Special to the LPJ
BATON ROUGE — Ruston High finished its 2025 outdoor track and field season this weekend at the LHSAA State Championships with multiple runners-up and a new school record in the discus.
Our team showed tremendous heart, toughness, and resilience at the 5A State Meet,” Ruston High head track coach Trey Smith said. “From start to finish, these athletes gave everything they had, and I’m incredibly proud of the way they represented our school. Journi Douglas set the tone with a new school record in the discus (134’2”) and a well-earned state runner-up performance. Both our girls’ (Parker Nations, Hallie Hebert, Maddy Parkman, Eden Dawsey 9:41.76) and boys’ (Gabe Mhire, Josiah Finley, Joshua Daulton, Taylor Huddleston 8:08.63) 4x800m relays earned spots on the podium with gutsy, well-executed races, and our boys’ (Jayden Anding, Malcolm Pierce, Josiah Finley, Kemondrick Hunter) 4x400m relay capped the meet with a thrilling runner-up finish in 3:19.99.
“T’Avion Clark’s third-place finish in the 400m (54.75), along with scoring efforts from Maggie Rogers in the javelin (110’4”), Kaleb Williams in the shot put (51’10.5”), and all of our relay teams, showed just how deep and determined this group is. Athletes like Eden Dawsey, Hallie Hebert, Jayden Anding, Kemondrick Hunter, Malcolm Pierce, Josiah Morgan, and Josiah Finley poured everything they had into multiple events, and that kind of leadership is what makes this team special. This meet was the result of months of sacrifice, training, and believing in each other. Every point mattered, and every athlete played a part. I couldn’t ask for a better group to coach or staff to work with.”
See below for notable finishes.
State Runners-Up (2nd) :
Journi Douglas – Discus (134’2”) – NEW SCHOOL RECORD
4x800m Relay – Parker Nations, Hallie Hebert, Maddy Parkman, Eden Dawsey (9:41.76)
4x400m Relay – Jayden Anding, Malcolm Pierce, Josiah Finley, Kemondrick Hunter (3:19.99)
(3rd place) :
T’Avion Clark – 400m (54.75)
4x800m Relay – Gabe Mhire, Josiah Finley, Joshua Daulton, Taylor Huddleston (8:08.63)
Other Scoring Performances (4th-6th):
Maggie Rogers – 4th Place Javelin (110’4”)
4x100m Relay – Jayden Anding, Darius James, Josiah Morgan, Kemondrick Hunter 5th Place (41.53) 4x200m Relay – Kemondrick Hunter, Malcolm Pierce, Josiah Morgan, Jayden Anding 5th Place (1:27.28)
Sydney Owens – 5th Place 1600m (5:34.49)
Eden Dawsey – 5th Place 800m (2:20.80)
Kaleb Williams – 6th Place Shot Put (51’10.5”)
4x400m Relay – Anna Claire Williams, Diana Santos, T’Avion Clark, Eden Dawsey 6th Place (4:02.70)
