By Staff
Staff Reports, Hartselle Enquirer
The Falkville boys track team finished in first place in Class 1A-4A at the 2007 Alabama indoor track championships in Priceville's Celebration Arena last weekend, while the Lady Blue Devils finished in second place.
It was Falkville's first-ever state championship, which the Blue Devils won in dominating fashion, scoring 54 points more than second-place Altamont. Falkville led 38-14 after the first day of competition Friday.
Cody Sewell was the meet's Class 1A-4A most valuable performer, after finishing first in the 55-meter hurdles (8.19 seconds) and second in the long jump and high jump. Also finishing with first-place individual finishes for Falkville were Jace Wilemon, who was the winner of the 800-meter run with a time of 2 minutes, 3.38 seconds, and Stephen Lindsey, who won the high jump with a distance of 6 feet, 2 inches.
Shane Edge had two second-place finishes in individual events – he took the silver medal in the 400-meter dash and the 800-meter run. Wilemon finished third in the 400-meter dash and Josh Henderson finished in fourth in the pole vault.
Also scoring points in individual events for Falkville were Justin Blanchard (fifth in 3,200-meter run), Lindsey (fifth in long jump) and Henderson (sixth in 55-meter hurdles).
Priceville's Lonny Sutton had the Bulldogs' highest individual finish, taking second place in the 55-meter hurdles.
The Blue Devils won the 3,200-meter relay with the team of Edge, Wilemon, Cory Hill and Justin Blanchard. Falkville's 1,600-meter relay team of Edge, Wilemon, Shane Ellis and Jonathan McNatt finished in second place.
The Lady Blue Devils finished with 43.5 points, second to first-place Altamont's 115. Krystal Gibbs won the 800-meter run and finished second in the 400-meter dash. Paige McCarley took third in the high jump.
Priceville's Mary Atchley was the highest finisher for the Lady Bulldogs after taking second in the shot put. Priceville's Meagan Harper finished fifth in the same event.
Falkville also had all three relay teams finish in third place.
Those teams were the 1,600-meter relay team of Stephanie Koerber, Emily Robbins, Grace Wilhite and Nichole Lee and the 3,200-meter relay team of Koerber, Gibbs, Robbins and Celese Sharbutt. The 800-meter relay team also had a third place finish.
The championship for Falkville comes at an opportune time, as the future of indoor track in Alabama is in doubt. The sport has been held in the state for 41 years, but the Alabama High School Athletic Association's central board recently voted to discontinue indoor track unless the sport can find an alternate facility to Celebration Arena.