The championship season is here and in fact has already begun for some.
On the boys side of things, you could expect the upperclassmen to be in control as they get bigger, faster, and stronger. However, there are some underclass boys in the freshmen and sophomore classes who can run compete for state meet qualifying spots and possibly state championships.
Both field and track events will have underclassmen who can win district, area, regional, and for some even state championships. Below are just some of the outstanding young talent in the state who could have impacts on the championship season this spring.
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Kendrick Jones (Lake Belton)
Lake Belton freshman Kendrick Jones is just rolling into the outdoor season after an impressive indoor season. He then shared time on the track and in the field with time on the basketball court. Now that track season is complete, look for Jones to have gradual and steady improvement. Jones already has 21.01 and 23-4.50 SB marks this outdoor season in the 200m and long jump.
Don't think he is already topped out as he went 21.18 and 22-6.26 indoors. Jones ran 10.98 and 21.25 last summer as a 14 year old on the AAU circuit. Without basketball over the next month, expect Jones to affect the UIL 5A championship season.
Christopher Harris (Cornerstone Christian)
Look for Cornerstone Christian sophomore Christopher Harris to carve out his path to the TCAF/TCAL championship meet. He ended the indoor season with impressive PRs of 48.98 and 1:58.49 in the 400m and 800m as well as 4:31.77 in the 1600m. Outdoors, he has lowered things to 1:55.52 and 4:34.58.
He has the fastest 800m raked time as a sophomore this season, so look for him to continue to find postseason meets for opportunities to get faster.
Abram Reagan (Austin Lake Travis)
Lake Travis freshman Abram Reagan looks ready to compete at the most important part of the season. Reagan leads the freshman class in the 400m with a 49.36 PR. He has also flashed some leg speed with a 22.61 PR in the 200m this season.
During the indoor season Reagan ran 22.49 and 50.99, so he has shown the ability to compete at a high level. That composure will go a long way over the next few weeks.
Gator Young (Argyle)
Gator Young is the top ranked pole vaulter in the sophomore class. The Argyle vaulter has a 16-0 outdoor PR who has already won his district meet last week. Young jumped a 15-7 indoor PR and is still going strong. He should be in good position to challenge for the 5A state championship.
Mansfield Lake Ridge is a team that is on a hot streak going into the championship season. The reason while is because of the running of freshman Jordan Byles. Byles has five meets where he has run under 10.86 including a FAT/wind legal 10.61.
He could make some headwaves in the open 100m through the rounds. He could also have a big impact on the Lake Ridge relays that they'll be counting on to make a state meet team trophy winning push.
Dakoriean Moore (Duncanville)
It's a dangerous thing when an athlete has confidence and expectations that match their performances. That's is exactly where Duncanville sophomore Dakoriean Moore is at.
His mental lines up with his physical ability and he expects to win every time out. He is the No. 2 long jumper in the state heading into the outdoors season and he won head-to-head against Ashton Torns who won state and finished runner-up in the last two years.
Coppell sophomore Matthew Maldima is having an impressive season. He has run all seven 100m races under 10.86 including a 10.36 PR at the Texas Relays. He also ran a 10.51 FAT/wind legal race at Texas Relays in the finals showing how dangerous he will be in the latter half of the season.
Noah Strohman (Holliday)
What every athlete in the sport regardless of classification is chasing, Holliday freshman Noah Strohman already has - - a state championship. Strohman earned his last fall during the cross country season when he won the UIL 4A state cross country championship.
The track season as seen a continuation of Strohman's running wizardry; he leads the class in the 800m (1:55.44) and the 1600m (4:12.55). Strohman could shoot for the distance triple crown at the state meet and chances are high for him to qualify and possibly medal in all three. He has a 52.09 PR in the 400m and a 9:17.59 in the 3200m this year.
He has national level experience from winning the Brooks PR Invitational middle school 1600m last year, 30th at Garmin RunningLane Cross Country Championships during the cross country season, and the New Balance Nationals Indoor freshman 800m (1:56.31 - 2nd) and mile(4:20.26 - 1st).
