San Antonio High Hurdle Report

6A Boys

The 6A boys should be hotly contested this year with six returners who have broken 15 seconds. Brennan's Kyree Wilson has the best time of 14.25, but that came at the TTFCA Meet of Champions and not during the regular season. Harlan's TJ Butler and Steele's William Davis will push Wilson for the top spot this year. Wilson and Davis are the only two returners to have broken 15 seconds in the 110 hurdles and 40 seconds in the 300 hurdles.

Luther Bebley (Clemens), Calen Carter (Judson) and Kenneth Lott (Steele) all compete in the same district and have run 14.9 last year. Landon Marsh (New Braunfels), Paul Mencke (Clemens) and Jeffrey Bondoc (Judson) also hail from District 27-6A meaning that there could potentially be up to seven runners under 15 seconds at that meet. A wildcard would be Clark's Jayden Douglas who has only run 15.43 but has the best returning 300 hurdle time.

6A Girls

The undisputed queen of the 6A girls hurdle events is Reagan's Isabella Dagrosa. However, when talking about the 100 hurdles Johnson's Kamryn Simpson has a case to be considered the top returner. Dagrosa posted the best time of 14.72 but it was Simpson who nabbed second at the Regional meet to advance to the State meet. Either way, the duo will be going head-to-head a number of times this year and it will be fun to watch.

After Dagrosa and Simpson, there is a gap to the next group of hurdlers. Johnson's Ciandra Carrico and Michaela Mitchell along with Nadia Reyes of Steele are the next three on the list. Each should go comfortably under 16 seconds this year but I'm not sure they can compete with Dagrosa and Simpson. Johnson has the deepest group of hurdlers with four girls who have run under 17 seconds heading into the season.

5A Boys

Boerne Champion's Brock Lewis is the top 110 and 300 hurdler in the San Antonio area but his future likely lies in the decathlon, a competition that he has already exceeded 6,400 points in at the AAU level. Expect him to be all over the track and field events this year with a chance to qualify for the State meet in multiple events. Lewis' teammate, Ben Blomqvist, is the second best returning high hurdler and is also one of the top 400-meter runners.

The next best hurdlers in the area are also two of the top football players, Deuce Adams of Canyon and James Peoples of Veterans Memorial. Adams, a quarterback, and Peoples, a running back, are both underclassmen and could be in line to make big improvements from last year. Champion boasts five of the top 13 returning 110 hurdlers in the area.

5A Girls

The 5A girls 100-meter hurdles will be a good event to keep an eye on this year. Smithson Valley's Zada Zimmerman was a 6A Regional finalist last year and has the top returning time of 14.84 while Boerne Champion's Addison Hankins is right behind her. The duo will likely be competing for a spot at the State meet and will be running against each other all season long.

Haylee Hurtado (Medina Valley) and Millie Howerton (Tivy) are the best of the rest with low 15-second times last year but look out for Smithson Valley's Maycee Moody who ran a 15.69 as a freshman and came on strong as the season progressed. There are quite a few solid returners back, but the five mentioned are the cream of the crop heading into the season.

4A Boys

When it comes to the 4A boys 110-meter hurdles it is Fredericksburg's Gary Seidenberger and then it is everyone else. Seidenberger qualified for the State meet last year after running a time of 15.17 at the Regional meet. He enters the season as the top hurdler in the Region with a time that is significantly faster than anyone else in the Region. As a side note, he is among the top five shot putters in the area.

There is a strong group of contenders in the San Antonio area to make the State meet. Devine's Aaron Saenz broke the tape in 15.74 last year and was a Regional finalist. The next group includes Bruce McCoy (Boerne), Presley Schumpelt (Wimberley) and Sergio Sonora (Carrizo Springs) who have all run similar times. McCoy also happens to be the top 300 hurdler in the area.

4A Girls

Wimberley and Fredericksburg dominate the list of top 4A girls 100-meter hurdlers in the area. Baylee Gold (Wimberley) not only has an awesome name but is the top returner with a 16.05 time and she ranks among the top five in the area in the 300 hurdles, long jump and triple jump. Bella Rozek (Fredericksburg) is right behind Gold in the 100 hurdles having clocked a 16.06 last year but did defeat her at the Regional meet.

In addition to Rozek, Fredericksburg boasts the third and fourth best returning 100 hurdlers in Cameran Whiting and Minot Frantzen. Whiting is the top 300-meter hurdler in the area. Wimberley's Kaitlyn Marshall rounds out the top five hurdlers heading into the season. Overall, there are seven girls who have run between 16 and 17 seconds in the event.

3A Boys

Region 4 sent three runners to the State meet last year and two of them, Randolph's Parker Cabra and Aiden Martinez of Great Hearts Monte Vista are returning. The duo are a class unto themselves at the 3A level with each running 15.1 in the 110 hurdles. Cabra is also the top 300 hurdler in the area and Martinez is the top triple jumper in the area.

Marion's Zylan Keicer is the next best 110 hurdler and then he is followed by a bunch of Randolph runners. Five of the top eight hurdlers hail from Randolph. Cabra is joined by Chris Canne, Jordan Alexander, Ronald Anderson and Collin Stucki to dominate the event.

3A Girls

The 100 hurdles are one of the weaker events for the 3A girls in the San Antonio area. Jourdanton's McKinley West is the best of the group after running a 16.61 last year. She is a two-time Regional finalist. Cole's Abby Levings and Randolph's Hannah Bobick are the only others who have run better than 17.5.

Cole, Poth and Randolph have the majority of the top returners although it would be surprising if any seriously challenged West, Levings or Bobick. If you are looking for an under-the-radar hurdler I would say to check the early season results to see if Maddison Kitson of Cole is competing in the event. She is the top returning 300 hurdler but has not competed in the 100 hurdles in previous years.

Other Boys

I am combining the private schools, smaller public schools and home school athletes into one group. This section starts and ends with Central Catholic's Gary Mejia who is the reigning TAPPS 6A State Champion. He has run a 14.33 in the 110 hurdles and will compete to be the top 110 hurdlers in the entire San Antonio Metro area.

Xavier Garza headlines the smaller private schools in the hurdles. The Holy Cross runner was a Regional champion last year and has broke 16 seconds. The best of the rest includes Dalton Eaken (Falls City), Josiah Wentrcek (Christian School of Castle Hills) and Elijah Newman (FEAST) who have all gone under 17 seconds.

Other Girls

San Antonio Christian junior Lexi Winship is probably better at the 300 hurdles than the 100 hurdles but she still ranks as the top returner in the event. She posted a time of 15.89 at the Texas Relays last year and is the only returner in the area to have broken 17 seconds last year.

The next group consists of five hurdlers who all broke 18 seconds a year ago. Madelyn Sekula of Falls City has the best time at 17.09 and she is followed by Ainsley Hunter (St. Mary's Hall), Chloe Ogden (TMI), Chloe Hawkins (Incarnate Word) and Molly McGowan (FEAST).