 best.