Crowley qualifies six for state meet

SULPHUR – It was a bittersweet night for the Crowley High Gents in the Region II-4A track and field championships Thursday evening at Northside High School.
The Gents fell short in some areas, but they got some surprises in others and overall qualified six athletes for next week’s State Track and Field Championships at Bernie Moore Stadium on the campus of LSU.
“We fell a little short in some areas today, but we’re in Class 4A now and you’re not always going to qualify 13 for the state meet,” said CHS coach Jeptha Wall. “Overall, I thought we performed well. We came out and competed and that’s all you can ask for.”
Opelousas claimed the team title in boys’ competition with 72 points. LaGrange followed with 71 and Northside was third with 62. The Gents finished seventh in the field of 18 teams with 34.33 points.
Plaquemine won the team title in girls’ competition with 66.50 points; Northside was second (64) and St. Michael was third (59). Rayne finished with 25 points and Crowley had 15.
LaGrange’s Markell Thomas took home the regional MVP honor for the boys after earning 25 points on the day while Plaquemine’s Aldrianna Dupree and Northside’s Dajah Guidry tied for the top honor on the girls’ side with 24.50 points each.
Two of the most notable performances for Crowley High came from opposite ends of the spectrum.
Freshman Jalasia Hebert ran her personal best time of 16.27 to place third in the 100 hurdles while senior Thomas Cavell clocked a personal best time 50.47 to place third in the 400-meter dash.
“Jalasia and Thomas really showed some heart tonight,” said Wall. “It’s Jalasia’s first year running the hurdles. She’s running strong and her technique is getting better. And Thomas, he just nailed it tonight. I don’t know if he can run any better at this time right now.”
Kirk Poullard grabbed a spot at the state meet by running a 2:03.65 to place second in the 800-meter run where he was passed at the tape by Opelousas’ Collins Roberts.
“Kirk kind of got boxed in there in the curve and he broke stride,” said Wall of Poullard. “It’s the first race he has lost this year, but it’s still a personal best. And he can run a little bit better, he just has to be a little more careful.”
Another impressive moment for the Gents occurred in the final race of the night.
They owned the second-fastest time entering the 4 x 400 relay, but Terrell Thomas fell ill late in the meet, forcing Wall to make a replacement.
Wall and the team turned to Mikel Hebert to fill that void and the sophomore didn’t disappoint.
Hebert teamed with Poullard, Cavell and Jacq’co Price for a third-place time of 3:30.29.
It was four seconds off their previous time in the district meet, but it was enough to push the relay team to next week’s state competition.
“The (relay) team made that decision,” said Wall of placing Hebert in the relay spot. “With Terrell not being able to go, they said they wanted Mikel to run it and he did a great job of giving us a chance.”
The Gents also qualified Damon Guidry in the high jump. The steady sophomore, who entered with a season and career best jump of 6-8, battled to a third-place finish with a leap of 6-4.
“Damon did what he had to do to survive and advance today,” said Wall of Guidry. “It was just one of those days where he looked a little off on everything and he was due for one of those. Hopefully next week, it will be a good surface and he can do his thing.”
The Gents fell just short of advancing in four other events as they placed fourth in the 300 hurdles and 4 x 100 relay while the Ladies fell one spot shy of qualifying in the 400-meter dash and the pole vault.
Thomas ran a 43.01 in the 300 hurdles while the 4 x 100 relay team of Thomas, Price, Bryston Domino and Tyler Castille clocked a time of 43.06.
In girls’ competition, Hebert ran a 1:02.75 in the 400 and Brooklyn Johnson had a mark of 8-6 in the pole vault.
The Gents’ 4 x 200 relay team of Poullard, Domino, Castille and Price would have probably been in the running for a slot at the state meet, but the unit was disqualified due to a false start.
“We still ran well,” said Wall. “Our 4 x 100 team ran their best time of the year and we just got beat out for third in some of the other races.
“In the 4 x 200, we just kind of fell out of the blocks. It happens.”
Rayne High will be sending two athletes to the state meet. Tristan Mouton placed second in the 100 and 300 hurdles with times of 16.17 and 47.57, respectively. Taylor Arceneaux also placed second in the discus with a toss of 102-9.