Sunday, May 08, 2005

By ALAN CLEMONS
Times Sports Staff

COTTONDALE - On a day when the horse racing world began its Triple Crown, the Scottsboro boys track team claimed its own trifecta in the final event of the 1A-3A-5A state high school track and field championships at Bryant High School.

Spencer Neely, running the anchor of the 5A 4x400 relay, lunged at the finish to win in 3:24.22. Trailing after the baton handoff on the final lap, Neely caught up with his closest Northridge competitor in the final turn and poured it on down the stretch. His winning margin? Two one-hundredths of a second. Quick as a blink.

Wildcats fans erupted in cheers when the final numbers flashed on the board, knowing the team title was secured. Neely ran the anchor, joined by Zane Dutton on the first leg followed by Andrew Mardis and Jager Livingston. But Scottsboro coach John Esslinger said it wasn't anything new for Neely.

"He got him with the lean and got him with the neck," Esslinger said.

"He's the fastest on the team and runs with heart. He's done that all season. It was the exclamation point" to a fine day when the Wildcats captured their third straight season "Triple Crown" with the outdoor, indoor and cross-country championships. The title was the 35th for the school since 1991, the sixth year after Esslinger began coaching the track teams.

The 4x400 and 4x800 relays proved critical as Scottsboro finished with 114 points. Northridge was second with 101 and Homewood third with 77. The Wildcats ran 9:44.60 in the 4x800 relay to top St. Paul's by almost 12 seconds. That race, along with the final 4x400, gave them the edge along with valuable points earned in field events by Mikiel Hendrix in the triple jump (third place) and Ryan Smith in the high jump (second).

Scottsboro's girls were second overall with 98.33 points behind Northridge, which won with 110. St. Paul's was third with 98 and Butler fourth with 54. Scottsboro captured the 4x800 relay with a state-record run of 9:44.60, besting the mark of 9:46.53 set last year by St. Paul's.

Hannah Thompson, Caitlin Chitwood, Lacey Wright and Emily Thompson ran for the Lady Wildcats. Esslinger said Thompson had "a great first leg," knowing St. Paul's would provide the toughest competition.

"I was tickled to death," Esslinger said. "We worked on our handoffs a lot and it paid off. The first leg was critical. We hung with their best runner (St. Paul's) and did well. We always have a talk about the points and what they need to do, and they just got after it."

The Lady Wildcats finished sixth, ahead of St. Paul's, in the final 4x400 relay to move ahead in the overall standings. There was no doubt on the second leg that Scottsboro would cap a strong second day that made Esslinger proud.

"Both teams did real well," he said. "A lot of teams struggled because it was hot, but our kids wouldn't give up. The girls team, to be behind 20 points going into the final day, really did a good job."