All-Area Athletes & Teams
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1503113
Page 18 www.yoursun.com GIRLS TRACK MALIA HAMBRICK NORTH PORT Freshman North Port High School athlete Malia Hambrick had high expectations when she arrived at the school last fall, and she exceeded them. Hambrick was named the Sun Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year to go along with her award in cross country, making her the only area athlete to win two POY awards. As a soccer player and cross-coun- try star, it made sense she would make her living in the medium- and long-distance events. And at least in this area, she dominated from the very beginning. Despite a late start due to playing soccer, Hambrick won 23 events as a freshman, either in relays or individually. She won six 800-meter events and four 1600-meter runs. Hambrick won the 800 meters and was part of the 4x800 winning team in her first meet, the Bobcat Relays.. It went on from there, with her winning the 1600 at the Riverview Invite and the 800 at the North Port Invite, and both the 800 and 1600 at the Sarasota County and Lakewood Ranch meets within a week of each other. Her best performance was at the Pepsi Florida Relays, one of the biggest meets in the state. She finished fourth in the 800 with a time of 2:16.21, serving as a preview of things to come. Hambrick started to hit her peak in the postseason. She won the 800, 4x400 and 4x800 in the District 4A-8 meet and was second in the 1600. At the Region 4A-2 meet, Hambrick passed on the 1600 to concentrate on the other events, winning the 800 with a time of 2:15.88 and placing fifth in the 4x400. In the state meet, Hambrick topped herself in the 800 with a career-best 2:15.32 to bring home the silver and take some of the sting away from a disappointing 4x800 relay result. BOYS TRACK BRAYAN AUGUSTIN CHARLOTTE In track and field, most people either excel on the track or in the field. Charlotte High School athlete Bryan Augustin excelled in both in his time, and it has resulted in him being named the Sun 2022-23 Boys Track Athlete of the Year. In a four-year career that was interrupted by COVID, he was able to improve his personal bests to the point where they became school records, like in the long jump. This past year, Augustin was able to focus full-time on track with no need to attend spring football as a senior. The winter track season prepared him for the spring. He started with runner-up finishes in the long jump at the Legends of Alachua Invitational and the Florida Indoor Championships before winning three events at the Shark Invite, including the 4x100 relay. At the Charlotte Invitational in March, he set a personal best in the long jump at 7.11 meters, briefly holding the school record until teammate and friendly rival Avant Harris broke it at 7.15, and a first in the 4x100 relay. Later, he set a PR in the 100 at 11.26 at the IMG Academy Invitational and in the high jump at the District 3A-11 meet at 1.87 meters. Augustin was consistent in the postseason in the long jump, winning the district and regional titles with jumps just over seven meters while attaining a school record in regionals in the 4x100 relay at 41.50 seconds. At states, Augustin finished sev- enth in the long jump at 6.88 meters in a slight headwind, and eighth in the 4x100. Augustin will attend college at Lenoir-Rhyne University in North Carolina, where he will run track. SPRING FROM PAGE 17A SUN FILE PHOTO BY TOM O'NEILL Charlotte's Brayan Augustin competes in the long jump during the Tarpon Classic track meet this past March at Charlotte High School.