LAWRENCE, Kansas -- Young athletes triumphed through another day of competition at USATF Hershey National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships, setting three national age group records against the backdrop of clear skies at Rock Chalk Park.  

Watch on demand video of today’s events on USATF.TV+ and follow competition live all week.

National age group records set in pole vault, 100m and triple jump

Thursday’s first national and Junior Olympic record came from Mia Manson (Superior, Colorado; USATF Colorado) in the girls’ 15-16 pole vault. After clearing all heights from 3.25m/10-8 through 4.00m/13-1.5, which tied the Junior Olympic record on first attempts, Manson raised the bar and attempted 4.07m/13-4.25. While she did not clear the height on her first two attempts, the third time was a charm as she sailed clear to break Morgan LeLeax‘s previous national record of 4.01m/13-1.75.

In the boys’ 15-16, Kennedy Lightner (Little Rock, Arkansas; USATF Arkansas) chased down the 2006 meet and national age group record in 10.49 (+0.5 m/s). Lightner improved on his previous PR of 11.16 to head into Friday’s semi-final with a confident advantage.

In the girl’s 9-10 200m semi-final, Tarrianna Jackson (East Point, Georgia; USATF Georgia) smashed the long-standing record of 26.50 set by Robin Reynolds in 2004. Jackson stopped the clock at 26.32 with +1.4m/s wind and placed herself in rarified air as Reynolds would go on to become a 16-time NCAA Division 1 All-American and represent Team USATF on multiple national teams.

Triple jumper Jasmine Moore (Grand Prairie, Texas, USATF Southwestern), the reigning 13-14 meet record holder, nearly clinched the national record in the girls’ 15-16 in 13.00m/42-8 but wind readings of +3.0 m/s prevented the mark from being ratified.

Close finishes highlight sprints and middle distance preliminary heats

Competitors fiercely battled in the boys’ 13-14 1500m as the top three all finished within .40 of one another. Ayden Schilb (Tucson, Arizona; USATF Arizona) took the win and was the only competitor to slip under 4:15.00, finishing in 4:14.99. Brayden Harris (McClure, Pennsylvania; USATF Mid-Atlantic) was second in 4:15.11 and Kellen Steplight (Vacaville, California; USATF Pacific) came in third in 4:15.40.

Quaron Adams (Phoenix, Arizona; USATF Arizona) broke a Junior Olympic meet record in the preliminary round of the boys’ 13-14 100m. Adams beat the previous record of 10.94 by .01, running 10.93 into + 1.6 m/s wind. He was the fastest qualifier of the day by .10 and will head into the next round as the favorite.

2017 Pan American Junior Championships team member Sha’Carri Richardson (Dallas, Texas, USATF Southwestern) returned from representing Team USATF in Peru to take the women’s 17-18 100m preliminary victory in 11.48. Last week at Chan Chan Stadium in Trujillo, Richardson contributed to Team USATF’s winning 4x100m relay time of 44.07. In the 200m, Richardson ran in perhaps the closest finish of the day with a time just .002 seconds behind 200m prelim winner Kynnedy Flannel (Alvin, Texas; USATF Gulf), 23.946-23.944.

First rounds of hurdles and relays set the stage for intense finals

Athletes across all age groups hurdled their way through preliminary heats in the 80m, 100m and 110m hurdles.

Taking place across the far backstretch, younger USATF future stars tackled the 80m hurdles with vigor as Bryce Tucker (Pennsauken, New Jersey; USATF New Jersey) led the boys’ 11-12 80m from the gun. Tucker took the top podium spot in 12.29, followed by Cameron Bates (Mansfield, Texas; USATF Southwestern) in 12.60.

Jayla Hollis (Red Oak, Texas; USATF Southwestern) of North Texas Cheetahs Track dominated the girls’ 15-16 100m hurdles with a time of 14.24 (+1.1 m/s), just .24 off her season’s best from Greensboro New Balance Nationals. In the men’s 17-18 110m hurdles, Noah Green (Overland Park, Kansas; USATF Missouri Valley) improved on last year’s third-place finish to take the first round crown in 13.75.

Relays ratcheted the excitement in the final hours of the day as 4x100m teams took to the track. Tri City Jaguars - A made their mark in the boys’ 8 & under first round with a speedy 58.18 over second place’s 58.69. Track Houston Youth Track Club - A utilized impressive handoffs to win the girls’ 11-12 in 50.86, and Port City Track Club - A closed out the night with the fastest men’ 17-18 time in 40.41

Friday’s events begin at 8:00 am CT with finals in the 3000m and several field events. Click here for a full schedule.

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THURSDAY FINALS:

For full results click here.

Womens Long Jump 17-18

Kynnedy Flannel, Track Houston Youth Track Club, 6.23m/20-5 ¼

Boys High Jump 9-10

Maceo Rivers, Top Flight, 1.36m/4-5

Boys Shot Put 11-12

Julien Montome, Columbia Express Track, 14.31m/46-11 ½

Mens Discus Throw 17-18

Joshua Sobota, GymTek Academy, 56.74m/186-2

Girls Javelin Throw 9-10

Cameron Chapman, Unattached, 32.05m/105-2

Girls Pole Vault 15-16

Mia Manson, Superior Track & Field, 4.07m/13-4 ¼ J N

Boys Long Jump 15-16

Samuel Sommers, Unattached, 7.11m/23-4

Boys Shot Put 8 & Under

Jordan Carraway, Unattached, 8.31m/27-3 ¼

Boys High Jump 13-14

Reid Nelson, West Omaha Track, 1.90m/6-2 ¾

Boys Javelin Throw 9-10

Jared Lockhart, Unattached, 35.68m/117-0

Boys Discus Throw 15-16

Jordan Johnson, Unattached, 52.64m/172-8

Girls Triple Jump 13-14

Macayla Wells, Unattached, 11.63m/38-2

Girls Shot Put 11-12

Layla Mcgee, East Palo Alto Greyhounds, 13.08m/ 42-11

Girls Triple Jump 15-16

Jasmine Moore, North Texas Cheetahs Track, 13.00m/42-8 J N  

Kyle Levermore

Communications Intern, USATF

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Ashley Mitchell

Marketing and Communications Manager, USATF

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