PEMBROKE — Richmond Senior High School was well represented in the boys’ and girls’ track and field 4A Mideast Regional at UNC-Pembroke on Friday.
A total of five Lady Raiders qualified for the 4A state championship across four different events, while the Raiders had numerous top-six performances that came up just short.
The top four finishers in each event qualified for the state championship, which will be held on June 25.
Both of the Lady Raider 4×100 and 4×200-meter relay teams, made up of sophomores Isis Covington, Andrea Ellerbe, Akeya Harrison and junior Talayeh Covington, qualified for states.
Ellerbe also made the state championship in the 200-meter dash, while senior Jakerra Covington notched her spot in the shot put.
“The girls did a great job in the heat and our goal was to improve our times and run the way we do in practice,” head coach Reggie Miller explained. “If we did that, we knew we’d get to the state championship. All of these girls put in hard work since February and didn’t let anything stop them.
“The 4×200 set the tone for us and we won our heat by three seconds,” he continued. “The 4×100 team ran in the top heat and the girls did a tremendous job again. The fireworks came for me in the open 200, when Andrea won her heat.”
Sophomore Andrea Ellerbe, pictured above, qualified for states in the 200-meter dash. (Kyle Pillar)
At the start of the season, Jakerra Covington suffered a minor hamstring injury that sidelined her from running events.
Miller said he wasn’t sure how the relay teams would fare without Jakerra Covington, but noted the teams’ athleticism and working on mechanics helped the Lady Raiders qualify.
In the 4×200-meter relay race, the Lady Raiders placed second overall with a time of 1:46.65, which was a little over three seconds off the top mark from Athens Drive High School (1:43.39).
The same four Lady Raiders ran in the 4×100-meter relay, posting a time of 50.25 seconds, putting Richmond in third place. Athens Drive (48.67 seconds) and Panther Creek (49.56 seconds) took first and second, respectively.
Ellerbe qualified for states in the open 200-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 25.91 seconds for fourth place. Jakerra Covington continued to impress in the shot put, a new event to her this season, and took second overall with a throw of 34’-11”.
Senior Jakerra Covington also competed in the high jump, taking eighth place. (Kyle Pillar)
“Jakerra was new to shot put and sometimes change can be good,” Miller said. “And it worked out good for her and the team.”
Just missing out on qualifying for states in other events were Isis Covington, Jakerra Covington and junior Maylyn Wallace. Isis Covington finished sixth in the 100-meter dash (12.66 seconds) and Jakerra Covington placed fifth in the long jump (16’-5”).
Wallace was the lone Richmond distance runner at the Regional and posted a new personal record in the 3200-meter run. She ran the mile in 5:52.32, which was good enough for sixth overall.
In the boys’ competition, Richmond had five sixth-place finishes, one seventh-place mark and three finishers in eighth place.
Junior Cason Douglas ran the 200-meter dash in 26.37 seconds for sixth place, while senior C.J. Tillman completed his first season throwing the shot put with a sixth-place distance of 41’-10”.
Sophomore Emerson Wall also placed sixth in the triple jump (41’-11.5”), with junior teammate Trey Thomas taking eighth in the same event (39’-11.5”).
Senior Bryan Stanback picked up a sixth-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles (17.32 seconds) and crossed the finish line in eighth place in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 42.86 seconds. Thomas was seventh in the 110-meter hurdles (17.43 seconds).
Senior Bryan Stanback clears a hurdle during the 110-meter race on Friday. (Kyle Pillar)
The Raiders’ 4×100-meter relay team (43.84 seconds) and 4×200-meter relay team (1:31.87) placed sixth and eighth place, respectively. Running those events were Douglas, sophomore Jamarion Bryant, junior Kelay Lindsey and senior Tremel Jones.
The 4×100-meter relay team missed states by 0.73 seconds, and the 4×200-meter relay team was 1.43 seconds off the pace from fourth-place South Garner High School.
“Our boys’ 4×100 relay team had a really good chance for states, and we thought we had the fourth-place spot,” Miller said. “The boys are really fast and all great athletes, and I hate that the season is over for them.
“Bryan did tremendous in the hurdles, and Emerson and Trey did great in the triple jump,” he added. “Both of them are pure athletes and they’ll be back next spring. All the boys worked hard and I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”
The Lady Raiders will compete in the 4A state championship at Truist Stadium on the campus of North Carolina A&T in Greensboro next Friday. Events will begin at 4 p.m.
Senior C.J. Tillman throws the shot put in his final heat during the 4A Mideast Regional. (Kyle Pillar)
