Benjamin Russell High School senior Malcolm Simmons won the Class 6A high jump competition Thursday as expected as the 100th AHSAA Outdoor Track and Field State Championships got underway at the Gulf Shores Sports Complex.

The future Auburn University football wide receiver, who cleared 7 feet in last week’s section meet, cleared 6 feet, 10 inches win the event by 6 inches. He then moved the bar 7-01 and came close to clearing at that standard as a crowd of onlookers cheered him on.

His high jump effort was among the top performances of the first day’s action as Classes 4A, 5A, 6A and 7A opened the state meet, which is scheduled to conclude Saturday. Classes 1A, 2A and 3A open the small-school state meet at Cullman High School’s Oliver Woodard Stadium Friday and will conclude Saturday as well.

Defending 7A state champion Hoover’s boys and defending 5A state champion Scottsboro’s boys posted 52.5 and 39 points, respectively, to take commanding leads after Day 1. The Bucs lead Class 7A with Vestavia Hills in second place with 20 points and James Clemens third with 17.

Scottsboro’s closest challenger Thursday was Birmingham’s John Carroll, which posted 16 points. Headland totaled 11 first-day points and finished the day in third place.

In Class 6A, McAdory and Benjamin Russell finished the day with 15 points –10 coming in Simmons’ high jump win. Hazel Green is third and only a point behind with 14 points. Brooks leads the 4A boys’ competition with 26 points. Bayside Academy and Haleyville are tied for second with 16 points each.

After Day 1 on the girls’ side, Hewitt-Trussville leads Class 7A with 28 points, followed by Opelika with 13 and Baker with 10. Defending 6A state champion Mountain Brook leads Class 6A with 36 points. Northridge is second with 16 and Fort Payne third with 12. Arab emerged the leader in Class 5A with 26.5 points with defending state champion Scottsboro second with 19 and Guntersville third with 12. Bayside Academy leads the 4A girls’ competition with 34 points, followed by defending 4A champ Brooks with 25 and Montgomery Academy with 18.

The Class 7A girls’ 1,600 meters race was among the top events Thursday – looking more like a sprint race, especially over the last 100 yards. Hewitt-Trussville senior Avery Cahoon crossed the finish line at 4:53.64 – just inches ahead of Spain Park senior Delaney Vickers, who clocked 4:54.25. Both girls had their personal bests in the race. The 7A outdoor state meet record was set last year by Chelsea’s Cady McPhail, who won the event with a 4:52.14 time.

The Class 7A boys’ 1,600-meter race that followed was just as close with nine runners crossing the finish line under 4:20. Huntsville junior Eric Moore emerged as the winner clocking 4:11.85 – in a photo finish with James Clemens junior Luke Alverson, who was timed at 4:12.47.

The real sprints, the 100-meter prelims, took center stage with three runners finishing 1/100th of a second apart in Class 7A. Fairhope junior Ty Watkins earned the top seed heading into the finals with a 10.52 time. Bob Jones senior Jordan Urrutia and Hoover senior Jordan Woolen clocked 10.53 each.

The Class 6A prelims 100-meters was just as close with Carver-Montgomery senior Laquenton Underwood clocking 10.62 seconds, Pell City junior Tre Peterson and Gadsden City sophomore Zyan Gibson each clocking 10.63. Brewbaker Tech’s Julian Fenderson and Birmingham-Carver sprinter Dimitri Howard each clocked 10.78 in the 5A 100 prelims and Cherokee County’s Alex Johnson had the best qualifying time in the prelims in Class 4A at 10.64 seconds.

Class 4A Jackson High School’s boys’ 4×100 relay team, led by sophomore Keegan Chapman, came very close to breaking one of the AHSAA’s oldest outdoor records – set by T.R. Miller in 1991. The Aggies clocked 42.34 seconds in the prelims to nip Booker T. Washington (42.99) and finished less than a step off the mark established by the Brewton team 33 years earlier (42.14). Both teams will have a chance to better that time in Saturday’s 4A finals.

Among the other top performances Thursday was the 1,600 meters win in the Class 5A girls’ race by Lawrence County sophomore Katie Mae Coan. She set a new Class 5A outdoor state meet record, winning the event in 5:05.20. The old record, set 18 years earlier in 2006 by Mary Carlton Johnson of St. Paul’s, was 5:05.79.

Also in the 5A girls’ competition, senior Caroline Sanders and Hayden junior Mallory Dial each cleared 5 feet, 4 inches in the high jump but Sanders took first place with fewer misses.

Other top girls’ performances included:

EMMA BROOKE LEVERING, HOMEWOOD: One of two Class 6A runners to come under 5 minutes in the 1,600 meters race. The Patriots’ junior sprinted to the finish for a personal best 4:59.19 to edge Mountain Brook senior Lucy Benton, who clocked 4:59.44.

KINDALL BROWN, BAKER: The Hornets’ sophomore won the Class 7A triple jump with a personal best 38-03.50 effort.

COOPER GARRETT, FORT PAYNE: The junior won the Class 6A javelin throw with a person best 138 feet.

JANIE FORD, ST. PAUL’S: The AHSAA’s 2023 heptathlon state champion won the Class 6A girls’ triple jump competition with a winning jump of 40-04.25.

BOYS’ TOP PERFORMANCES

ELIJAH HALL, BOOKER T. WASHINGTON: The senior won the Class 4A long jump with a 23-00 effort.

