Taking a Look at the Top 300 Hurdles in San Antonio

Reagan's Isabella Dagrosa headlines the 300-meter hurdle preview. She posted the second fastest time in the State last year and is the top returner overall. She leads a talented group that will be fun to watch this year.

6A Boys

Last year, the area 6A boys were dominated by a strong group of seniors. In fact, there is only one returner who made it to the Regional meet and that is Judson's Josiah Harris who enters the season as the top 300mH after posting a top time of 39.42. Paul Mencke of Clemens joins Harris as the only two returners who broke 40 seconds last year.

There are three others who should be in the mix for the top mark in the area: Derek Davisson (Reagan), Jackson Jones (Clemens) and David Vasquez (San Marcos). All three ran between 40.37 and 40.50 last season. Mencke, Davisson and Jones all rank highly among returning 110mH as well.

6A Girls

Isabella Dagrosa had a dominant campaign last year in the 300 hurdles ending with a silver medal at the State meet where she ran 41.80. It would be hard to see anyone challenging her in the area this year and she should be the heavy favorite for the State title. She was one of just three underclassmen in the finals last year. Dagrosa is one of the athletes that a track fan must make sure to get out a watch this year.

While Dagrosa is the top returner, she is certainly not the only one who has star potential. Harlan's Iyanna Webb and Holmes' Aziza Clark each made the Regional final last year and a lot will be expected from both this year. Webb went under 44 seconds last year and should be in contention for a State berth while Clark has a personal best of 44.80. Judson has a pair of quality hurdlers in Dayja'nae Pettit and Maria Flores while Johnson's Michaela Mitchell is capable of being one of the best in San Antonio.

5A Boys

Alamo Heights junior Max Bacon enters the year as the top 5A boy since he is the only area hurdler to make the Regional final in 2023. Bacon barely made it out of the District round last year, but just kept getting better and better. He ran his fastest race of the season in the Regional prelims where he clocked a 40.59. There is only one other returner who qualified for the Regional meet last year and that is MacArthur's Colton Cornwell.

Bacon's teammate, Narciso Wickley, is in the top group that could challenge as the best hurdler in the area. Smithson Valley's Charles Whelan, Isaiah Francis of Veterans Memorial and Grant Menzies of Boerne Champion have all run faster than 41.50. Sophomores Luke Bell of Canyon and Cash Lancaster of Pieper could be top challengers by the end of the season.

5A Girls

Smithson Valley's Maycee Moody is the top 100m and 300m hurdler in the area, but the challengers in the 300 hurdles will be much harder to hold off. While Moody had a season best of 47.43 last year, she did not make it to the Regional meet while Ava Williams (MacArthur), Alasia Brown (Brackenridge) and Saniya Devore (Sam Houston) all did. Williams ran 48.46 as a freshman while Brown was right behind her with a season best of 48.48.

Medina Valley's Tristan Moreno should be Moody's biggest challenger since she is the only other returner who broke 48 seconds. Canyon has three girls among the top returners with Maia Aldrich, Cassidy Henderson and Mia Villanueva all potentially able to be the team's top choice.

4A Boys

McCoy Bruce figures to be the top 4A boys hurdler this year. The Boerne senior was the only returning Regional finalist from the area and is ranked at the top of both hurdle events. His top challenger in both events will likely be Davenport's Clayton Williams. Bruce ran a best time of 40.72 last year while Williams' best mark was 42.28.

Wimberley has a strong crew of hurdlers this year with four returners who ran at least 44.52 last year. Their top two will likely be Reed Leinneweber, a Regional qualifier, and Rayder Pack who was a freshman last year. Pearsall's Elijah Luna should also be in the mix after running 42.90 a year ago.

4A Girls

The Davenport girls team picked up a huge addition in the offseason when Boerne Champion's Kendall Fallon moved into the district. As a freshman last year, Fallon was a 5A State qualifier and immediately becomes the Region IV-4A favorite with a chance to medal in a strong returning 4A group this year. She ran 44.87 last year and could be one of the top three 300mH in all of San Antonio this year.

The next names to know in 4A include a pair of runners from Fredericksburg, Rilyn Grona and Minot Frantzen, as well as Fallon's teammate, Ryan Kovacs and Aubrey Avey of Canyon Lake. Grona is not only a great hurdler (47.50), but also one of the best runners in the 800m, 1600m and 3200m. Kovacs and Avey ran nearly identical times last year in the low 48-second range while Frantzen is the final returner with a best time under 49-seconds.

3A Boys

Junior Aiden Martinez of Great Hearts Monte Vista is the top 3A hurdler in the area and he will be fighting it out for the top spot in the entire Region IV. He took third at the Regional meet with a personal best time of 39.94 which gives him almost a two-second cushion over any San Antonio area returner.

Marion and Randolph each boast two returners who broke 44-seconds last year. Marion is led by Hadley Mote (43.25) and Dillyn Dehoyos (43.71) while Randolph has Samuel Finley (42.19) and Collin Stucki (43.85). In addition, Poth's Colin Ramzinski was a Regional finalist last year and had a best time of 41.86.

3A Girls

There is a trio of returners who all made the Regional finals. Cole's Maddison Kitson finished in fifth while Adisen Magill (Poth) was sixth and Destynee Sourignavong (Randolph) was eighth. Kitson ran 48.90 last year and clearly will be the girl to beat this year. Magill (50.48) and Sourignavong (50.92) are the only others who broke 51s last year.

Kitson leads a strong group of hurdlers at Cole. Her teammates, Klarrisa Frain and Abigail Levings both rank among the top fastest returners. Marion's Kamryn Garza is another to follow. She only has one official 300mH result on tx.milesplit.com, but it was a quality time of 51.33.

Private and Homeschool Boys

I am combining the private schools, smaller public schools and home school athletes into one group. The top five returners all were State finalists at different levels. Bridger Welch (Fredericksburg Heritage) was runner-up at the 1A level, Josiah Wentrcek (Castle Hills) was fourth in 3A, Beau Bregman (TMI) was eighth in 5A and Giovanni Okpala (Antonian) was sixth in 6A. Meanwhile, Darian Abbott was the Texas Home School State champion and ran a season best of 38.92. Okpala is next on the list at 40.44 and then it is Wentrcek who ran 42.88. Bregman clocked a 43.10 as a freshman last year while Welch broke 44 seconds. San Antonio Christian also has a pair of quality hurdlers in Thomas Pittard and Joshua Aiken.

Private and Homeschool Girls

There is a strong group of returning private and homeschool 300m hurdle girls this year. There are four TAPPS State medalists in the group: Kaliya Jones (Antonian) was second in 6A, Lexi Winship (San Antonio Christian) was third in 5A, Emily Kate Jones (UC First Baptist Academy) was third in 2A and Skylear Welch (Fredericksburg Heritage) was third in 1A. In addition, Shylah Abbott took home the Home School State title and owns a 47.54 personal best. Winship has the top time with her 46.57 from last year while Kaliya Jones posted her best mark at the State meet, 47.17. Emily Kate Jones and Incarnate Word's Chloe Nellis are the only other locals who broke 50 seconds during the season.