Mathias Pitzel (Katy Tompkins)
Katy Tompkins sophomore Mathias Pitzel is enjoying a developmental season that sees him near the top of his class in several distance events. He has a 1:55.80 in the 800m and 4:24.47 in the 1600m (4:21.80 in the mile). He has dropped nearly eight seconds in both distances from his freshman year.
The discovery of Pitzel's speed so far this year is what makes his room for growth and him a quiet and sneaky runner to watch in the latter part of the season. As the son of a coach, don't underestimate his ability to understand how to handle the qualifying rounds.
Kyen Purser (Midlothian)
Midlothian sophomore Kyen Purser already knows how to matriculate through the championship rounds. He qualified for the state meet in the discus last year.
This year, he has a shot to make int in both the shot put and the discus. He has a shot put PR of 53-7.75 from Jesuit-Sheaner and has a 170-11 in the discus which is 15 feet beyond his best last year.
Caden Leonard (Southlake Carroll)
Just over a year ago, Southlake Carroll freshman Caden Leonard and I were playing catch with a football at the Texas Distance Festival. He shared how he was hoping to win the upcoming district middle school 1600m race. This past year, he broke the Carroll school record in the 5,000m at the 2023 Texas Distance Festival when he ran 14:33.51. He went from hoping to win a district middle school race to running faster than several state champions and All-Americans who have worn the Dragon jersey.
However, if wants to run at the UIL 6A state track and field meet, he'll probably have the hardest road of any underclassman on this list. However, I wouldn't count him out. Leonard has already run PRs of 4:15.02 in the 1600m and 9:12.92 in the 3200m. The freshman has to make the top 3 on his team first, then make it out of one of the toughest distance running districts in the state, then advance through the area and regional qualifying rounds.
He finished sixth at the UIL State Cross Country Championships last fall, so don't be surprised if he makes some noise in the championship season. As the coach's kid, he's been around running excellence all of his life and has seen all of this play out before.
Abisayloouwa Gbakinro (Mansfield Lake Ridge)
As a freshman last year, Abisayloouwa Gbakinro triple jumped 45-2 and high jumped 6-2. This year he is up to 6-4 and 50-4 in the triple jump. That improvement has him as the top UIL triple jumper this season and in a good place in both events to qualify through the rounds.
Justin Stewart (Hurst Bell)
Hurst Bell freshman Justin Stewart has already made a step toward the next step in the championship rounds. He already won his District 3-6A meet with a 10.49 in the 100m. He has a 10.77 FAT/wind legal PR this season to go along with five races under 10.77.
Stewart isn't just making noise in the 100m. He ran 21.82 to finish second at the district meet to qualify in that as well.
Jonathan Simms (Allen)
As a freshman last year, it took Jonathan Simms a moment to get acclimated to running at the varsity level. He entered high school as a youth age group star, but the adjustment to bigger and stronger athletes is a real deal situation. By the end of the season, Simms had definitely found his footing by anchoring the Allen 4x100 and 4x400 relays and qualifying for the state meet in the 400m
After a 47.68 PR and a sixth place finish in 2022, the now sophomore leads the sophomore class in the 200m with a 21.09 and he tops the entire state in the 400m with a 46.35. If Allen's 4x100 or 4x400 relays don't make it deep in the qualifying rounds, we could see Simms racing both the 200m and 400m.
Benjamin Montgomery (Cypress Bridgeland)
The Bridgeland sophomore is a name you'll begin to know, but you could be watching him in Austin next month. Montgomery has a 4:21.41 PR in the 1600m and dropped an impressive 9:05.49 in the 3200m at Texas Relays to finish 7th place overall.
He has proven fitness with a 14:53.41 in the 5,000m on the track at the Texas Distance Festival last month, so be prepared to see his times continue to drop, but look forward to watch his racing moxy and confidence improve as well.