Results Invitational Div Open Div Pix & Sums MVP winners Boys - Girls Donna on the Side Before the Meet Day 1 - Day 2 Media Conference Entries Preview Prior Years Meet Info Open Div schedule Invitational Div schedule & records |for more info, email meet director Steve Schoenewald Meet Hotel Directions In Mobile, rent your car from Thrifty   Meet Hotel - The meet headquarters hotel is the Holiday Inn, MOBILE-I-10 BELLINGRATH GARDEN, 5465 Hwy. 90 West, MOBILE, AL 36619. Toll-Free: 866-436-4329

MVP Awards go to Gayle Hunter and Cedric Goodman. Big doubles by Khadija Talley and Bianca Knight Gayle Hunter CA wins 100H, LJ, TJ, 4x100 - is second straight J.W. North girl to be MVP (Ashley Brown). Cedric Goodman GA wins 400 (45.94 US#1) and 4x100 Khadija Talley GA wins SP/DT, both meet records freshman Bianca Knight doubles 54.74 and 23.75 Cedric Goodman 45.94 topples Elzie Coleman Newnan GA's Cedric Goodman in lane 5 started out fast. Coleman in lane 4 made up the stagger by the far turn and took the lead. But Goodman came back in the stretch and won with something to spare. Redan GA jr Justin Oliver 47.02 also passed Coleman 47.28 at the end, and Blount AL's Michael Cooley 47.75 was fourth. Goodman said he wasn't worried when Coleman passed him. "I was holding something back. I knew I could spurt again." At the end of the night, after scratching from the 200, Coleman ran anchor for Newburgh in the 4x400. He made up a lot of ground, but couldn't quite catch Justin Oliver's Redan GA team (3:16.61 to 3:16.99). Afterward, Coleman talked about the 400. "Usually, I'm fastest in the stretch, but my legs felt tired. My body feels beat up. I've had a lot of hard races this year. And I think I'm having an asthma attack." An ambulance was called, and Coleman was taken to a hospital, where he was released after treatment. Donna on the Side - Before the Meet - Day 1 - Day 2 Donna goes out to the Fowl River to see Bellingrath Gardens and finds "fresh cooking" at Mary's Place. The weather is warm,the azaleas are in bloom and one of top 10k road races in the world, the Azalea Trail Run, ended in a photo finish here last week. The excitment continues this weekend with the Mobile Challenge of Champions.Meet director SteveSchoenewald has again assembled stellar fields for the Challenge of Champions. The Open Division runs Friday ngiht at UMS Wright School, and the elite Invitational Division runs Saturday ngiht on a new surface at St. Paul's Episcopal School.

more action shots from Mobile BOYS - GIRLS   Courtney Champion GA wins 100 over Tenille Wilson AL.   by John Dye

Previews

Boys Preview

400 - The 400 meters is becoming the signature event of the Mobile meet, and 2003 winner Palm Bay Melbourne FL sr Xavier (X-Man) Carter is entered to defend his title, but a nagging foot injury makes his appearance iffy. Nevertheless, the race will still be a scorcher with or without Carter, with Newburgh NY sr Elzie Coleman, the Track and Field News indoor athlete of the indoor season, heading a star studded cast. When Coleman set a new national indoor record with his stunning 45.92 at the Simplot Games, fans started clamoring for a showdown with Carter, whose 45.88 at Mobile last year was the fastest in the country outdoors. The clamor grew louder when Carter ran an equally stunning 20.69 in New York earlier this month for a national record for 200 meters indoors. Both Carter and Coleman are entered at Mobile, but Carter aggravated the foot injury in New York and he scratched last weekend from the LSU Classic in Baton Rouge. The rest of the field would be worthy in its own right: Dwyer Palm Beach Gardens FL sr Ricardo Chambers (46.42), Newman GA sr Cedric Goodman (46.35), Redan Stone Mountain GA jr Justin Oliver (47.29), and Glen Oaks Baton Rouge LA sr Mark Dillard (47.74 winner of the Tiger Relays at LSU last week).

Coleman blitzed through the indoor season in spectacular fashion. On January 10 at the Hispanic Games in the New York Armory, he ran 46.58, breaking the accepted national record of 46.84 (William Reed of Philadelphia in 1986), but shy of the 46.11 run on a 3-turn stagger by Reggie Witherspoon last year. Coleman removed all ambiguity at Simplot February 21 by streaking to a 45.92 national record. Coleman added a 46.12 win March 14 back in New York at the National Scholastic Indoor Championships. It was in that same meet that Carter ran his 20.69 200m record. Carter ran only the 200 at NSIC because he was nursing a sore foot from an outdoor race a few days earlier. Until Carter hurt his foot, the Carter-Coleman dual was scheduled to be a road show in Mobile this week and Arcadia next week.

After Mobile last year, Carter went on to 100-200-400 triples at Arcadia and the Florida state meet, plus a 200-400 double at the AOC Raleigh national championship.

