JACKSONVILLE — Bishop Moore captured the first track and field state championship in school history on Saturday when its boys team stocked with multi-sport athletes won the Class 2A team title at the University of North Florida.
Hornets junior Chandler “C.J.” Smith, a major college football prospect, led the way with victories worth 10 points in the 100- and 200-meter dashes. Marc Morrison, a senior who earned All-State recognition as a football receiver, added a win in the long jump and second place in the triple jump, and senior pole vaulter Justin Kern took second in his specialty to provide the clinching points.
Bishop Moore outscored Satellite 64 points to 59 one week after finishing second to the Scorpions in FHSAA region competition.
Morrison, a UConn track and field signee, said last year’s cancellation of state playoffs due to the COVID-19 outbreak made the Hornets a team hungry for success.
“Once we came into this season we were fired up,” he said. “We were on a mission to win it all. We knew we had a squad.”
His jump marks were 23-31/4 in the long jump and a career-best 46-43/4 in the triple.
Charles Rolenc, a senior who is headed to West Point with plans to play college football for Army, set a school shot put record with a heave of 53-feet, 21/4 inches to place third and add six more crucial points.
The Hornets added a fifth-place finish in the 4×800 relay.
“Our faith is huge for us,” said Carolista Ware, Bishop Moore’s ninth-year head coach for boys and girls track. “And I think multi-sport athletes make a huge difference at our school. As coaches, we try to encourage that and it really helps us.”
The best previous boys state track finish for Bishop Moore, which opened as Orlando’s Catholic high school in 1954, was a seventh place showing in 1983.
Smith, the state leader in the 100, shook off a slow start to win that race with a 10.50-second time and then dominated the 200 with a 21.01 mark that is his wind-legal best.
“It feels amazing. Beyond blessed,” Smith said of the victories. “It’s crazy to make history like this for our school.”
The Hornets’ victory on top of a Class 1A championship won by Mount Dora Christian on Friday gave the Orlando area two boys track title teams in the same year for the first time since 1966, when Sanford Seminole and the old Clermont High School were victorious.
Montverde Academy had three individual champions in senior Weston Baptiste, junior Lily Henne and ninth grader Alex Georgiev.
Baptiste, who came in as the national No. 2 in the boys 400, had to work to win that event with a 47.00 time. He trailed Torrie Cox of Hollywood Chaminade-Madonna most of the way before winning with his last few strides as both lunged to the finish line.
“I’m not going to lie, I was surprised when I saw Torrie coming up on the inside,” said Baptiste, a Georgia Tech signee. “I knew I had to dig deep. I really wanted that win.”
Georgiev had the same 15-3 pole vault clearance as Kern but won the state championship based on fewer misses. Georgiev was the state middle school champ as a seventh grader then made big improvements this year after the COVID-19 shutdown ended. He now is one of the top freshman in the country with his best of 15-5.
“I ran cross country for awhile, then I tried the pole vault,” Georgiev said. “Soon enough I took a liking to it.”
Henne won the girls 1,600 with her career-best time of 5 minutes, 1.77 seconds and later placed second in the 3,200 to lead the Eagles to third in the girls team standings behind Jacksonville Bolles and South Walton.
Montverde senior Kai Eisenhardt was runner-up in the girls pole vault.
Lake Highland Prep senior Samuel Miller was the boys 300 hurdles runner-up with a personal best 38.90 time.
Trinity Prep junior Nick Carpenter, the area boys 3,200 leader, placed second in that event with a 9:17.09 clocking. Saints eighth grader Victoria Hill finished third in the girls triple jump and fourth in the long jump.
This story was first published at OrlandoSentinel.com. Varsity Content Editor Buddy Collings contributed to this story. He can be reached by email at bcollings@orlandosentinel.com.
