MENARD'S A'SHYRIA BURNS (MIDDLE) LEANS AT THE LINE IN THE 60M HURDLES AT LAST CHANCE MEET
WATCH THE LHSAA STATE INDOOR MEET LIVE ON MILESPLIT LA!
Last year, Episcopal ran away with the LHSAA D2 Girls State Indoor Championship. The Knights were led by Alana Simon, who won both the long jump (5-8) and triple jump (17-9.75). Coach Bill Jones' team also got a big bump from Addisyn Botos, who had a huge PR to win the girls shot put with a throw of 32-0.75.
On the track, the Knights were led by the Cramer sisters--Lucy and Molly. The middle schoolers scored a combined 28 points in the 1600m and 3200m.
It will be tough for Jones and his team to repeat as state champions as the a new year has brought about a completely new team. Episcopal lost Simon, who is now at Southern Miss, to graduation and the Cramer sisters transferred over the summer to Parkview Baptist.
Botos returns and is seeded No. 6 going into the Saturday's LHSAA State Indoor Meet.
Who will leave the Carl Maddox Fieldhouse this year with the LHSAA D2 State Indoor Championship trophy, according to the heat sheets it will come down to Holy Savior Menard and St. Louis Catholic High.
Menard is lead junior A'Shyria Burns, who is favored to win both the long jump (18-9.5) and triple jump (36-5.75).Her mark in the long jump has her at No.13 on the national list among the best juniors in the nation. Barring a disaster, Burns should leave the Carl Maddox Fieldhouse with the D2 girls' Field MVP award.
But look for Burns to leave her mark on the track as well as she is the No. 2 seed in the 60m (7.75) and behind Doyline's Izayla Harris (7.73) and is a heavy favorite to win the 60m hurdles (8.93).
St. Louis is led by junior Hannah Boullion, who is the No. 1 seed in the 400m (57.64) and a big reason the Saints are seeded No. 1 in the 4x200 (1:45.59) and No.2 in the 4x400 (4:10.41).
The stiffest competition St. Louis will face in those relays will come from cross-town rival Lake Charles College Prep. The Chargers, who are led by senior Jayla Mason, are seeded No. 1 in the 4x400 (4:05.13) and No.2 in the 4x200 (1:49.22).
Mason (58.01) is also the No. 2 seed in the 400m less than half a second behind Boullion.
If the chalk holds, Parkview Baptist should finish third in team D2 girls' competition solely based on the performance of the Cramer Sisters. Freshman Lucy Cramer, who finished second to Houma Christians' Emma Bourg in both the 1600 and 3200m last year, is a heavy favorite to win both events. Cramer's top times coming into the state meet are 5:00.45 for the 1600mn and 10:57.40 for the 3200m.
Her closest competition is expected to come from her sister, eighth grader Molly Cramer, who seeded No. 2 in both distance events (5:10.02, 11:06.58).
Lucy Cramer is ranked No. 2 in the nation among all freshmen girls. Molly Cramer, who had a slow start to the indoor season as she was coming off a surgery in late December, is ranked No.2 in the nation among 8th grade girls in the 1600m, and is ranked No.3 in the 3200m.
While Lucy Cramer (2:22.23) is not favored to win the 800m, you expect her to give McGehee's Kali Magana (2:16.69)-the No. 1 seed in the event-a run for her money.
Magana is coming off a record-breaking performance at the LSU Last Chance Qualifier where she used a disappointing performance in the 60m as motivation to do something special in the 800m.
READ MORE: KALI MAGANA USES FOUR P'S TO BREAK LAST CHANCE 800m RECORD!