• About
    • About Us
    • What We Cover
  • Advertise
    • Advertise
    • Our Advertisers
  • Contact
  • Donate
  • Send News
  • Subscribe

Oak Ridge Today

  • Home
  • Sign in
  • News
    • Business
    • Community
    • Education
    • Government
    • Health
    • Police and Fire
    • U.S. Department of Energy
    • Weather
  • Sports
    • High School
    • Middle School
    • Recreation
    • Rowing
    • Youth
  • Entertainment
    • Arts
    • Dancing
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Theater
  • Premium Content
  • Obituaries
  • Classifieds

 

Oak Ridge boys finish ninth in state 4×800 meter relay

Posted at 3:45 pm May 27, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge senior Jake Etheridge raced in the 1,600 meter run and was part of the 4x800 meter relay team at the 2017 TSSAA Boys' State Track Championships at MTSU in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 26, 2017. (Photo by Kindell Moore)

Oak Ridge senior Jake Etheridge finished 12th in the 1,600 meter run and was part of the 4×800 meter relay team that finished ninth at the 2017 TSSAA Boys’ State Track Championships at MTSU in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 26, 2017. (Photo by Kindell Moore)

 

MURFREESBORO—The Oak Ridge boys 4×800 meter relay team finished ninth in the state track meet in Murfreesboro on Friday.

The boys 4×800 meter relay team includes senior Jake Etheridge and juniors Reid Dukes, Will Jeter, and Jose Villegas. They finished ninth in a field of 16 teams with a time of 8:14.63. Houston finished first with a time of 7:58.51. Blackman (8:03.53) and Daniel Boone (8:06.03) had the other top three finishes.

Hardin Valley Academy was sixth in the 4×800 meter relay with a time of 8:11.29, while Farragut finished 12th at 8:33.98.

The 2017 TSSAA Boys’ Track State Championships were at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro on Friday.

Etheridge also raced in the boys 1,600 meter run, where he finished 12th with a time of 4:39.27. He finished just ahead of senior Brennan Humphreys of Hardin Valley, who crossed the finish line at 4:41.91.

The top three finishers in the boys 1,600 meter run were Science Hill senior Alex Crigger (4:17.97), Cookeville senior Conner Hawkins (4:19.43), and Wilson Central senior John Elrod (4:22.56).

Advertisement

In the boys 100 meter dash, Oak Ridge sophomore Jordan Graham finished 15th with a time of 11.70.

The top three finishers in that race were Riverdale junior Michael Scruggs (10.97), Siegel senior Donovan Whitmore (10.97), and Memphis Central senior Rashad Haynes (10.99).

The Oak Ridge girls competed in the 4×200 meter relay, 4×800 meter relay, and 3,200 meter run on Thursday. You can see our coverage of the girls state track meet here.

Oak Ridge Coach Allen Etheridge said both the boys and girls probably ran peak performances at the Class AAA Section 1 Finals at Hardin Valley on Saturday, May 13. The top four athletes or teams in events there qualified for the state track meet in Murfreesboro this week. Although a few of the Wildcats ran their best at state, it took all of their mental and physical energy to qualify at the sectional earlier this month, Etheridge. They “laid it out” at state, but there was a finite amount of that energy, Etheridge said.

“There just wasn’t as much left in the tank,” he said of the Wildcats at the state track meet.

The boys were disappointed that they didn’t do better in the 4×800 meter relay, Etheridge said. Jake Etheridge, his son, ran his best 800 of the year in that race, but the team just wasn’t able to put together a whole relay, Allen Etheridge said.

“You can’t sugarcoat that,” he said.

Oak Ridge is one of the top distance teams in the state, and the Wildcats always want to be in the top handful of teams.

Advertisement

Jake Etheridge didn’t have anything left in the 1,600 meter run, and he scratched in the 3,200 meter run, although he had qualified to compete in that race, Allen Etheridge said.

“He was absolutely done after the mile,” Etheridge said.

The Wildcats have been battling some injuries. Oak Ridge freshman Muskaan Vohra, a member of the girls 4×800 meter relay team, ran well, but she had a knee issue, which is not optimal for the state track meet, Etheridge said.

Oak Ridge junior Shatyrah Copeland, a member of the girls 4×200 meter relay team, had a sore hamstring on Monday, but she felt okay to run in the state track meet after help from trainer Terra Davenport, Etheridge said.

Graham, who competed in the boys 100 meter dash, has had an issue with a hip flexor for about two months, or since about April 1. Davenport has “patched him” enough to run, Etheridge said, but he wasn’t quite himself.

But Graham still ran well, Etheridge said. He “came out of the blocks great and drove” during the race, Etheridge said, pointing out that Graham is a sophomore competing against older athletes.

Graham set a personal record of 11.10 in the 100 meter dash this season, beating his old personal best by 0.2 seconds.

“He’s taking these gradual steps and getting better in a linear fashion,” Etheridge said. “That’s what we look for.”

Oak Ridge sophomore Jordan Graham finished 15th in the boys 100 meter dash at the 2017 TSSAA Boys' State Track Championships at MTSU in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 26, 2017. At right is Farragut junior Braden Collins, who finished 12th. (Photo by Kindell Moore)

Oak Ridge sophomore Jordan Graham finished 15th in the boys 100 meter dash at the 2017 TSSAA Boys’ State Track Championships at MTSU in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 26, 2017. At right is Farragut junior Braden Collins, who finished 12th. (Photo by Kindell Moore)

 

After this season, the Wildcats will lose Jake Etheridge, a senior, and senior Abbey Greenhalgh, a member of the girls state 4×800 meter relay team. Those are two big hits, Etheridge said.

