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Indiana's Top Sprinters Picking Up The Pace Ahead of Potential State Meet Showdown

Published by
DyeStat.com   May 11th 2023, 6:43am
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Talented Group Of Sprinters Shines At Marion County Championships, Including Jasiah Rogers (10.53), Christian Woodson (21.58) And Nickens Lemba (48.19)

By David Woods for DyeStat

INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana is a basketball state. Indianapolis, because of the Colts, is a football city.

Yet somehow, the primordial sport of track and field retains a grip on teenagers here.

Take Nickens Lemba. Or Christian Woodson. Or Elijah Jackson.

“You never know. Fate changes,” Lemba said.

INTERVIWS

The 6-foot-7 Lemba left Democratic Republic of the Congo hoping to earn a college basketball scholarship  . . . and now will sign with Purdue for track. Woodson plays basketball, too, but might drop it to concentrate on sprints. Jackson, a 900-yard rusher who didn’t run track until last year, wonders if he has more opportunity as a sprinter than a ball carrier.

And they’re all chasing Jasiah Rogers, who missed qualifying for the 100-meter final at last year’s state meet and has been compensating ever since.

“The Midwest is kind of slept on because of the weather we have here. And being in the Midwest, our history in track isn’t stellar like Texas or Florida, maybe,” Rogers said. “Certainly, with this class of kids. And even the upcoming class of juniors are flourishing and doing well for our state and the Midwest.”

A deep reservoir of sprinters was on display Wednesday night in the Marion County boys meet, bringing together almost all of Indy’s top programs.

Rogers, of Park Tudor, repeated in the 100 meters in a PB of 10.53. Woodson, of host North Central, took the 200 in a PB of 21.58, or .04 off the Indiana lead. And Lemba, of Southport, broke a 35-year-old county record in running 48.19 in the 400.

“Basically, a preview of the state meet,” Woodson said.

Now, 10.53 might sound modest, but the wind was -1.0.  And since former 9.99 sprinter Mark Jelks of Gary West Side ran a windy 10.25 in 2002, no state champion has been faster than 10.45. None has been in the 10.40s since 2009.

Moreover, four Hoosiers this year – Lawrence Central’s Jackson (10.47), Brownsburg junior Dominic Calhoun (10.50), Warren Central’s  (10.53) and Rogers (10.53) – make it plausible something in the 10.30s will be required for a state title.

Rogers, also headed to Purdue, stated his case indoors. He lowered the Indiana record in the 60 to 6.68 for a US#6, and was fourth at New Balance nationals. He conceded the closing 40 meters of the 100 had been a weakness.

“I really focused on building my speed endurance to finish up strong,” said Rogers, who extended his lead over the final 40.

Rogers, Jackson and Reeves-Lile have trained under the same club coach, and Jackson calls the two others his brothers. Reeves-Lile was a USATF youth indoor champion in the 55 and 200.

“We all work. We all want to get better,” Jackson said.

He was second in the 100, as he was last year, in 10.73 despite a heavily taped right ankle.  Woodson was third in 10.84 and Reeves-Lile fourth in 10.99.

In the 200, defending champion Reeves-Lile was second in 21.79, Rogers third in 21.82 and Lemba sixth in 22.57.

A feature of the June 2 state meet will be a rematch in the 400, won last year by Plainfield’s Nayyir-Newash-Campbell (47.45) over Lemba (47.66). They are targeting the state meet record of 46.99 set in 2002 by Merrillville’s David Neville, who won the bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

“I feel like this year is my year,” Lemba said.

Elsewhere, North Central’s Nate Killeen won a 4:13.49/1:55.64 distance double. He repeated in the 1,600 by overtaking Brebeuf Jesuit junior Cameron Todd, who was second in 4:14.25. Todd was sixth in the Champs Sports Cross Country finals at San Diego.

North Central, scoring nearly 70 points more than a year ago, beat defending champion Warren Central 112.5-71.5 for the team championship.

Laila Smith breaks record of cousin Ashley Spencer

In Tuesday’s girls meet, Warren Central’s Laila Smith broke the meet record in the 300 hurdles held by her cousin, Olympic bronze medalist Ashley Spencer.

Smith clocked 43.49, fastest in Indiana this year, to better the mark of 44.27 set by Spencer, of Lawrence North, in 2011.

Smith, a junior, missed all of her sophomore season because of injury. She was first in the long jump at 18-4, second in the 100 hurdles in 14.84 and ran a 57.6 anchor for a winning 4x400 relay.

She is the daughter of Warren Central coach Le’gretta Smith, whose team won its first Marion County title since 2018. Warren won 104-77 over North Central, which had beaten Warren in the Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference.

Warren has won five of the past eight county titles and 11 of 22.

Also, Gretchen Farley ran a PB of 2:07.5 in a leg of Park Tudor’s winning 4x800 relay. She won the 1,600 in 4:54.32 and ran a 56.1 anchor in the 4x400 relay. Farley ranks second in Indiana in the 400 at 56.07 but will focus on the 800 at state.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.



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