Hoover’s Humphrey Goes Out With A Bang As Part Of Record-Breaking Binge

By Arthur L. Mack for DyeStat

GULF SHORES — It’s a sure bet that at the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships, when conditions are just right, records are bound to be broken.

That was the case in this year’s meet as records fell away in one of the most inspiring performances in meet history.

PHOTOS

Here’s a look back at how things went:

CLASS 7A - RESULTS

Hoover proved once again that it rules the roost among the state's large schools.

The Bucs, led by Marion Humphrey — the last of the famous Humphrey siblings — easily defeated Smiths Station 138 to 83, while Auburn was third with 64 points. Humphrey won both the 110-meter hurdles in 14 seconds flat and the 300-meter hurdles in a meet record 36.00, as well as the 400 (47.43).

Humprehy also split 46.8 on an all-time Alabama record 4x400-meter relay team, which ran 3:15.49.

Hoover also won the 4x100 relay in 41.85 and got a first-place finish from James Courson in the pole vault (16 feet, 9 inches).

Meanwhile, Hoover’s girls were just as impressive, defeating Auburn 125 to 94.50, with Mobile’s McGill-Toolen Catholic third with 80 points. Michelle Nkoudou and Chakiya Plummer went 1-2 in the 100-meter hurdles (14.28 and 14.46), while Plummer won the 300-meter hurdles in 43.53.

Hoover also won the 4x800 relay in 9:17.54 and also got a win from Riley White in the pole vault (12-0).

“We thought that we could do it,” Bucs coach Devon Hind said. “We came in expecting to win both. We didn’t start off so well on the girls side, but we finished strong. I’m sad to see Marion go — that’s all that I can say. He had an unbelievable day. We started off slow on the girls side because a lot of teams stepped up, but we had enough cushion.”

Humphrey was not the only record-breaker. Mountain Brook’s boys 4x800 relay team ran away from the rest of the field and clocked a meet-record 7:47.70, breaking the old record of 7:58.18 set by Auburn in 2016. Smiths Station, which finished second, was also under the old record, with 7:52.64.

“We had a talk before the meet,” Mountain Brook coach Greg Echols said. “Smiths Station whipped us every time we raced them, and we felt that we had a chance to win. Two of the guys on the team, Charlie Slaughter and Hunter Harwell, ran the 3.200 earlier in the day, and that goes to show that it’s the size of the heart. They’re doing it for each other.”

Mobile Baker’s Dontavious Hill broke the high jump record of 6-6 that was set by his brother Melvin in 2015, as he and Oak Mountain’s Trey Allen both cleared 6-10. Hill, however, won based on fewer misses. Alabaster Thompson’s Viktor Turek won the discus with a meet-record throw of 178-0, beating the old record of 167-6 set by Auburn’s Michael Thompson in 2016.

On the girls side, Hewitt-Trussville’s Hope Igbinoghene won the 100 and 200, breaking a meet record in the 100 (11.73).  In the 400, Oak Mountain’s Nicole Payne set a new meet record of 54.04, while James Clemens broke the all-time state best in the 4x400 with 3:48.65.

Field events did not escape the record-breaking onslaught either. Smiths Station’s Alonie Sutton set new state meet records in the long jump (19-9.50) and triple jump (42-5), breaking her own record of 40-1 set last year. McGill-Toolen’s Hannah Daffin set a new record in the shot (40-6.25), while Zuri Faulkner of James Clemens set a new meet record in the discus (140-8).

CLASS 6A - RESULTS

Like Hoover, Homewood swept the boys and girls team titles.

The Patriots won the boys title 80.50 to 63 over Tuscaloosa-Northridge, while Ramsay was third with 58 points. Will Stone was the key point-getter for Homewood, winning the 800 (1:55.97), 1,600 (4:22.38) and 3,200 (9:27.82). Homewood also won the 4x800-meter relay (8:17.80).

Northridge got a 1-2 finish in the triple jump from Vincent Taylor (48-4) and Edwin Rainey (47-3.75).

Other top performances of note came from Helena’s Justin Stuckey and Jonah Hyde, who finished 1-2 in the high jump clearing 6-10 and 6-8, respectively; Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa’s Okheme Moore, who won the 200 in 21.20; and Stanhope-Elmore’s Xavier Rogers, who won the 400 in 47.77.

Homewood routed Pelham 126.75 to 81 in the girls division, while Ramsay was third with 52 points. Jasmine Griffin was a double winner for Homewood in the 100- and 300-meter hurdles (14.34/43.49), while Celie Jackson won the 3,200 in 11:28.00. Other winners for the Patriots were Alex Brooks in the pole vault (11-0), Aiya Finch in the long jump (18-5), and Christian Hill in the triple jump (39-3.75).