Javelin - 3 throwers over 200 feet. Barbe Lake Charles LA jr Chad Brown, US #1 returnee. South Lafourche LA sr Cody Fillinich, defending champion. Mark Taylor, Ruston LA.
800 - Smith's Station AL sr Chris Patrick (1:51.57 AL 6A champ), Northwestern Miami sr Tim Harris (1:52.68 winner of the Bob Hayes Inv), and St. Petersburg Catholic FL sr Sam Secord (1:53.85 indoors).
High Jump - There are four 6"10", two 6'9" and two 6'8" plus jumpers.
Long/Triple Jump - Southwood Shreveport LA jr Frankie Gatson headlines a solid field. Gatson was the Louisiana 5A champ outdoors last year (25-2.75 +3.3 and 48-9 +2.7) and the NSIC New York double winner indoors earlier this month (24-3.5 and 47-6.25). NSIC runnerup Carlos Davis, a sophomore from Beau Chen Arnaudville LA, who went 46-4 in New York, is also entered.
Sprints - Trell Kimmons of Coldwater MS, winner of three major invitationals indoors and 2nd at Nike Indoor Championships (6.74). Central Catholic Houma LA sr Jerald Watson, 3-time state 100m champion. Northeast LA jr Trindon Holliday, Louisiana indoor 55m champ (6.30 US#2).
Relays - Elzie Coleman's Newburgh Academy NY.will contend with Newnan GA., Barbe Lake Charles LA, Redan Stone Mountain,GA, and Glen Oaks Baton Rouge LA.

Girls Preview

There are great matchups in the 100H, 200, 400, 800, 4x100, and LJ.

100H - Northwestern Miami FL jr Pavi'Elle James, 14.22 winner of the Bob Hayes Inv. Domenique Manning and Gayle Hunter of California power J.W.North, Riverside. Iowa LA sr Frances Vital.
200 - Collins Hill GA sr Courtney Champion, defending champion here and 60m champ at NSIC indoors. Ridgeland MS freshman Bianca Knight, runner up to Champion last year, who had a 60/200 double at the Carl Lewis Inv in Houston indoors. Norcross GA jr Lauren Burns, who had a 60/200 double indoors at Tennessee State.
400 - Magnet Baton Rouge LA jr Katrina Taylor, winner at the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans last week and anchor of Magnet's powerful relays. Bianca Knight, 3rd here last year and 3rd at the Nike Indoor Championships in Maryland this month.
800 - Meadowcreek Norcross GA freshman Brittany Hall, 2:11.42 outdoors last year. Daphne AL sr Kirby Patterson, MVP of the Nokia Sugar Bowl last week. Monroe Fredericksburg VA jr Shylan Bumbry, 3rd here last year and 2nd at the Nike Indoor Championships this month. Cedar Grove Ellenwood GA sr Thea Dix, 2002 winner here.
4x100 - J.W.North, Riverside CA, perennial California power and winner here last year. Magnet Baton Rouge LA, winner at Sugar Bowl Classic in New Orleans last week. Collins Hill Suwanee GA, led by Courtney Champion. Miami Northwestern FL, which has run 47.09 this year.
Long Jump - four 19 footers - J.W. North sr Gayle Brown, national USATF Youth Athletics champ last year. Northwestern Miami FL sr Nicole Moore, 2003 Florida 4A champ. Northwestern Miami jr Pavi' Ellie James. Iowa LA sr Francis Vital, indoor LSU Classic winner.

Prior Years on DyeStat

• 2003 - The story was Xavier Carter and those California girls. Palm Bay Melbourne FL jr Xavier Carter doubled in the 200 and 400 to earn MVP honors. J.W. North Riverside CA sr Ashlee Brown won the girls MVP award with a double in the hurdles and a leg on J.W. North's winning 4x100 relay, Wilson Long Beach CA girls double in the 4x400 and 4x800 as coach Terry Kennedy returned to visit relatives in Mobile.
• 2003 MVP winners Ashlee Brown and Xavier Carter
  
• 2002 - A Davis show. Janice Davis (100-200 double) and Arthur Davis (200-400 double) are MVPs.
• 2001 - MVPs are Stephanie Smith (200-400 double over Janice Davis) and Bershawn Jackson (hurdles double, winning 110H over Josh Walker).
• 2000 - Horizontal jumpers Maurice Robinson and Ronda White win MVP awards. Robinson adds a third gold in the 100.
• 1999 - Sprinters Casey Combest (10.06) and Erica Whipple (10.94 and 22.93) light up the Mobile night.

Directions to Meet

From the North:

April 2nd Site:UMS-Wright School
Take I-65 S. to the Springhill Avenue Exit.Take a right at light and go under the overpass.Take right at the service road..To UMS-Wright take left off service road onto Old Shell Road. Go approximately 1 mile and school will be on the right.

April 3rd Site:St.Paul's Episcopal School
Take I-65 S. to Springhill Avenue Exit.Take a right at light and go underoverpass.Take right at service road.To St.Paul's take right off service road onto Old Shell Road. Go approximately 1/4 mile.Look for Dogwood Lane and take left into St.Paul's campus.

From the South

April 2nd:UMS-Wright School
Take I-65 N. to Springhill Avenue Exit.Take right onto service road.Take a left at light onto Old Shell Road.Go approximately 1 mile and school will be on the right.

April 3rd:St.Paul's Episcopal
Take I-65 N. to Springhill Avenue Exit.Take a right onto service road.Take a right at light onto Old Shell Road. Go approxmately 1/4 mile. Look for Dogwood Lane and take left into St.Paul's campus

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