Distance corps carries Spartans' state hopes Stratford boys tracksters look to long-form, mile relay at 5A-Region III meet

Christyan Sampy of Stratford High School clears the 10 ft. mark in the 5A/6A Men's Pole Vault event at the UIL Area Track Meet held at Seven Lakes High School on April 22, 2015. Christyan Sampy of Stratford High School clears the 10 ft. mark in the 5A/6A Men's Pole Vault event at the UIL Area Track Meet held at Seven Lakes High School on April 22, 2015. Photo: Diana L. Porter, Freelance Photo: Diana L. Porter, Freelance Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close Distance corps carries Spartans' state hopes 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

Stratford's boys are 2-for-2 in the most important track and field meets.

A week after turning in a dominating performance to claim the District 19-5A crown, the Spartans were equally impressive at the District 19-5A/20-6A area meet at Katy Seven Lakes. With action postponed by a day because of the heavy rain, Stratford still tallied 134 points to win easily over Tomball Memorial with 84 and North Forest with 77.

Stratford head boys coach Tony Brillon was pleased with the effort, but he realizes it will get considerably tougher at the Class 5A-Region III meet on Friday and Saturday, April 29-30, at Sam Houston State University's Bowers Stadium in Huntsville.

"The competition level will go up a notch," Brillon said. "It will take personal-bests to move on."

Only the top two finishers from each of the four regions – plus one more pick-up – advance to next month's University Interscholastic League Class 5A state meet at the University of Texas in Austin.

Brillon believes Stratford's best shot at state is the 4x400-meter relay and the distance events.

The Spartans 4x400 relay, featuring juniors Bill Bouable, Adam Glover, T.J. O'Brien and Jaetovian Toles, were the area champs with a time of 3:24.02. Stratford won by more than 11 seconds over Tomball Memorial (3:32.47).

"Fort Bend Marshall is the clear favorite in the mile relay. They're running around 3:18," Brillon said. "But anything can happen in the relays. You have to get the baton around the track. Sometimes you'll see the top teams make mistakes."

The Spartans claimed the top two spots in both the 1,600 and 3,200. In the 1,600, junior Devin Fahey was the winner (4:29.47), just ahead of a teammate, junior Sam Evetts (4:32.55). The 3,200 wasn't any different, with Fahey first (9:54.90), Evetts second (10:02.80) and senior Mike Lewis fourth (10:25.63).

"Devin and Sam are running well," Brillon said. "There's a good chance one or both of them will get to state."

There are a couple of wild cards for Stratford, according to Brillon.

Toles powered to victory in the 400 (50.06) and emerged as one of the region's most dangerous quarter-milers, while senior Torin Justice won the long jump by soaring 21 feet, 6 inches.

"You never know what Jaetovian can do. He's a tremendous competitor," Brillon said. "Torin improved so much from the district to area meets. There's no reason he can't pop a 23-foot jump."

The Spartans aren't sure what to do with Bouable, who could participate in a maximum of four events at regionals. Bouable, Stratford's high-point earner all season, earned a pair of silver medals in the 100 (10.74) and 200 (21.74), losing by a fraction of second in both races. He also was fourth in the long jump (19-6 ½).

"The sprints are loaded at the regional meet. Fort Bend Marshall and Richmond George Ranch have some really talented kids," Brillon said. "It might make more sense to focus on the 4x400 relay."

Junior Raul Mejias of Stratford was a surprise winner in the 800 (2:03.45), while senior Igor Berranger was fourth (2:10.24).

In the pole vault, freshman Christyan Sampy placed second (13-0), while junior James Smith took third (12-0). Also, sophomore Collin Lowe grabbed fourth place in the 400 (53.13).

Stratford's girls will take a solid group to regionals. Waller tallied 82 to points to edge Brenham with 81, while the Spartans were third with 72.

Stratford head girls coach Josh Gossett has loved the way his squad has progressed.

"We have some outstanding seniors on the team and even the freshmen don't act like freshmen. They're very mature," Gossett said. "We have a great team dynamic going."

Like the boys, the girls are focusing heavily on the 4x400 relay. The quartet of seniors Jay Joseph and Alicia Scott and freshmen Ella Gibb and Georgia Harper, placed second at the area meet (4:07.08).

"The girls PR'ed last week and it will take another one to finish in the top three at regionals," Gossett said. "It's not easy when you have teams like Richmond George Ranch running a 3:46."

