Photo courtesy of Alex Chaney
By Chris McCarthy, Publisher/Editor
This past high school track and field season featured a number of standout local performances, and Katie Giles and Kodie Bogle had their share of impressive efforts.
Giles, a senior at Glencoe, and Bogle, a sophomore at Gaston, were selected as the girls and boys MVP of the 2023 All-Messenger Track and Field team.
Giles (pictured above) won all three of her distance events – the 800, 1600 and 3200 – on the way to being named MVP of the Class 3A Section 3 Meet. She capped her high school career with three top finishes at the state meet in Cullman – fourth in the 1600-meter run at, sixth in the 800-meter run and seventh in the 3200-meter run. Giles also was awarded her third straight MVP trophy at the Etowah County Schools Meet. She will compete in cross country at the University of South Alabama this fall.
Bogle won the Class 2A state javelin title for the second year in a row. His gold-medal-winning and personal-best throw of 174-06 was more than 22 feet farther than the best effort of the state runner-up and bettered his 2022 gold medal throw by more than nine feet. In addition, Bogle took home three medals at the 2A Section 3 Meet – the gold in the javelin, the silver in the triple jump and the bronze in the high jump. He recently set a new PR at the recent Adidas Outdoor Nationals at North Carolina A&T University with a throw of 178-5.
Bogle won nine of his 11 events this past season and has not lost in the javelin against Class 2A competition since the Gadsden City Meet Mo. 4 on March 23, and that was by approximately seven inches against West End’s Kane Lawson.
Ray Cargill is the All-Messenger Coach of the Year after guiding the Southside boys to a fifth-place finish out of 35 teams at the Class 5A state meet in Gulf Shores, where the Panthers took home four medals and posted 10 top 10 finishes. The SHS boys also won the Class 5A Section 3 championship in Fort Payne, during which 10 Panthers medaled. In addition, the Southside boys and girls both captured the Etowah County Schools Meet title.
2023 All-Messenger Track and Field team
Note: times and distances listed are season PRs
Girls
100-meter dash
Karleigh Sheffield, Gadsden City: 12.24
Emma Drinkard, Ashville: 12.65
Mary Davenport, Hokes Bluff: 12.93
200-meter dash
Karleigh Sheffield, Gadsden City: 25.51
Kyla Price, Gadsden City: 25.82
Emma Drinkard, Ashville: 26.25
400-meter dash
Emma Drinkard, Ashville: 58.63
Kyla Price, Gadsden City: 59.22
Zoie Menk, Southside: 1:01.62
800-meter run
Alli Cone, Ashville: 2:30.02
Katie Giles, Glencoe: 2:30.10
Taylor Knight, Ashville: 2:30.36
1600-meter run
Taylor Knight, Ashville: 5:30.59
Katie Giles, Glencoe: 5:30.60
Taylor Dortch, Southside: 5:56.06
3200-meter run
Taylor Knight, Ashville: 11:35.75
Katie Giles, Glencoe: 11:50.02
Marlee Tucker, Southside: 12:46.88
100-meter hurdles
Kelis Wilson, Gadsden City: 17.58
Taylor Meador, Westbrook: 18.98
Breunna Satcher, Gadsden City: 19.42
300-meter hurdles
Iyiana Huff, Gadsden City: 50.90
Lydia Northam, Ashville: 51.19
Kelis Wilson, Gadsden City: 52.01
4×100-meter relay
Gadsden City, 49.48: Mariah Ragland, JeVohnna Sears, Karleigh Sheffield, Kyla Price
Southside, 51.24: Zoie Menk, Anna Cashman, Rylie Kitchens, Lauren Henderson
Hokes Bluff, 52.10: Mary Davenport, Addison Simmons, Haley Kate Wellingham, Jenna Bradley
4×400-meter relay
Gadsden City, 4:11.15: Karleigh Sheffield, Kayla Price, Iyiana Huff, Je’Vohnna Sears
