A'SHYRIA BURNS WILL BE AN ATHLETE TO WATCH TODAY AT THE AAU REGION 11 QUALIFIER
Here are some athletes to watch as the individual events begin today at the AAU Region 11 National Qualifier in Hammond.
Triple Jump
A'Shyria Burns (All Cenla Elite)- Burns, who will be one of the top returning female girls in Louisiana for the 2025 track and field season, is the No. 1 seed in the 17-18 girls triple jump with a leap of 37-7. Burns will also be competing in the prelims of the 100m today. She is seeded with third with an entered time of 12.18.
Burns is coming off a junior campaign in which she led Holy Savor Menard to a sweep of state championship trophies--both indoors (Division II) and outdoor (Class 2A).
Tayven Carter (Delhi Charter)- Is the top seed in the 17-18 boys with an entered mark of 48-0.5. Carter jumped that mark back n April at the Franklin Parish Relays. The closest he has come to it since then is a wind aided jump of 46-0 at the LHSAA Class 1A state outdoor meet, which gave Carter his first state championship.
Javelin
Morgan David (Unattached) - Is the top seed in the 17-18 girls javelin with a throw of 126-6. She is looking to build up her accomplishments from last year when she won All-American honors by finishing fifth at the AAU National Junior Olympics with a throw of 121-6.
Noble Williams (All Cenla Elite)- The former national champion is the No. 1 seed by over 30 feet in the 15-16 boys javelin. Not only did Williams win a national championship in 2022, he set the AAU Junior Olympics meet record with a throw of 153-11. This year, he is looking to return to his winning ways after finishing second to West Monroe's Jaxon Talley at last year's AAU Region 11 National Qualifier.
High Jump
Addilyn Dufrene (Houma Hurricanes) - The LHSAA Class 5A state outdoor high jump champion is favored to win the 17-18 girls high jump as her best of 5-10 is 4 inches better than the next closest opponent. Dufrene, who competes in the multi-events, will also be competing in the javelin today.
Dufrene has spent the last two days in Hammond competing in the heptathlon, where she won with a personal record 4000 points. The highlight of the two-day event was her personal record 2:44 in the 800m.
Cole Schlosser (Kersh Strong Elite)- Schlosser was the champion last year in the 12-year-old division. This year, he looks to win another gold in the event. He is favored with entered jump of 5-0.