Pelham got a 1-2 finish in the 800 from Katie Strozier and Alex Wilkins. Strozier set a new meet record in the event, running 2:11.77, taking down the old record of 2:11.91 set by Daphne’s Kirby Patterson in 2004.

Spanish Fort’s Alivia Busch was a double winner in the shot (42-2) and discus (134-9).

CLASS 5A  - RESULTS     

Beauregard edged Scottsboro in the closest finish in the meet, winning 88.50 to 84.50 to claim the boys title, while Mobile St. Paul’s Episcopal came from behind in the meet’s final day to defeat Arab 98-52.

Scottsboro had a big day in the distances, getting a 1-2-3 finish in the 800 from Crawford Hope (1:59.14), Bobby Parsons (1:59.57), and Hayden Judge (2:00.68). Hope, Judge, and Cooper Atkins also went 1-2-3 in the 1,600. Hope and Judge finished 1-2 in the 3,200 as well. Scottsboro also won the 4x800-meter relay (8:22.74).

But Beauregard went 1-2 in the long jump and triple jump and got a bunch of points in other events. In the long jump, Roderick Johnson, Jr. and John Askew got marks of 22-9.75 and 20-11.75, while Granadas Baker, Jr. and Johnson went 44-7.50 and 44-5.75 in the triple jump. 

The most exciting performance came from Cullman West Point’s Hunter Appling, who won the 110- and 300-meter hurdles. Appling ran 14.10 in the shorter event, breaking a 21-year-old record held by Zeke Parker of Athens (14.13 in 1997), and followed it with a 38.36 in the 300 hurdles.

“Zeke’s been talking to me, and he told me that I needed to break the record,” Appling said. “I said that breaking the record was my goal, and I told my former head coach that if I can’t get the record, there was no need for me to be at the meet. I was a little sore from the prelims, but God got me through it. I’m so excited, I can’t put it into words.”

The other 5A boys meet record came in the javelin, where Lazarius Decatur of Brooks won with a throw of 199-2.

St. Paul’s girls trailed Arab by one point going into the final day of the meet but surged to win handily. The Saints only got two wins — in the 4x800 relay (9:54.48) and Olivia Beard in the high jump (5-4). But a strong showing in the distance events, plus crucial points in the hurdles and jumps, enabled St. Paul’s to get the team win.

Sylacauga’s Morgan O’Neal broke her own record in the 300 hurdles, running 42.40. O’Neal also won the 400 in 56.34. Central-Tuscaloosa broke the 4x400 meet record, running 4:00.70.

Olivia Andrews of Mobile’s Faith Academy won the 800 (2:21.26), 1,600 (5:24.96), and 3,200 (11:44.11).

CLASS 4A - RESULTS 

Winfield defeated Catholic-Montgomery 65-51 to win the boys title and Mobile’s UMS-Wright overcame three first-place finishes by Amaris Tyynismaa to defeat Catholic-Montgomery for the girls team crown, 93-68.

Winfield’s only first-place finishes came from Walter Junkin in the pole vault (15-6) and a meet-record throw of 196-4 in the javelin for Josh Estes. The Pirates, though, had plenty of points scored in other events to secure the win.

Two other records were broken by the boys — Wilson High of Florence’s Cade Finley threw 185-3 to win the discus and Tanner King of Northside ran 1:55.12 to lower his own record in the 800. King also won the 1,600 in 4:29.22.

The most remarkable performance, however, came from Dadeville’s Qua Tucker. Not only did he win the 100 and 200 (10.63/21.80), but he also won both the 110-meter high hurdles (14.12) and 300-meter hurdles (39.39).

In 4A girls, UMS-Wright got first-place finishes from Aryn McDowell, who won the long jump (17-5) and triple jump (36-5.50). She also finished a close second in the 100-meter hurdles (15.89) and finished eighth in the 300-meter hurdles (49.17). Teammate Ellen Chitty was second in the 300-meter hurdles (46.59), with Anna Hunt finishing third in the triple jump (34-6.50), in addition to taking fourth in the 400 (59.43) and fifth in the 800 (2:26.42).

The Bulldogs also got second-place finishes from Jill Coffee-Jackson in the shot put (33-8.50) and Dorsey Parker in the high jump (5-0).

“We kept building during the year, and we moved some people around, trying to find a spot for them,” UMS-Wright coach Pat Galle said. “Our girls did a great job filling in those different spots. Aryn did a great job. She won the long jump and the triple jump and missed (winning) the 100-meter hurdles by a couple of hundredths of a second.”

Tyynismaa did her part for Catholic-Montgomery, winning the 800 (2:13.60), the 1,600 (meet-record 4:57.42, breaking her own mark), and the 3,200, running 10:45.05 to break another of her own records.