The Bulldogs track and field team is excited about the direction of the team as postseason meets approach.

The King’s Fork High School track and field season has been productive thus far. As the indoor season transitions into regional and state meets in the month of February, Bulldogs coach Shawn Warren is happy with where his team sits. The month of January was a bit rocky in regards to development because of the weather. King’s Fork wasn’t able to practice, but after watching his team compete in the Southeastern Invitational two weeks ago, Warren didn’t have any worries.

“After finally getting back on the track at the Southeastern Invitational, I can see that we’re not too far behind where we should be as we move towards regional and state competition,” Warren said.

Some of the returning athletes from last season have made progress. At the Bulldogs’ first meet, they had several athletes cut down on times that qualified them for state meets in the prior season. That leads to athletes being able to compete stress-free and not worry about a qualifying time.

King’s Fork has six athletes who have qualified for the Class 4 state meet. Nasir Davis qualified for both the 55-meter dash and the 300-meter dash. The Urbanski sisters, Imani and Amari, have qualified for state in the high jump. Bryan Walker and Tewan Hailes have qualified for the triple jump and long jump, respectively. Shamond Smith has qualified for state in the 1,000-meter long distance event.

“We’ll go as far as the mentioned athletes will take us,” Warren said. “We’re still stronger in the sprint events, but I’m excited about our chances of getting more qualifiers in some of the longer races, including the 500-meter dash and 1,600-meter run. Our boys’ 4×800 relay has a really good shot at advancing to state competition.”

When the Class 4 state meet comes around, Warren believes the Bulldogs can make their presence felt in events they have qualified in so far. It was evident last year as the boys’ 4×200 team was the runner-up in the state during the indoor season.

The last regular season meet for King’s Fork was canceled due to weather. However, Warren believes that has given King’s Fork a chance to heal any injuries. The recent warm weather gave the Bulldogs a chance to go throughout quality workouts that will hopefully show in future meets.