Great Southwest Classic Preview

Great Southwest Classic
MileSplit Staff

BOYS FIELD EVENTS

Throws


Kansas' Willie Morrison has thrown a bare inch below 69', which itself would nudge a fourteen-year-old record into history.

One of at least four sibling leaders in various events of this year's Great Southwest Classic is at the head of the Discus entries; in fact, Missouri's Carlos Davis (214'4") and Carlos Davis ((204'5") are the class of the whole United States. Number One and Number Two, the Blue Springs strongmen, spinning gracefully around the circle and not to be missed.

The Hammer Throw and Javelin lack any of the country's top ten, which makes up in drama in the form of surprise winners what it may lack in spectacular marks.

Jumps

Pole Vaulters have long held affinity for Great Southwest Classic, with almost twenty high school seventeen-footers having appeared here in recent years. Texan Pablo Benavides, number one-ranked in the country, may be most eager contender for the thinner air of Albuquerque this year, because his PR is a scant inch beneath eighteen feet. His equally daring challengers include fellow Texan Brandon Bray (17'4"), Armand Duplantis (17'4"), and Oklahoma's Tommy Dial (17'2"). Let's hope the wind is not disruptive to these acrobatic young men.

The appearance of Illinois' Ja'Mari Ward is a real treat for all of us. This young man leads American high schoolers in both the Long Jump (25'6 1/2") and the Triple Jump (51'11"), both marks exceeding respectable Classic meet records. But even the latter leap may break the record and not win Ward a gold medal since South African (recently by way of Florida) Miguel Van Assen has soared an astonishing 53'8". Just contemplating these two bounding down the Triple Jump runway is a feast for dreams now and memories to come.

The High Jump record of Georgian David Smith is a sparse half-inch above Texan Brandon Rivera's 7'2" PR that is the second-best in the United States this year.

2015 Great Southwest Classic Previews:

Great Southwest Classic: Meet Page | Entries & Schedule | Day 1 Photos | Last Year's Coverage