DISTRICT 2-5A SPRINTERS POWER DOWN THE TRACK IN THE 100m AT THE 2-5A CHAMPIONSHIPS
After last year's Region 1-5A 100m, District 2-5A sprinters and coaches had the "what just happened?" look on their face when none of the district's sprinters, who had the fastest qualifying times going into the meet, advanced to the LHSAA Class 5A State Outdoor Meet.
What happened was the week before when meet management changed to the direction of the sprints to put the wind at their back to allow for faster qualifying times, a common practice across the state--if the district meet is able to pull it off.
The only problem was that the timer at the 2022 District 1-5A Meet was not able to change the direction of the sprints, and thus produced slower qualifying times.
The same thing has happened this year as District 2-5A, which put the wind at the back of the sprinters in the district meet, goes into today's Region 1-5A Meet with the preferred lanes in the middle of the track due to have having the fastest qualifying times.
The top three seeds--Ruston's Darius James, Alexandria's Jaiden Lindsey, and Ouachita's Kahlil Lewis--are all from District 2-5A. And they are hoping that history does not repeat itself.
What does it mean for the other sprinters in the region? For a top contender like Airline's Cameron Jefferson, who won District 1-5A with a time of 11.08, it means that if he is to punch his ticket to the state meet, he will have to do it from lane No. 1.
It also means that fans and coaches need to pay attention to the "slow heat," where Haughton's John Brown, who finished third in the District 1-5A, certainly has an outside chance to qualify.
No discussion of the Region 1-5A sprinters would be complete without mention of the Fastest Twins in the Nation--Carencro's Koen Beavers and Kalen Beavers, who went 1-2 at the District 3-5A Meet to advance to the regional.
Koen, who won the district title with a 10.91, will be in Lane No. 6 at today's meet. His twin brother, Koen, who was the runner-up in 3-5A with a 10.95, will be a few lanes over in Lane No. 2.