Going into last Wednesday's 4A Region 2 Meet, the Manatee Hurricanes could boast that they had the fastest male and female sprinter, at least in the district. Now they can say they have the fastest male sprinter in the region and darn near the fastest female sprinter in the region.
Junior Brandon Carnes and sophomore Deja Rodgers both won district titles in 100m and 200m sprints. They came into regionals looking to extend their dominance.
They did just that.
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On the boys side, Carnes took first place in the 100m (10.57) and first in the 200m (21.74). He even helped the boys 4x100m team come from behind and overtake Vero Beach.
"I thought we could still finish first, just gotta do what I do," said Carnes.
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Carnes closed at least a two-second gap on his anchor leg of the 4x100m. Carnes stumbled out of the starting blocks in his 100m final but made up the ground and won. His effort helped the Manatee boys push Plant for the team title. They trailed by just six-and-a-half points going into the final event, the 4x400m relay. Unfortunately, both the lead and anchor leg runners were hobbled by cramps and the Hurricanes fell out of contention. They still finsihed second with 59 points. Plant took the title with 70.5 points.
Rodgers, who still has two more years to compete, held up her end of the bargain, too. She ran the third fastest qualifying time and then grabbed third in the finals of the 100m in 12.48 seconds. She grabbed fourth in the 200m with a time of 26.34 seconds.
"I like the sprints because I think they're more competitive," she said."If you ain't got that speed you gotta go home."
Rogers showed that speed when she anchored the girls 4x100m team and burned up the track, helping the girls take first place in the relay in 49.44 seconds.
"They just soak it all up, they are always trying to learn and get better," said Hurricanes sprinting coach Mike Smith. "She hasn't even reached her full potential, yet," Smith continued. "Expect big things from her the next few years."
