With her final year of high school still ahead, Signal Mountain track and field standout Marlee Burkley has already tied a Lady Eagles program record with six individual state titles.
For the second year in a row, she won TSSAA Class AA championships in the 100-meter hurdles, high jump and pentathlon. Burkley also became the program’s all-time leader in state meet scoring.
McKenzie Ethridge, who was a senior in 2016 and went on to run at Mississippi State, is the only other athlete in program history with six individual state titles, and she was also part of the 4×100 relay teams that won state titles her final two prep seasons.
Burkley has set seven program records over the past two seasons, with those in the 400-meter run (58.46 seconds), 100 hurdles (14.71), 300 hurdles (44.02), high jump (5 feet, 8 inches), long jump (18-1.5), pentathlon (3,615 points) and heptathlon (4,718).
She also doesn’t limit her track and field competition to Signal Mountain’s schedule, with Burkley taking part in the sport on a year-round basis. Burkley was ninth overall in the heptathlon at the New Balance Nationals Outdoor meet for high school athletes last weekend at the University of Pennsylvania, where she competed against elite competitors from eight states.
And late Thursday night, when the Tennessee Sports Writers Association’s all-state track and field teams were released, she was among 37 Chattanooga-area athletes included, with Burkley and Tyner’s Kohl Ward the only two who were all-state honorees in four events. The top three finishers in each individual event at state across five TSSAA classifications receive all-state recognition.
“I have become very passionate about this sport, and I enjoy working hard to reach my goals,” Burkley — who also has a 4.0 GPA and is a member of her school’s Beta Club, Leo Club and National Honor Society chapter — wrote in a text message to the Times Free Press. “It brings me joy to be a part of such an amazing and supportive team. I enjoy building my teammates up and seeing them achieve their PRs (personal records).
“My faith and family have been the foundation of my success. I pray I continue to encourage those around me, achieve my goals and surround myself with a supportive network of friends and family.”
Ward, a sophomore this past season, set a Rams record at the Class A state meet during the Spring Fling last month in Murfreesboro, where he won the triple jump on his fourth and final attempt while covering 44 feet, 4 inches. That surpassed the program record of 43-10.25 set by Jeremy Mitchell in 2003.
Ward, who is also a dynamic point guard in basketball, set another program record the week before that as he scored 5,154 points in the state decathlon on his way to a third-place finish in the classification. He also earned all-state status in both boys’ hurdles events (110, 300).
A trio of athletes from area boys’ programs earned three all-state honors apiece, with each doing so in his final prep season: McCallie’s Jack Bowen (800, 1600, 3200), Silverdale Baptist Academy’s Liam Runkle (110 hurdles, 300 hurdles, 200), and Baylor’s Gilbert Stein (110 hurdles, 300 hurdles, triple jump). Bowen and Stein each helped his team to a top-five finish at the Division II-AA meet, while Runkle won four state titles in all at the DII-A meet, where he was part of the group that won the 4×400 mixed relay as the Seahawks finished fifth in the overall team standings.
There were 17 area athletes who earned all-state status in two events: Boyd Buchanan’s Edith McCall (800, pentathlon), Jayden Moore (100, 200) and Will White (discus, shot put); Brainerd’s Danielle Dunning (100, 200), Alexander Powell (110 hurdles, 300 hurdles) and Maliyah Roseberry (100, 200); McCallie’s Andrew Smith (100, 200) and DeShun Tipton (long jump, triple jump); Signal Mountain’s Maxine Richards (800, 1600) and Hudson Sveadas (discus, shot put); Tyner’s Karontae Cunningham (100, 200) and Adajah Nixon (100 hurdles, 300 hurdles); Arts & Sciences’ Fiona Eastman (100 hurdles, 300 hurdles); Chattanooga Christian’s Zachary Youngblood (1600, 3200); CSLA’s Kennedi Winbush (100, 400); Marion County’s Chris Graver (discus, shot put); and Silverdale Baptist’s Kaylen Owen (200, 300 hurdles).
The other all-state honorees from the area: Boyd Buchanan’s Lesley Burton (shot put), Hudson Highfield (110 hurdles) and Ireland O’Connor (high jump); Tyner’s Joslyn Brookins (high jump), Kingston Brown (200) and Caleb Jones (200); CSAS athletes Ashton Biggs (800) and Jace Bone (400); Baylor’s Ellie Higgs (shot put); Brainerd’s Alexander Powell (300 hurdles); GPS athlete Mariah Ivery (400); Hixson’s Matthew Murphy (triple jump); Signal Mountain’s Aiden Haun (800); Skyuka Hall’s Logan Smith (pole vault); and South Pittsburg’s Jaylee Johnson (long jump).
Contact Patrick MacCoon at pmaccoon@timesfreepress.com.