The 2018 All-Bi-City Boys Track team is here. Check out who made this year’s squad.

Several track teams around Columbus had the pleasant chore of clearing more room in their trophy cases this spring. Now, it’s time to honor those who stood out during the 2018 season.

Three athletes in the Bi-City area won individual events at state and have subsequently been named Track Athletes of the Year.

Smiths Station junior Chad Strickland started off the Class 7A meet on the perfect note for the Panthers. In the first event of the multi-day meet, Strickland’s shot put effort of 50-8.75 gave him first place. It was a pleasant surprise for Strickland, who duked it out with teammate Deondrae Williams for the top team score in the event throughout the year.

“Going in, I expected to place and maybe come in the top three,” Strickland said. “I did not expect to win it, but I was thrilled when I came in first. Me and (Spain Park’s Matthew Gray) were one inch apart.”

While Strickland showed off his strength, teammate Charles Hughes demonstrated his speed. The senior saved his best for last in the 800 meter finals, turning on the jets to end the event and snag a first-place finish with a time of 1:54.40.

“My senior year, I had to go out with a bang,” said Hughes, who will continue his athletic pursuits at Columbus State. “They took off fast. The stagger broke, and I was caught in the back from the first lap. I had to pick up the pace and catch my teammate Savian Taylor. He was leading the race for 760 meters until I finally caught him and took it home.”

Across the border, Northside’s Jonathan Myrthil finally reached the goal he’d been chasing for three years as a Patriot. The junior set the standard in Class 4A’s 800 finals, taking first place with an effort of 1:53.74.

“That was a crazy moment,” Myrthil said. “I actually didn’t fully realize I had won until the starter gave me the bullet that he used to start the race. After that, I just wanted to cry. I didn’t cry until I saw my mom. It was such a good feeling because I’ve been trying for the past three years to get that.”

The performances of Strickland, Hughes and several other Smiths Station athletes once again earned Ron Peters the Coach of the Year honors. Smiths Station had athletes qualify in every state meet and ultimately took home second place in Class 7A.

“Everybody came out and worked hard. We knew we had some special stuff after a couple of weeks in,” Peters said. “Really, it was a whole team effort. It was a really special season.”

Track Athletes of the Year

Charles Hughes, Smiths Station; Jonathan Myrthil, Northside; Chad Strickland, Smiths Station

Coach of the Year

Ron Peters, Smiths Station

First Team

Grant Briscoe, Northside

Jordan Brooks, Smiths Station

Joel Brown, Brookstone

Courtland Dixon, Hardaway

Silas Franklin, Smiths Station

Jamil Glee, Smiths Station

Dawson Jeffcoat, Smiths Station

Treyvon Jones, Smiths Station

Emmanuel Mann, Jordan

Seth Mattocks, Smiths Station

Kentray Mercer, Smiths Station

Anthony Miles, Central

Miran Minger, Smiths Station

Matt Ray, Smiths Station

KaShawn Robinson, Northside

Nigel Roulhac, Shaw

Hunter Ryan, Smiths Station

Tyler Simmons, Jordan

Savian Taylor, Smiths Station

Deondrae Williams, Smiths Station

Second Team

Clyde Albright, Hardaway

Cortlin Allen, Central

Baily Densel, Smiths Station

William Evans, Shaw

Quandaveus Gilliam, Central

Antonio Green, Central

Larry Green, Central

Jaylin Holiday, Northside

Malik Johnson, Central

Darren Jones, Central

Jaylen Madden, Smiths Station

Amari McNeil, Central

Christopher Phillips, Central

Alex Salgado, Columbus

Larry Scott, Chattahoochee County

Aleks Slavich, Brookstone

Shermar Taylor, Central

JaQuez Thompson, Central

Honorable Mention

Brookstone - Caleb Patillo; Central - Alonzo Fluellen; Chattahoochee Co. - Trevor Jackson; Hardaway - Michael Culp, Adrian Dunham, Marqui McCullum, Nigal Sumter; Harris County - Jaeden Alexander, Zebulon Kosobucki, Josh Trice, Connor Wills; Kendrick - Allandis Boyd, Stephon Williams; Northside - Keshaun Berry, Jaylin Holiday, Ben Thompson; Shaw - Mathew Alverson, Cameron Derrick, Roderick Winfrey, Cua'Sean Young; Smiths Station - Gabe Densel, Caleb Emory, Tallon Hairston, Chandler Moulton, Jalon Smith, Stevie Pringle; Spencer - Jordan Bryant

This story was originally published June 18, 2018 at 3:30 PM with the headline "The 2018 All-Bi-City Boys Track team is here. Check out who made this year’s squad.."