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Track teams compete in invitational
Boys finish in 13th place
Track pic
Freshman Kimberly Wallace picked up a point with a long jump of 14’5.5” inches at the GAC Invitational last Saturday. - photo by Photo/Pam Jacobs

The Dawson County High School track team competed in the Greater Atlanta Christian Invitational meet last Saturday in Norcross.

  

The event is one of the top track meets in the state.

  

Fifteen girls and 14 boys teams participated in the event this season with some of the best track talent in Georgia.

  

On the boys’ side, Dawson finished in 13th place with seven points. The points were picked up in the pole vault by TJ Byrd with a third place overall finish.

  

Byrd led all vaulters in the preliminaries with a 12’8” vault. In the finals, Byrd vaulted 11’6” to get the six points for the Tigers.

  

Region 8-AA foe Skyler Porter, from Jefferson, won the event with a 13’6” vault.

John Markley picked up one point for the Tigers with an eighth place finish in the 400 meters. Markley crossed the finish line in a time of 53.64 in the finals.

  

Ronald Armstead from Cross Keys High School won the 400 with a time of 51.60.

  

Winning the boys team title was Westminster with a score of 122.5. Track powerhouse Peachtree Ridge came in second with a score of 105.

  

Freshman runners Madelyn Walters and Kimberly Wallace led the Lady Tigers.

  

The Dawson girls managed only three points as a team. Walters picked up two of those points in the 1600 meters with a seventh place finish. Walters ran the event in a time of 5:44.7 during the finals.

  

Jessie Dotson of White County won the event with a time of 5:30.08.

  

Walters also ran a good race in the 800 meters. Walters finished in ninth place with a time of 2:43.61.

  

Wallace picked up the other point for Dawson with an eighth place finish in the long jump. Wallace leaped 14’5.5” in the finals.

  

Jessica Tuggle from GAC won the event with a jump of 17’5.”

  

Judith Hall finished just outside the top 10 in the long jump. Hall jumped 14’4.5” to take an 11th place finish for the Lady Tigers.

  

Lady Tiger Ally Orr finished 10th in the triple jump. Orr jumped 30’9.5” in the final.

GACS won the team event on the ladies’ side with a score of 107. Decatur High School came in a close second with a score of 96 points.

  

On Thursday, both teams played host to Pickens County and Fannin County in a tri-meet at Tiger Stadium. Both teams came out on top with the Lady Tigers earning 87 points to beat Pickens, 62, and Fannin, 16.

  

The boys registered a win with 85 points. The Dragons from Pickens County finished second with 63 points, while Fannin was a distant third with only 18 team points.

  

Both teams will travel to Lumpkin County for a meet Tuesday, March 31.

  

The meet is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.

  

E-mail Pam Jacobs at sports@dawsonnews.com.