The Lions’ blue oval was red hot Saturday afternoon as 14 girls’ teams and 21 boys’ teams competed in the 2023 Christian Coleman Invitational at Westlake High School.
Athletes from as far north as Baltimore, MD and west as Boise, ID.
Shiloh High School (Gwinnett County) scored 124.50 to win the boys competition. Westlake (66 points) and Southwest Dekalb (54 points) finished second and third. The Lady Lions of Westlake scored 154 points to win the girls competition. Grovetown (69 points) and Landmark Christian (66 points) finished a distant second and third.
Hillgrove set the tone early posting new meet records in the girls and boys 4 x 800 m relay. When the day concluded 36 meet records fell – 18 boys and 18 girls. Schools with multiple record setting performances Hillgrove (4), Landmark Christian School-B/G (5), South Cobb-G (4), Westlake -B/G, Southwest Dekalb-B (2), Shiloh-B (2), Westlake-B/G (8), Eagles Landing-G(3).
South Cobb sophomore distance runner Oluwatosin Awoleye continued to show her prowess. Awoleye entered the meet with the fastest 800 m time for high school girls in the nation. She added another USA Top 10 finish setting a meet and venue record in the process and later in the day anchored the Lady Eagles record setting 4×400 m relay team. Her teammate and fellow sophomore Destinee Frink took the top finish in the girls 1600 meter run earlier in the day and finished second in the 800 m. The 4’10 Frink accomplished the feat with roughly two hours of rest.
Westlake’s Antwan Smith bested Southeast Bulloch’s Curtis Coleman and Isaiah Taylor in the boy’s 200 m dash running a personal record and USA Top 25 21.22s. Coleman and Taylor posted USA Top 50 times. Smith’s teammate, Lady Lions junior Jaden Billings, swept the hurdles competition winning the 100 mH and 3oo mH.
Eagle’s Landing thrower Nyla Wilson topped the shot put and discus competitions with meet records in both events.
South Cobb’s Camryn Odom, Yasmine Martin, Oluwatoyosi Awoleye, and Oluwatosin Awoleye traded leads with Westlake’s Adyn Kinard , Zaniyah Jones , Zhai Holmes , and Mia McGee. Martin, the winner of the 400 meter, walked down the Lady Lions second leg to retake the lead. Westlake regained the lead on the third leg but the lead was not enough. Oluwatosin made up the difference down the back straight – and showing no signs of the exhaustion that saw her collapse at the end of her earlier race – blazed past Westlake’s anchor.
On the boys side, it was a battle for second as Westlake set a new meet record winning the relay by almost 11 full seconds. Landmark Christian School, Shiloh, and Martin Luther King battled the last 100 meters finishing second, third, and fourth respectively.
Meet Records Set
| BOYS | GIRLS |
|---|---|
| 100m, 10.60,Lassale Hewlett, Hampton HS, SR
200m, 21.22, W:1.0, Antwan Smith, Westlake, jr, 400m, 46.59, Rickey Williams. Camden County, jr, 800m, 1:56.55, Keyari Thompson, Westlake, so, 1600m, 4:35.11, Claude Tusiime, Clarkston, jr 3200m, 10:21.48, Walker Bailey, Tallulah Falls, sr 110mh, 13.83, Kalib Branch, Lovejoy,sr 300mh, 37.94, Xzaviah Taylor, Southwest Dekalb, SR 4x100m, 40.40, Westlake, 4x200m, 1:26.60, Southwest Dekalb, 4x400m, 3:15.87, Westlake, 4x800m, 8:03.22, Hillgrove, High Jump, 6-6, Tymone Washington, Woodland HS Stockbridge,SR, Long Jump, 22-2, Jaxson Campbell, Landmark Christian School,SO, Triple Jump, 45-6, Marcus Thompson, Shiloh High School,JR Pole Vault, 12-0, Carter Robinson, Grovetown HS,JR Discus, 144-5, Xavier Moore, Druid Hills,SR Shot Put, 47-9, Tavaris Taylor, Shiloh High School, JR |
100m, 11.59, W:1.0, Ryan Davis, Hillgrove, JR
200m, 24.09,Taylor Gullatte, Landmark Christian School, SO 400m, 55.03,Yasmine Martin, South Cobb, SR 800m, 2:09.72, Oluwatosin Awoleye, South Cobb, SO 1600m, 5:23.02, Destinee Frink, South Cobb, SO 3200m,12:59.29, Turner Guerard, Landmark Christian School, JR 100mH, 14.10, Jaden Billings, Westlake, JR 300mH, 44.86, Jaden Billings, Westlake, JR 4x100m, 45.58, Hillgrove 4x200m, 1:41.06, Landmark Christian School 4x400m, 3:54.62, South Cobb 4x800m, 9:59.49,Hillgrove High Jump, 5-4, Zion Lockette, Westlake, JR Long Jump, 18-7, Mary Rozier, Eagle’s Landing, JR Triple Jump, 38-0, Caylie Jefferson, Westlake, JR Pole Vault, 8-6, Sarah Evans Thorne, Landmark Christian School, SR Discus, 116-5, Nyla Wilson, Eagle’s Landing, SR Shot Put, 35-4, Nyla Wilson, Eagle’s Landing High School, SR |
Photo Gallery
All images by Jason McDonald, JM Photography for CORE360 Sports