DAKOTA FRANK, MUNFORD: Clocked 4:18.56 to win the Class 4A 1,600 meters – finishing just 1 second behind the current class state meet record (4:17.67) set in 2016 by Ryan Ford of Westminster Christian. The time for Frank, a senior, was his personal best. His qualifying time was 4:28.05.

TAYGAN HARRIS, SCOTTSBORO: The sophomore won the 5A shot put title at 54 feet, 5½ inches.

TAIT BARNES, RUSSELLVILLE: Had a winning throw of 170-08, the senior’s personal best, to win the Class 5A javelin competition.

COLLIN PATE, HOOVER: He and Bucs teammate Norman Settles each cleared 15 feet to finish 1-2 in the Class 7A pole vault event. Pate’s fewer misses earned him first place.

BRADLEY SHAW, HOOVER: Won the Class 7A shot put competition with a winning throw of 55-10.75.

Complete results from Thursday’s action can be found at this link.

AHSAA OUTDOOR TRACK AND FIELD

CHAMPIONSHIPS

TEAM STANDINGS

BOYS

CLASS 7A

1) Hoover, 52.5; 2) Vestavia Hills, 20; 3) James Clemens, 17; 4) Hewitt-Trussville, 13.5; 5) Huntsville, 12; 6) Auburn, 9; 7) Thompson, 6; 7) Oak Mountain, 6; 9) Chelsea, 5; 9) Prattville, 5; 9) Opelika, 5; 12) Enterprise, 3; 13) Smiths Station, 2; 14) McGill-Toolen, 1.

CLASS 6A

1) McAdory, 15; 1) Benjamin Russell, 15; 3) Hazel Green, 14; 4) UMS-Wright, 11; 4) Spanish Fort, 11; 6) Cullman, 10; 7) Pelham, 8; 8) St. Paul’s, 7; 9) Center Point, 5; 10) Center-Tuscaloosa, 4; 10) Buckhorn, 4; 12) Helena, 3; 13) Mountain Brook, 2; 13) Shades Valley, 2; 13) Pike Road, 2; 13) Northridge, 2; 13) Pell City, 2.

CLASS 5A

1) Scottsboro, 39; 2) John Carroll, 16; 3) Headland, 11; 3) Russellville, 11; 5) Carroll-Ozark, 10; 5) Beauregard, 10; 7) Brewbaker Tech, 8; 7) Southside-Gadsden, 8; 9) Springville, 6; 9) Ramsay, 6; 9) Gulf Shores, 6; 12) Arab, 5; 13) Demopolis, 4; 13) Lawrence County, 4; 15) Elberta, 3; 15) B.C. Rain, 3; 17) Fairview, 2; 17) Rehobeth, 2; 17) Charles Henderson, 2; 20) Randolph, 1; 20) Moody, 1; 20) Jasper, 1.

CLASS 4A

1) Brooks, 26; 2) Haleyville, 16; 2) Bayside Academy, 16; 4) Providence Christian, 12; 5) American Christian, 11; 5) Munford, 11; 7) Booker T. Washington, 10; 8) Escambia County, 8; 9) West Morgan, 6; 10) St. John Paul II, 5; 10) Westminster Christian, 5; 10) Oneonta, 5; 10) Montgomery Academy, 5; 14) Anniston, 4; 16) Hanceville, 3; 16) Rogers, 3; 18) LAMP, 2; 18) T.R. Miller, 2; 20) Cherokee County, 1; 20) Handley, 1; 20) Satsuma, 1.

GIRLS

CLASS 7A

1) Hewitt-Trussville, 28; 2) Opelika, 13; 3) Baker, 10; 4) Sparkman, 8; 4) Spain Park, 8; 6) Auburn, 7; 7) Chelsea, 6; 7) Foley, 6; 7) Hoover, 6; 7) Enterprise, 6; 11) Huntsville, 5; 12) Dothan, 4; 12) Central-Phenix City, 4; 14) Thompson, 2; 14) Smiths Station, 2; 16) Austin, 1; 16) Oak Mountain, 1.

CLASS 6A

1) Mountain Brook, 36; 2) Northridge, 16; 3) Fort Payne, 12; 4) Homewood, 10; 4) St. Paul’s, 10; 4) Briarwood Christian, 10; 7) Muscle Shoals, 8; 8) Buckhorn, 4; 8) Clay-Chalkville, 4; 10) Pelham, 3; 11) Spanish Fort, 2; 12) Cullman, 1.

CLASS 5A

1) Arab, 26.5; 2) Scottsboro, 19; 3) Guntersville, 12; 4) Beauregard, 11.5; 5) Brewer, 10; 5) Lawrence County, 10; 7) Hayden, 8; 8) John Carroll, 5; 9) Ardmore, 4; 9) Fairview, 4; 11) Jasper, 3; 12) Carroll-Ozark, 2; 13) B.C. Rain, 1; 13) Brewbaker Tech, 1.

CLASS 4A

1) Bayside Academy, 34; 2) Brooks, 25; 3) Montgomery Academy, 18; 4) Priceville, 12; 5) St. John Paul II, 10; 5) Booker T. Washington, 10; 5) Hamilton, 10; 8) T.R. Miller, 9; 9) White Plains, 8.5; 10) Deshler, 8; 10) Satsuma, 8; 12) Cherokee County, 7; 13) Talladega, 6; 13) Bibb County, 6; 15) Westminster Christian, 5; 16) Providence Christian, 4; 16) Fultondale, 4; 16) St. Michael, 4; 19) Catholic Montgomery, 3; 20) Ashville, 2.5; 21) West Morgan, 1.