But Oak Ridge has a “ton of great sprinters and jumpers coming back,” Etheridge said.

And the nucleus of the distance team is coming back. Assistant Coach Ed Wright did a great job with them, Etheridge said.

The Wildcats have gotten better each of the last two years, he said.

“I think next year we look pretty good,” Etheridge said.

Etheridge will remain as head track coach. He will be an assistant cross country coach after resigning as head cross country coach earlier this year. Wright, who was an assistant cross country coach, will now be the head coach of that sport.

The track and field coaching staff is stable, which is beneficial, Etheridge said.

Here are other top results for a few other nearby schools in the boys state track meet

  • Boys 800 meter run—3rd—Hardin Valley junior Kenton Bachmann (1:54.99)
  • Boys triple jump—4th—Hardin Valley Academy junior Willington Wright (44-02.00)
  • Boys 800 meter run—6th—Farragut senior Spencer Flint (1:59.49)

Hardin Valley finished 18th in the boys team rankings, and Farragut was 41st.

Pictured above is the Oak Ridge boys 4x800-meter relay team, which qualified for the 2017 TSSAA State Track Meet during the Class AAA Section 1 Finals at Hardin Valley Academy on Saturday, May 13, 2017. From left are junior Reid Dukes, senior Jake Etheridge, and juniors Jose Villegas and Will Jeter. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Pictured above is the Oak Ridge boys 4×800-meter relay team, which finished ninth in the 2017 TSSAA Boys’ State Track Championships at MTSU in Murfreesboro on Friday, May 26, 2017. The team qualified for the state track meet during the Class AAA Section 1 Finals at Hardin Valley Academy on Saturday, May 13, 2017. From left are junior Reid Dukes, senior Jake Etheridge, and juniors Jose Villegas and Will Jeter. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

More information will be added as it becomes available.

You can see the complete results from the 2017 TSSAA Boys’ Track State Championships on Friday here.

You can read about the Wildcats who qualified for the state track meet during the Class AAA Section 1 Finals at Hardin Valley on Saturday, May 13, here.


Do you appreciate this story or our work in general? If so, please consider a monthly subscription to Oak Ridge Today. See our Subscribe page here. Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today.

Copyright 2017 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Filed Under: Front Page News, High School, Sports Tagged With: 2017 TSSAA Boys’ Track State Championships, Abbey Greenhalgh, Alex Crigger, Allen Etheridge, Blackman, boys 100-meter dash, boys 1600 meter run, boys 4x800-meter relay, Brennan Humphreys, Conner Hawkins, Cookeville, Daniel Boone, Donovan Whitmore, Ed Wright, Farragut, Hardin Valley Academy, Houston, Jake Etheridge, John Elrod, Jordan Graham, Jose Villegas, Memphis Central, Michael Scruggs, Middle Tennessee State University, Oak Ridge, Rashad Haynes, Reid Dukes, Riverdale, Science Hill, Siegel, state track meet, Will Jeter, Wilson Central

Advertisements

 


Join the club!

If you appreciate our work, please consider subscribing. Besides helping us, your subscription will give you access to our premium content.

Some of our stories are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our members—advertisers, subscribers, and sponsors.

But some are premium content, available only to members. Those are in-depth, investigative, or exclusive stories that are available only on Oak Ridge Today. They generally require significant time to report, write, and publish.

You can subscribe for as little as $5 per month.

You can read more about your options here.

We currently offer five primary subscription options to readers, and they include benefits.

Basic

  • Basic monthly subscription ($5 per month)—access premium content
  • Basic annual subscription ($60 per year)—access premium content

Pro

  • Pro monthly subscription ($10 per month)—access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month
  • Pro annual subscription ($100 per year)—save $20 per year, access premium content, get breaking news emails first, and submit one press release or public service announcement per month

Temporary

  • Temporary access ($3 per week for two weeks)

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here.

If you prefer to send a check for a subscription or donation, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

Thank you for your consideration and for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support.

Commenting Guidelines

We welcome comments, but we ask you to follow a few guidelines:

1) Please use your real name, including last name. Please also use a valid e-mail address.
2) Be civil. Don't insult others, attack their character, or get personal.
3) Stick to the issues.
4) No profanity.
5) Keep your comments to a reasonable length and to a reasonable number per article.

We reserve the right to remove any comments that violate these guidelines. Comments held for review, usually from those posting for the first time, may not post if they violate these guidelines. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Thank you also for reading Oak Ridge Today and for participating in the discussion.

More information is available here.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • Speakers mostly support TRISO-X fuel facility at meeting
  • UPF construction could cost more, take longer
  • Y-12 celebrates new fire station, emergency operations center
  • One person seriously injured in Wednesday crash
  • Oak Ridge EM prepared for cold weather to prevent failures
  • Covenant Health donating land for Roane State health science center
  • School board approves aviation career path
  • Wildcats name new football coach
  • Free dental, vision, medical services in February
  • Junior Playhouse performs ‘Gingerbread: Hansel & Gretel’ in February

Search Oak Ridge Today

About Us

About Oak Ridge Today
What We Cover

How To

Advertise
Subscribe

Contact Us

Contact Oak Ridge Today

Copyright © 2023 Oak Ridge Today