CABOT -- Lexi and Tori Weeks of Cabot are trying to make their final high school track and field event one to remember for the hometown fans.
Lexi Weeks scored 2,760 points Wednesday and leads the 19th annual state high school heptathlon after four events, while twin sister Tori is third with 2,588 points going into the final day of competition at Cabot High School.
"Everything I did today, I was right around my PRs," said Lexi Weeks, who along with her sister helped lead Cabot to a runner-up finish in the Class 7A outdoor state championship May 7. "I was happy with all of the events I did."
Little Rock Parkview junior Jada Baylark scored 2,701 points Wednesday and trails Lexi Weeks by 59 points heading into the final three events.
Completing the top 10 are Pulaski Robinson's Asia Anderson (2,486 points), Clinton's Allie Hensley (2,479), Fayetteville's Lauren Holmes (2,437), Cabot's Danielle McWilliams (2,376), Fayetteville's McKenzie Penne (2,321), Forrest City's Nikirah McKinney (2,318) and Des Arc's Kirby Smith (2,283).
While Baylark won the 200-meters in 24.92 seconds to earn 894 points, Lexi Weeks' fifth-place finish in 25.68 earned her 825 points and was enough to propel Weeks into the lead at the conclusion of the first day. Tori Weeks was seventh in the 200 in 26.02.
Baylark also recorded the fastest time in the 100-meter high hurdles (14.71), ahead of Lexi Weeks (14.86) and Penne (15.69), and earned 880 points.
Lexi Weeks topped Baylark in the long jump with a leap of 17 feet, 11 inches, earning 688 points. Baylark leaped 17-9 inches and Tori Weeks was third at 17-8.75.
Hensley won the discus with a throw of 107 feet, 4 inches, ahead of Genoa Central's Eden Crow (106-7) and Smith (101-10 1/2). The 514 points Hensley earned in the event helped her move into the top five.
Cabot Coach Leon White said he was pleased with the Weeks' performances Wednesday.
"We hope they're on pace to do something special," White said. "We know the Parkview girl is good. We know there's a girl from Ashdown [Shacoya Poole, who is in 11th] that's good and a few others. But we feel like they have a good chance to be in the top three."
Baylark won three individual state titles at the Class 6A state meet May 7 at Lake Hamilton, earning victories in the triple jump, the 100-meter hurdles and the 100 meters and finished second in the 200. She followed that up by winning the 100 meters, the 100-meter hurdles and setting a state record in the triple jump with a leap of 40-7 1/2 Saturday at the Meet of Champions in Russellville.
Lexi Weeks is one of the nation's top pole vaulters -- she set a state record at the Meet of Champs by clearing 14-2 -- but that doesn't help her in the heptathlon because the pole vault isn't among the competition's seven events. She said she understood what she was up against coming into the heptathlon and used it as motivation.
"I knew my sister and Jada were my biggest competition," Lexi Weeks said. "I knew in the sprints [Baylark] is faster than I am. The long jump, I barely beat her out, and in the discus I tried to widen the gap a little bit to stay ahead."
Competition resumes at 10 a.m. today, with athletes competing in the high jump, the shot put and the 800 meters.
Tori Weeks said she and her sister shouldn't be affected by competing in seven events spread over two days, and she expects a strong finish.
"We do six events every meet, so it's not that much different," Tori Weeks said. "We have to stay rested and stay in the shade, but we're used to this."
Sports on 05/21/2015