State Previews: 1A | 2A | 3A | 4A

Girls Preview

The 1A Girls' race might be the closest out of all 8 races at the MPSSAA State Championships. 1.5 points separate the top 3 teams, Smithsburg, Largo, and Westen Tech.

Largo will lean on a few girls and very strong relay teams to try to secure the title. Ayniah Fersner is the top seed in the 100 Hurdles at 15.08 and the 300m Hurdles at 45.31. Elvira Uzegbu has the top disc mark in the state at 124-11 and is seeded second in Shot. They also have the top times in all 3 sprint relays.

Smithburg has no individuals that are projected to win a state championship but they have multiple girls that can score in the 2nd-5th spots in multiple events. Cora Gentzel is seeded 5th in the 800 and 4th in the 1600, Jenna Howe is 2nd in the 400 and 3rd in the 200, Grace Ellis is 4th in both the 400 and 800, and Kayla Hawbrecker is seeded 3rd in the 800, 5th in the 1600, and 8th in the 3200. 

Western Tech will be all focus during both hurdle events. Ogechi Uzoukwu, Oluwatunmishe Olunuga, and Ariel Thomas are seeded 2nd, 3rd, and 4th in the 100m Hurdles, and Peace Mbah is seeded 2nd in the 300m Hurdles, along with Olunuga who is seeded 3rd, and Thomas who is 6th. They have the ability to score close to 40 points in just those two events. They are also seeded 2nd in all 3 sprint relays. 

Other Athletes to Watch:

Avery Miller (Allegany) - Miller has the best chance out of any athletes at the state meet to walk away with 4 individual gold medals. She will be the favorite in the 100 (12.27), 200 (25.42), 400 (56.97), and Long Jump (18-5.5)

Mary Delaney (Mountain Ridge) - Delaney is another athlete who may walk away with 4 gold medals, however, one of hers would have to be on a relay team. She will be the favorite in the 800 (2:17) and 1600 (5:06). Her PR of 11:08 is two seconds behind that of top seed Caroline Matthews (Boonsboro) in the 3200, and her 4x800 team has run the top time in 1A.

Caroline Matthews (Boonsboro) - As mentioned above she has the top time in the 3200 this year at 11:06 and will be trying to break the 1A state record, which is right at 11:06.

Maeleigh Plummer (Fort Hill) - Plummer leads the state in the high jump with a personal best of 5-05.