Fredericksburg-area track and field athletes took home both individual medals and team hardware this postseason.
Athletes from Courtland, Colonial Forge, James Monroe, and Massaponax high schools were a step ahead of the competition at their respective state competitions last weekend.
Courtland rising senior and second-year runner Kayden Whitaker didn’t just win races — he set records. He was named MVP of Courtland’s track team, earned all-Battlefield District honors and ran the 100-meter dash in 10.57 seconds, which now stands as a school record.
The accolades didn’t stop there.
Whitaker was voted Runner of the Year after earning the most regional votes from area track coaches. His older brother, Kwame Whitaker Jr., was part of Courtland’s 400-meter relay unit that previously held a school record, but his younger sibling and three others broke the mark.
Kayden Whitaker, along with Anthony Marshall, Daijon Edwards, and Brayden Bachiller, eclipsed the record with a blazing time of 41.75 seconds to win the state championship at Liberty University in Lynchburg.
Whitaker said the camaraderie established with teammates like Marshall, Edwards and Bachiller was a highlight of his season.
One of the group’s most memorable moments came when Whitaker received the baton neck-and-neck with a Varina High runner, but burst past the field on the final leg, winning the Region 4B race by a tenth of a second.
Whitaker finished runner-up in the state in Class 4 in the 100 but took first place in the district and region competitions. He is now preparing for Adidas Nationals June 21-22 at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he’ll compete in the 100 and the 200 as well as the 400 relay.
“I really like my chances at nationals. I put in a lot of work over the last year,” he said.
His parents, Kwame Whitaker Sr. and Elena Whitaker, credit Courtland coach Kristen Lowery for shaping all three of their children — including daughter Akeila Edwards — into standout athletes.
“All of my kids have held state and school track records under Coach Lowery’s guidance. It’s just a testament to her coaching,” Elena Whitaker said.
The Colonial Forge boys captured the first track and field team state championship in Stafford County history last weekend. (Photo courtesy of Sean Hill)
Eagles’ boys soar to first team track title in county history
Just a few miles north in Stafford County, Colonial Forge head coach Sean Hill led the Eagles’ boys to the Class 6 state title. It is the first track and field team title in Stafford County history. Hill, a 2003 Colonial Forge alum, previously coached at Riverbend (2014–16) and returned to Forge as an assistant before becoming head coach this year.
This season, his son, Brian Harris, won the state triple jump title with a mark of 47 feet, 1¼ inches, and sophomore Taishaun Daniel took the state title in the high jump, clearing 6 feet, 8 inches. Harris has committed to Richard Bland College in Petersburg.
Hill’s 400 relay team of seniors Malik Dark, Harris, Matt Fisher, and Owen Sharlow didn’t just win the state title — they set the Class 6 state record with a time of 40.97 seconds. Fisher will continue his track career at George Mason University.
Looking back on the season, Hill said, “there were some good times and some bad times.”
His team battled injuries, and after losing regionals by just four points, they had a two-week recovery period and bounced back to win it all at the state meet at Todd Stadium in Newport News.
“The boys really stepped up,” Hill said.
It was a year of hard work for the Eagles. They practiced five days per week from 2:30–4 p.m. during the season. Hill said they had to “trust the process, not the outcome,” but the ending was sweet for Hill and his athletes.
“The work is done in practice,” Hill said. “I’m proud of the kids for banding together to make history.”
Forge’s 400 relay squad is preparing for the New Balance Nationals, held at the University of Pennsylvania June 19–22.
Fredericksburg area girls also stood out on the track at the state level. The James Monroe girls’ 400 relay team captured the Class 3 championship at Liberty with a time of 48.74 seconds. The squad features sophomores Zariya Cole and Finé Swain, junior Harmony Jones and freshman Jaziah Banks. They capped a dominant season that also included Battlefield District and Region 3B victories.
In the Class 5 boys 300-meter hurdles at Todd Stadium, nobody was better than Massaponax junior Davian Booker, who won his second straight state title with a time of 37.39 seconds. Booker was also the Commonwealth District and Region 5D champion. He’s the defending national champion in the 400 hurdles after capturing the crown at last year’s New Balance Nationals Outdoor meet.
The future is bright for track and field in the area, with Booker and several other athletes now preparing to compete on the national stage.
