Photo by Sam Chandler
Drew Williams
Mountain Brook's Drew Williams leads the pack in the Class 7A boys 1,600 meters at the 2016 AHSAA State Indoor Track and Field Championships.
The Mountain Brook High School boys 4x800-meter relay team has already proven it’s the best in the state.
Now, the Spartan quartet will be vying for best in the nation.
Composed of Drew Williams, Gram Denning, Griffin Riley and Charlie Slaughter, the team will compete on Saturday at New Balance Nationals Indoor, the de facto national championship of high school track and field.
Held at The Armory in New York, New York, the elite meet attracts top individuals and relays from across the country.
Given their recent performances, the Spartan squad should have no problem matching up against the competition.
At February’s AHSAA State Indoor Track and Field Championships, the quartet clinched the 7A title in a state meet and Birmingham CrossPlex-record time of 7 minutes, 57.93 seconds.
Coincidentally, the team they edged out for first place at state, Hoover High School, will be in their same heat at the national meet.
Officially running under the tag Mountain Brook Track Club, the Spartan squad is slated to race Saturday at 6:35 p.m. (EST) in the first section of the Boys Championship division.
A top-six finish would seal All-America status.
To note, Williams and Denning will also compete as individuals in the mile.
Williams, the reigning 1,600-meter indoor state champion, will run in the Championship division, while Denning will compete in the Freshman division.
Frances Patrick, Mountain Brook's lone female representative, will race in the Emerging Elite division of the women's mile.
