SPORTS
THE CHAMPION, THURSDAY, MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2024 • PAGE 11
Chamblee’s girls’ team won its eighth middle school track title. Photos by Mark Brock
Chamblee’s boys’ team won the school’s second boys’ middle school title.
Lydia Talbert was named the Championship MVP
Chamblee claims
middle school
track titles
BY MARK BROCK
Chamblee Middle School's boys' track team cruised to a 76.5-
46 victory to claim its second DeKalb County Middle School Track
Championships title in three years on March 18 at Buck Godfrey
Stadium, while the Chamblee Lady Bulldogs' won the school's eighth
girls' track title during the same week.
Chamblee's boys' team placed 18 times in the top eight, led by
Ellison Ely and Jah Emner tying the triple jump record of 37-11.00 set
by Davion Terry of Cedar Grove during the 2022 championships. Ely
got the nod with less attempts to take the gold; Emner claimed the
silver to give the Bulldogs 18 points in the event.
After several more top five finishes, Elijah Anderson's third-place
finish in the 100-meter hurdles and a fifth-place finish from Ethan
Brachman all but sealed the title for the Bulldogs as runner-up
Henderson (46) and third-place Lithonia (41) would not get any closer
throughout the remainder of the meet.
Other gold medal winners included Cedar Grove's Robert Jones
(23.983) in a close 200-meter dash victory, Bethune's Dmitrious
Brown (54.63) in the 400-meter dash, and Beacon Hill's Kellan Gure
(5:21.63) in the 1600-meter run.
The Chamblee Bulldogs' title was its second in three years and
coupled with the Lady Bulldogs win on the girls' side gave Chamblee
a sweep of the meet for the second time in three years. Chamblee
is the first school to complete the sweep twice. Tucker (2015) and
Henderson (2008) are the other schools to sweep.
Chamblee Coach Terrance Jett was named Coach of the Year.
Girls win eighth track title
It came down to the final race in the girls' meet, but the Chamblee
Lady Bulldogs regained the DeKalb County Middle School Track
Championships title by upending defending champ Henderson 89-84
on March 18.
Chamblee had a string of four consecutive county titles broken by
the Henderson Lady Cougars in 2023.
Chamblee, which had 12 top eight finishes in the meet, held a lead
going into the final event.
However, Henderson had two teams make the final which gave the
Lady Cougars the opportunity to catch or pass the Lady Bulldogs for
the title. Lydia Talbert ran the anchor leg in the relay and—despite an
injury—managed to hold off the Henderson duo to get enough points
to secure the win.
Henderson finished second and sixth, but it was not enough as the
Chamblee team finished fourth to give the title to the Lady Bulldogs
89-85.
Henderson was within 74-71 heading into the final two events.
Talbert, who was named the championship's most valuable player,
won her second event of the day running a 26.24 to take the gold
medal in the 200-meter dash.
Talbert also claimed the 100-meter dash (12.78) and won two of
the four gold medals for the Lady Bulldogs. Lea Chapman knocked off
two-time champion Sarah Jane Shipley to win the 1600-meter run
(5:36.09) to go with a silver in the 800.
The fourth gold came from the 4x800-meter relay team as the
group ran a 10:58.96 to give Chamblee the race's win for the third
consecutive year.
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