By Dave Ryan

LANDOVER – Enazajah Young and Tori Willis Jr. came back from the western shore on Tuesday evening with their Cambridge-South Dorchester High School track and field teammates, accompanied by a police escort.

It must have been the treasure they were carrying – three gold medals.

Enazajah, or “Bop” as she’s known to her friends, earned not one, but two Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association state championships. Simply put, she’s the fastest girl in in Class 1A’s 55-meter dash (7.27 seconds) and 55-meter hurdles (8.25).

It’s familiar territory for her – Bop took the top spot in the 55 during the 2023 winter season as well, with a time of 7.37 seconds.

Willis, who finished his race in 6.50 seconds, has also made his mark in the hurdles, after earning a state title in the 300-meter event during the 2023 spring season.

In Maryland high school track and field, there is a winter season, with 13 events – 10 on the track, two jumps and one throw - held indoors. During the spring, outdoor season starting on March 1, there are 18 events – 12 on the track, four jumps and two throws.

Public schools are divided into four classes: 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A, depending on the number of students. The smallest 25% of schools are in 1A, the next greater 25% in 2A, and so on.

There are 50 schools in Class 1A, though not all qualified athletes at the regionals for the finals, or scored when they got there.

Points are awarded in each event down to eighth place, 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1. When it was all said and done, C-SD’s men placed fifth, with 44 points, of 29 schools that scored.

Other Vikings’ men who scored were:

Tekai Drummond, 800 meters, 7^th, 2:05.66

Tori Willis Jr., 55-meter hurdles, 5^th, 7.96

Antonio Blueford, 55-meter hurdles, 6^th, 7.96 (results are published down to the hundredth of a second, but can be recorded in the thousandths.

Teshar Drummond, Kay’Ion Marine, William Jackson and Jakuez Snead, 4x200-meter relay, 3^rd, 1:35.31

Teshar Drummond, Tekai Drummond, Tori Willis Jr., Antonio Blueford, 4x400 relay, 2^nd, 3:33.71

Christen Dockins, Tori Willis Jr., Tekai Drummond, Teshar Drummond, 4x800 relay, 8^th, 9:00.36

Jakuez Snead, shot put, 8^th, 41’ 6.25”

William Jackson, high jump, 8^th, 5’ 8”

William Jackson, pole vault, 13’

The other C-SD woman who scored was Al’Janae Jackson, who tied for 7^th place in the pole vault, with a personal-best jump of 7’ 9”.

Catoctin won the men’s team title, with 62 points. Other Eastern Shore schools on the scoreboard were Kent County, 8^th, 20 points; Mardela, 12^th, 11 points; Snow Hill, 17^th, 7 points; and Bohemia Manor, 21^st, 6 points.

Among the women’s teams, C-SD placed 7^th of 27 teams, with 21.5 points. Smithsburg took the women’s title with 92 points. Other Eastern Shore teams which scored were Snow Hill, 15^th, 8 points; Bohemia Manor and Kent County, included in a four-way tie for 20^th, with 4 points; and Colonel Richardson, tied for 26^th with 1 point.

Shamya Stover, who leads the C-SD girls’ varsity basketball team, was bursting with pride when she heard the news about the track stars and the boys’ basketball team’s winning the Bayside Conference Championship. She posted online, “We will write our own narrative! It’s always them for me! Look at the talent at our school! That’s why we go so hard for our students.”