Ashville, 4:20.62: Allie Cone, Emma Drinkard, Molly Northam, Alana Whiteman
Glencoe, 4:43.58: Chloe Douglas, Allie Jo Amos, Palin Cook, Katie Giles
4×800-meter relay
Ashville, 10.19.74: Taylor Knight, Molly Northam, Alana Whiteman, Allie Cone
Southside, 11:13.56: Sarah Burger, Marlee Tucker, Mallory Tucker, Taylor Dortch
Glencoe, 11:37. 84: Allie Jo Amos, Palin Cook, Chloe Douglas, McKinley Kay
Long jump
Mariah Ragland, Gadsden City: 16-8.75
Kathyrn Webb, Southside: 16-6
Haley Kate Wellingham, Hokes Bluff: 15-8
Triple Jump
Taylor Meador, Westbrook Christian: 30-6
Keeley Massey, Ashville: 30-6
Haylen Marbut, Hokes Bluff: 29-7
High jump
Kathyrn Webb, Southside: 5-2
Nyla Franklin, Gadsden City: 5-0
Lydia Northam, Ashville; Allie Jo Amos, Glencoe; Alora White, Ashville: 4-10
Shot put
Kailah East, Coosa Christian: 32-10
Anna Cashman, Southside: 29-6
Mya Beason, Ashville: 28-1
Javelin
Chloe Dodd, Hokes Bluff: 102-6
Molly Northam, Ashville: 89-4
Lesleigh Rogers, Ashville: 87-5
Discus
Shelby Waters, Gaston: 86-0
Mya Beason, Ashville: 77-4
Maddie Sanders, Ashville: 75-6
Pole vault
Anzlee Farmer, Ashville: 7-6
Boys
100-meter dash
Jamvion Jones, Southside: 10.95
Clyde Curry, Gadsden City: 11.04
Zyan Gibson, Gadsden City: 11.04
200-meter dash
Jamvion Jones, Southside: 21.98
Zyan Gibson, Gadsden City: 22.26
Kody Kueny, Southside: 22.69
400-meter dash
Braydon Mayes, Gadsden City: 52.80
Alexander Moland, Hokes Bluff: 53.07
Jonathan Lusk, Sardis: 53.42
800-meter run
Joe Stevens, Ashville: 2:02.42
Jackson Griggs, Southside: 2:05.89
Ethan Patterson, Hokes Bluff: 2:06.61
1600-meter run
Jackson Griggs, Southside: 4:30.10
Evan Christopher, Southside: 4:34.78
Joe Stevens, Ashville: 4:42.32
3200-meter run
Jackson Griggs, Southside: 9:38.86
Evan Christopher, Southside: 9:51.95
Joe Stevens, Ashville: 10:14.17
110-meter hurdles
Anthony Padula, Southside: 18.23
Eli Heath, Hokes Bluff: 19.15
Daylen Baise, Etowah: 19.17
300-meter hurdles
Caleb Gallagher, Southside: 45.68
Daylen Baise, Etowah: 45.86
Maddox Vann, Ashville: 46.25
4×100-meter relay
Gadsden City, 43.08: Zyan Gibson, Kerrel Yow, Cameron Rolley, Caleb Davis
Southside, 43.25: Gauge NeSmith, Jamvion Jones, Cody Roberts, Kody Kueny
Hokes Bluff: 47.76: Blaine Barron, Blake Green, Eli Heath, Dylan Lancaster
4×400-meter relay
Gadsden City, 3:29.56: Cameron Rolley, Caleb Davis, Tylan Sims, Braydon Mayes
Sardis, 3:41.34: Jonathan Lusk, Canyon McGee, Alex Davis, Garrett Burns
Southside, 3:42.28: Gauge NeSmith, Jonathan Russell, Blake Phillips, Alex Oden
4×800-meter relay
Ashville, 8:35.08: Coby Caswell, Ryan Matthews, Joe Stevens, Maddox Vann
Southside, 8:49.58: Hayden Tucker, Grant Mathews, Jonathan Russell, Evan Christopher
Hokes Bluff, 9:05.87: Bryer Morrison, Alexander Moland, Ethan Patterson, Brenton Hale
Long jump
Isaiah Collins, Gadsden City: 21-7
Kerrel Yow, Gadsden City: 20-11
Canyon McGee, Sardis: 20-2
Triple Jump
Kodie Bogle, Gaston: 41-5
Trent Bothwell, Etowah: 41-4.25
Jake Alewine, Sardis: 40-8.75
High jump
Jake Alewine, Sardis: 6-2
Gauge NeSmith, Southside: 6-0
Parker Smith, Ashville, 6-0
Shot put
Will Shirley, Southside: 46-3
Neigle Swain, Gadsden City: 44-5
Jackson Veasy, Gadsden City: 44-1
Javelin
Kodie Bogle, Gaston: 178-6.35
Greyson Simpson, Ashville: 174-6
Cole Chastain, Southside: 159-9
Discus
Collins Davis, Southside: 120-3
Steven Thomas, Etowah: 118-11
Will Shirley, Southside: 117-8
Pole vault
Greyson Simpson, Ashville: 12-6
Garrett Spears, Ashville: 10-0