Affectionately nicknamed by coaches "Texas Relays North," the Jesuit-Sheaner Relays serves as an early proving ground each spring for waves of high school track and field athletes.
The 52nd edition of the meet Friday and Saturday at Jesuit Prep expects participants from over 150 schools. As testament to the quality, 30 UIL state champions will be competing.
Intriguing matchups abound, but the girls 4x100-meter relay offers a "true rarity," according to the meet's namesake, because it brings together the four best times in the nation: DeSoto, 45.12 seconds; Cedar Hill, 45.39; Mesquite Horn, 46.01; and Arlington Seguin, 46.20.
"This race is one of the top events of the meet," said Herb Sheaner, the revered coach at Jesuit from 1955-75. "It is a race of speed and handoff precision. No girl can mess up."
Against top-flight competition, playing it safe on baton passes is not likely to get the job done, even for DeSoto.
With a lineup of four juniors, Shavonne Jackson, Kira White, Zaria Whittaker and Alexis Duncan, DeSoto put its stamp on the event in the Class 6A division of the state meet last May with a gold medal time of 45.38. The Lady Eagles have already bettered that time and could be thinking about the state record time of 44.60 set by Skyline in 2004.
"We're ahead of schedule with our times," DeSoto coach June Villers said. "This time of year, we are usually in the low 46s. This is a really talented group of seniors."
Cedar Hill finished sixth at state last May and return seniors Breayna Peavie-Johnson and Danyel White, along with junior Jazmyn Shumaker. Senior I'Shunique Hamilton has been plugged in at the anchor spot in early meets.
The Lady Longhorns have enjoyed more success recently in the 4x200 relay, having captured gold at the state meet last year.
Horn has the youngest lineup of the four contenders. Senior Devin Johnson gets the baton last after juniors Taylor Blackshire and Kaylor Harris on the first and third legs, sandwiched around sophomore Jada Laye. Harris owns the meet record 100-meter time of 11.83 set last year.
Seguin's 4x100 lineup of Laterria Gooding, Tonea Marshall, Toni Garrett and Aubrey Ridgeway finished second at the 2015 Class 5A state meet with a 46.51 time.
Other intriguing confrontations:
The 6A boys 4x400 relay features Houston Strake Jesuit, with the second-best time in the nation, along with No. 3 Arlington Bowie and No. 8 Arlington Martin.
In the 6A boys 1,600-meter run, Reed Brown of Southlake Carroll is No. 1 in the state. He will go against a top-flight field that includes No. 2 Michael Butero of The Woodlands.
There is a potential matchup between girls 2015 state 100 hurdles champions, DeSoto's Duncan in 6A and Seguin's Marshall in 5A.
Michael Carter's longstanding shot put record of 70-1/4, set in 1979, could be challenged by Adrian Piperi of The Woodlands.
52nd Jesuit-Sheaner Relays
When: Friday: 3,200 meter run at 6:30 p.m.; Saturday: Field events begin at 8 a.m., morning running session begins at 9 a.m., running finals begin at 2 p.m.
Where: Jesuit Prep, 12345 Inwood Rd., Dallas
Admission: $5 adults, $3 students
Information: jsrelays.orgã
52nd Jesuit-Sheaner Relays athletes to watch
| Athlete | School | Cl. | Notable |
| Carter Blunt | Frisco Independence | Sr. | Has a chance to become the first male three-time state champion of the distance double (3,200-1,600) in the same season as a state cross country title. |
| Reed Brown | Southlake Carroll | Jr. | SportsDay newcomer of the year in 2015 took Class 6A silver at state in the 3,200 and 1,600. |
| Austin Carbone | Rich. Berkner | Jr. | Owns best area 100 time so far, 10.50 seconds at Coppell meet on Feb. 27. |
| Alexis Duncan | DeSoto | Sr. | Hurdler doubled for state titles, added another gold on 4x100 relay a year ago. |
| London Dunn | DeSoto | Jr. | Vital cog for the Eagles in the 100 as well as the 4x100 and 4x200 relays a year ago. |
| Kaylor Harris | Mesquite Horn | Jr. | Nothing but gold so far in three meets in sprints, long jump and relays. |
| Tonea Marshall | Arl. Seguin | Sr. | LSU signee won 2 golds, 2 silvers in hurdles, long jump and sprints at 2015 state meet. |
| Aaliyah Miller | McKinney Boyd | Sr. | Coming off two gold medals at Class 6A state in the 400 and 800. |
| Jasmine Moore | Mansfield L. Ridge | Fr. | Impressive performance at Skyline meet with wins in long jump (19-10.5) and triple jump (38-4). |
| Kene Nwangwu | Frisco Heritage | Sr. | Picking up where he left off last season with a 24-5 long jump. |
| William Petersson | Frisco Centennial | Sr. | Leads the area with a discus throw of 194 feet, eight inches. |
| Keshun Reed | Arl. Martin | Sr. | Versatile sprinter captured the 6A state 400-meter state last year with a 45.75 time. |
| Danyel White | Cedar Hill | Sr. | 6A Region I champion in the 200 went on to take third at state as a junior. |
| Kira White | DeSoto | Sr. | Narrowly missed the state gold medal in the 6A 100, settled for silver. |
Other boys
| Name | School | Cl. | Event |
| Iyanu Adeyeye | Mansfield L. Ridge | Sr. | High jump |
| Tyrell Alexander | Lancaster | Sr. | Hurdles |
| Jostyn Andrews | Skyline | Sr. | Sprints |
| Bryce Douglas | Allen | Sr. | Hurdles |
| Christian Cannon | Frisco Wakeland | Sr. | Pole vault |
| Collin Echols | Coppell | Sr. | Discus |
| Rickey Fantroy | McKinney | Sr. | Triple jump |
| Kevin Steward | Red Oak | Sr. | Discus, shot put |
| David Strome | Col. Heritage | Sr. | Distance |
| Peyton Weissman | Grapevine | Jr. | Pole vault |
Other girls
| Morgan Burks-McGee | Rockwall-Heath | Jr. | Sprints |
| Halie Daniel | Wylie East | Sr. | Shot put |
| Ariel Ford | Mansfield L. Ridge | So. | 200 |
| Jhane King | Keller Timber Creek | Sr. | 400 |
| Bailey Lear | McKinney | So. | 400 |
| Rose Njoku | Rockwall | Sr. | Shot put |
| Oghale Omakor | Cedar Hill | So. | Triple jump |
| Jordan Otto | Rich. Pearce | Sr. | Jumps |
| Richon Rogers | Arl. Bowie | Sr. | Discus |
| Ivy Walker | Mansfield Summit | Sr. | Long, triple jump |
Boys teams to watch
Arlington Martin: Best 6A area finish (fifth) at the state meet a year ago and among its returnees is 800-meter specialist Cade Bethmann.
DeSoto: Eagles were bitten by the injury bug at the Region I meet and settled for seventh at 6A state a year ago with 23 points.
Lancaster: The Region II champion last spring went on to a runner-up finish at Class 5A state a year ago.ã
Girls teams to watch
Arlington Seguin: Defending Class 5A state champion returns all of its point scorers from last year's state meet.
DeSoto: Two state titles and a runner-up finish at the last three state meets.
Lancaster: Under coach Bev Humphrey the Lady Tigers have won 17 regional titles and 11 state crowns. ã
Key dates
March 30-April 2: 89th Nike Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays
April 16: UIL district certification
April 23: UIL area certification
April 29-30: UIL regional meets
May 6-7: TAPPS state meet
May 12-14: UIL state meet