So much happened during the 2018 track season. For starters, records were broken all season. That might explain why the BHS track team had athletes participating in so many state events today. 

Senior Luke Bailey crushed the first BHS track team record of the season in the discus with a throw of 118-1 at the Kenwood Classic. 

While at the Tri- Cities Track Classic, the distance medley relay team, made up of Jack Dees, sophomore, and Tevin Jackson, Charles Bennett, and Casey Clementz, seniors, raced to third. Bailey landed second in the triple jump with of 42-1.50, with senior Cyera Gordon leaping ahead to first.  Sophomore Joelle Patton placed fourth in the long jump.  Jaclyn Wright, junior, placed third in the high jump while sophomore Ahmad Collins placed sixth in the 300M hurdles, and junior Adonis Otey placed fourth in the 100M. 

Gordon beat the old record in the 100M by outpacing Diondrea Duncan’s 12.27 with a time of 12.23. 

Madison Wade, junior, broke the school record in the 100M hurdles, beating the old record of 16.98, set by sophomore Pamela Adams, with a new record of 16.96. 

By the middle of the season, Luke Bailey owned four school track and field records: triple jump, discus, pole vault, and decathlon. 

Day one of the Eastern Relay: two more school records were broken. The distance medley relay team,  freshman Owen Vinson with Jackson, Bennett, and Clementz, placed fourth setting a school record of 11:27.43. The sprint medley relay team, freshman, Payton Hershel, Carmen Booker, sophomore, Tamra Johnson, junior, and Anna Bailey, senior, placed seventh, beating the old record of 5:08.11 with a record setting 4:55.01 spring relay. 

After the Eastern Relays, Gordon held four school track and field records: 100M, 200M, 400M, and the long jump. 

At the Rutherford County Championship, Adams reclaimed her school record in the 100M with a time of 16.91. Otey beat his own new long jump record with a jump of 21-2″ on his second jump. Later, Bailey topped the record just broken by  Otey with a long jump of 21-7.5″. Junior Trey Knox won the shot put with a throw of 41-11.450″. Collins placed third in the 110M hurdles with a PR run of 16.12. Sophomore Jacari Cooley placed fourth in the 110M hurdles with a PR run of 16.14. Cooley also ran a time of 41.81 in the 300M hurdles to earn second place. Gordon earned first in the long jump, first in the 400m, and second in the 100M.  

At the Rutherford County Championship, the Blackman girls placed first place while the guys earned third. 

Continuing their winning streak, the Blackman Girls won the TSSAA Sub-Sectionals with 149.50 points. 

At the girls TSSAA Sub-Sectionals, Anna Bailey sets a new Blackman school record in the pole vault with a vault of 7-00, tying for first place in the meet. Wright wins the high jump, coming in third place in the pole vault, places fourth in the long jump, and ran her way into sectionals as a third leg on the 4 x 100M relay team. Sophomore Joelle Patton broke the next school record in the 100M with a time of 12.00. Gordon joined Patton in the sectionals in the 100M coming in third placing a time of 12.23. Gordon also brought home the long jump with a jump of 18-2.50.   

“My biggest accomplishment is that I went from running a 16.62 last year to a 11.97 this year,” stated  Patton. 

Booker triple-jumped her way into the sectionals with a second place jump of 31-10.50, and  Bailey triple- jumped in the sectionals, earnign fourth place  with a jump of 30-00.50. Hope Anderson headed into the sectionals in the shot put with a second place throw of 32-7.50.  

The 4 x 800M relay team headed to sectionals with a 3rd place finish. The 4x200M relay team headed to sectionals placing 3rd. The 4x100M relay team headed to sectionals with their second place finish. The 4x400M relay team’s third place secured their spot in the sectionals. Megan Roth, sophomore also qualified for the 3200M. Additionally, Adams qualified for sectionals in the 300M hurdles. 

“I am proud of us girls putting in so much work in order to get three wins in a row,” stated Adams. 

Blackman boys brought home third place in the TSSAA Sub-Sectional Meet. 

At the TSSAA Sectionals, Knox won the shot put with a record- breaking throw of 50-04.00, beating Brandon Davenport’s previous record. Bailey won the triple jump by breaking his own record with a jump of 43-11.50, and Patton broke her own new 100M record with a time of 11.97.  

This year’s track team is the “stuff dreams are made of.” From yoga in the halls to team camaraderie, this team has drawn attention both on and off the track, establishing track at BHS as a competitive sport in its own right as well as a supplement to many others.  

**COMING IN AUGUST — a feature on this year’s track team and how they became a family, competing with and against each other to rise to the top