Senior Abigail Hirst has been a rock for the Spartans. Hirst won the 1,600 (5:11.31) and will be fighting for a spot on the podium.

"Abigail is ranked pretty high in the region," Gossett said. "If she runs to her potential, she'll finish near the front of the pack."

Freshman Grace Custer was second in the 1,600 (5:15.18) and 3,200 (12:00.78), while Harper, another rising star, was second in the 800 (2:24.11).

In the pole vault, senior Kelcy Allen was second (10-0) and junior Brittany Baerg third (10-0).

Spring Woods' girls made the most of their opportunities, placing fourth with 71 points.

The Tigers swept the 4x100 relay (47.74) and 4x200 relay (1:40.42). They will be seeded high at regionals.

Spring Woods' sprinters excelled, with senior Stephanie Mathis taking second in the 100 (12.10) and senior Brianna Robinson fourth in the 200 (25.76).

Junior Brooke Brezina also finished second for the Tigers in the discus (84-0).

Softball playoffs

Spring Branch ISD will be well-represented in the University Interscholastic League softball playoffs this week.

Memorial, the District 18-6A champion, will face Cy Lakes, the fourth-place team from District 17-6A, in a Class 6A-Region III bi-district game this week.

It's a tricky match-up for the Mustangs (19-7), who steamrolled Northbrook 16-1 and Aldine Eisenhower 23-0 to complete a perfect 12-0 run through league play.

"We play a pretty a pretty good Cy-Fair team in the first round, the second-place team from Katy (District 19-6A) in the second round and possibly another Cy-Fair team in the third round," said Memorial head softball coach Stephanie Mosley. "We could win a couple rounds in the playoffs or we could be one-and-done. You never know."

Memorial has relied on solid pitching from junior Blaire Evans and freshman Emily Scofield.

Offensive standouts for the Mustangs include senior third baseman Jenny Drago, junior shortstop Lauren Coerver, junior center fielder Kaleigh Stallings and junior catcher Kayla Keeling.

Stratford is back in the Class 5A playoffs for the second straight year after earning one of the four spots in highly competitive District 19-6A.

"Going to the playoffs back-to-back in our district is a big accomplishment," said Stratford head softball coach Tim Casey. "The pitching was incredible."

That should help Stratford, the fourth-place team from District 19-5A, when it meets Davis, the District 20-5A champion, in a Class 5A-Region III bi-district game.

"I don't think it matters where you finish in District 19-5A," Casey said. "All of our teams should be ready for the playoffs."

Senior pitcher Jennifer Brann has been a reliable presence on the mound for the Spartans, while the offense has been led by sophomore right fielder Alex Cole, senior center fielder Jennifer Brann, senior catcher Kate Kopatic and sophomore first baseman Georgia Clark.

But Casey said the Spartans' main strength is the defense, particularly senior first baseman Kayla Smith, junior second baseman Sam Englund, senior shortstop Megan Gardner, senior third baseman Leslie Merchan and senior left fielder Virginia Adkins.

Stratford also has gotten nice play off the bench from sophomore Saki Miyauchi and freshman Libby O'bloch.

Track break

In a controversial move, the District 17-6A/18-6A track and field meet at Cy Ridge was cancelled because of the heavy rain that hit the Greater Houston area last week.

As a result, the top two finishers from the two districts will automatically advance to the Class 6A-Region III meet on Friday and Saturday, April 29-30, at Clear Creek ISD's Challenger Columbia Stadium in Webster.

Memorial's girls were a beneficiary, with a number of athletes moving on to regionals.

The Mustangs' regional qualifiers include freshman Fiona Bremner (800), seniors Khayla Patel and Leslie Romero (1,600 and 3,200), senior Paige Taylor (100 hurdles, triple jump), junior Kaleigh Stallings (100 hurdles), junior Sarah Mabee (triple jump) and senior Kayla Cecil and sophomore Channing Green (pole vault).

On the boys' side, those making the regional field were senior Nicholas Hamilton (800 and 1,600), junior Luke Lewis (1600 and 3,200), junior Nathan Botros (800) and junior Max Hardy and freshman Hunter Hardy (pole vault).

Northbrook's two boys' qualifiers are senior Luis Maravilla (discus) and senior Charles Travis (high jump).