Bridgeport's boys and girls track teams were both in first place after the first day of the Class AA state track and field championships. The boys totaled 31 points points to have the early advantage over favored Keyser with 22.

 

For the girls, they are deadlocked for the lead. The Indians are tied with Philip Barbour as both teams have 22 points.

 

Both sides have completed five events. There will be 13 events Saturday.

 

The Tribe girls won two state titles on that side of the competition. The girls 4x800 team, which was not even ranked among the top six heading into the meet, pulled off a huge upset to get the win. The team of Kirstin George, Jenna Soltesz, Savannah Blythe, and Julia Muller captured the title.

 

Caroline Lloyd lived up to the hype of being the top projected finisher in the pole vault as she has won that state title as well. She cleared 10 feet.

 

The boys team got its first individual title as well. Although projected to finish in third place, the 4x800 team of Jimmy Lacaria, Ian Frailey, Coleton Marsh and Timmy Kinney won a championship..

 

Action resumes tomorrow at 9 a.m.

 

ORIGINAL PREVIEW STORY: On the one hand, knowing that the Bridgeport girls track team is the favorite to win this year’s Class AA state championship is a good thing. And the fact that the boys are picked to finish runner-up – just a few points behind Keyser – isn’t necessarily a bad thing either.

 

For those that live and die with the rankings, which are done by Runwv.com based on regular season and regional results, you will do just that; live and die with them. Last year, the Indian girls were projected to be the runaway favorites and ended up finishing out of the top spot. In 2014, the Bridgeport boys were picked to finish fourth and ended up winning Coach Jon Griffith is first-ever state track championship. 

 

In 2014, the girls were ranked No. 1 as well. And that year, they took home the state title.

 

So what exactly do those rankings mean? Basically, it means both the BHS girls and boys track teams have had good regular seasons. The girls have been dominant enough that they’re project to compile 99 points and roll to the win. The boys have been strong enough to be projected to amass 52 points – just four points behind a Keyser squad they topped in last week’s regional – for a second place finish.

 

Griffith said the regional win and the strong regular season is a result of depth. And he said the depth isn’t as much of an advantage once the state meet kicks off today at 2 p.m. in Charleston.

 

“For us, the larger the meet the harder it is for us to score as well as we do in smaller meets.  In a small meet we can overwhelm teams with numbers and depth.  At meets like the West Virginia State Meet, there are lots of great athletes,” said Griffith. “It takes a really good performance to move up in the scoring for each event.  For us to place high, we will need to beat a few individuals and relay teams that are ranked above us.  It is possible, but will require us to continue to improve and give our all.”

 

Not surprisingly, it’s the distance events where Bridgeport is predicted to do its best. Jimmy Lacaria is predicted to win the 3200 meter run as he has the top time in the field – by nearly eight seconds.

 

It is the only event Bridgeport is predicted to win on the boys’ side of the ledger. The Tribe has several events where they’re predicted to come in third so the aforementioned depth will have to hold true if the Indians want to meet the projection or surpass it and win a state title.

 

On the girls’ side, Stout said the task at hand is a simple one. And it’s the same task the team has had all year.

 

“The key is to have the girls focused and to do their job. Everyone has a certain role on this team, and they need to fulfill that role,” said Stout. “They have to take care of business.” 

 

No one has taken care of more business this year than junior McKenna Smith. She has yet to be beat in the four events she has competed in this season – the 100, 200 and 400 meter dashes and the 300 hurdles. In fact, she broke the state record in the 100 and 200 events.

 

Smith’s top 100 time of 11.97 seconds is nearly a full second better than anyone else has done this season. And in the 200, her top time of 24.6 seconds is roughly two seconds better than her nearest competitor. It gets better in the 400 where her best time – 57.17 seconds – is more than three seconds better than the next closest.

 

In her new event this year – the 300 hurdles – things have been impressive as well. Twice she has run under 46 seconds, which is more than two seconds better than the rest of the field in Charleston.

 

Bridgeport has two other projected first place finishes. The Indians’ 4x400 team is favored to win that event, while Caroline Lloyd consistency in the pole vault has her listed at the top spot. She is the only vaulter in the state’s Class AA event to have cleared 10 feet.

 

The team leaves for Charleston at 8 a.m. this morning. Today’s activities begin at 2 p.m. at Laidley Field. Action resumes Saturday where the state champions in all three classifications will be determined.

 

Below are the qualifiers and their events for BHS: