By The Legs
The averages are important but not nearly as important as the legs that comprise those relays. To win a national championship is easy if you have the speed, to win this race you need some legs. Oddly enough, the team with the fastest average likely had the slowest fastest runner.
St. Jago enters with a great one-two punch and that punch is 24.10 and 24.33 with Reid and Kelly. Though they are not the fastest 200m runners, both have stellar 100 and 400m marks meaning you can expect strong runs from both.
The Bullis School has a similar lineup of very strong depth. Their best leg will likely be the now healthy and scary Masai Russell (junior) who has already run 24.53 indoors this season. They also have Lauryn Harris who has gone 11.95 in the 100 which could prove valuable in a race like this.
Cheltenham, the fifth ranked team, brings a monster in Chanel Brissett on their team. She ran in the US Olympic Trials this past summer and owns pr's of 11.84 and 23.88.
Western Branch, our current national leaders, enter with their rankings somewhat skewed. Though they averaged 24.79, that didn't truly capture the affect their transfers would have. In true Branch fashion, they will likely not show their colors individually until regionals but we have some insight into the girls running. We will tell you right now you should be afraid of this relay team considering it will feature a team of girls who have both gone 11.69, 11.85, 12.03, and 12.17 for the open 100m. This team's ace is sophomore Shadajah Ballard who is currently US #1 at 55mH with her 7.79 performance and 11.69 100m best.
Finally also entered are the Grassfield Grizzlies. Though they don't have as many fast 100m runners or hurdles like the other schools, they do have the ultimate ace in Lauryn Ghee. She is in fact the fastest 200m runner ever in Virginia and has gone 22.97 and 11.56 before. Her speed might be neutralized but it will not be matched.
Speed Ranked by legs
These are just our estimates for who will run for each team
| NAme (Team) | 200m PR | 100m PR | 400m PR (300) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lauryn Ghee (Grassfield) | 22.97 | 11.53 | 53.48 |
| Shadajah Ballard (Western Branch) | 24.00 | 11.69 | (40.60) |
| Jessica Tucker (Western Branch) | 24.39 | 11.85 | -- |
Ashley Seymour (Bullis School) | 24.20 | 11.77 | (41.35) |
Joanne Reid (St. Jago) | 24.10 | 12.00 | 55.63 |
Masai Russell (Bullis School | 24.53 | 12.14 | 55.57 |
Lauryn Harris (Bullis School) | 24.90 | 11.95 | 56.23 |
| Allesha Kelly (St. Jago) | 24.33 | -- | 53.58 |
| Aneka Brissett (St. Jago) | 24.67 | 12.04 | -- |
| Adriana Shockley (Western Branch) | -- | 12.03 | (40.42) |
Leah Phillips (Bullis) | 24.79 | -- | 57.97 |
Akoya Bines (Grassfield) | 24.97 | 12.33 | -- |
| Shalysa Wray (St. Jago) | 25.00 | 12.18 | 56.62 |
| Kory-Madisyn Blount (Grassfield) | 25.01 | 12.58 | -- |
| Dajah Parker-Love (Western Branch) | 25.00 | 12.17 | (40.80) |
| Felecia Hayes (Grassfield) | 25.25 | 12.28 | (41.08) |