JACKSONVILLE — In six days, Chaise Cook-Martin will announce which college she is attending this fall.
But first things first.
“I wanted to go into college with a state title,” said Cook-Martin.
And Friday at the University of North Florida she made it so.
In her fourth year competing at state, the Boca Ciega senior finally broke through in her marquee event, the triple jump, soaring 38 feet, 4 inches to win an elusive gold medal.
Cook-Martin joined Gibbs’ Trayvon Bromell, who won the 100 meters and anchored the Gladiators’ winning 4x100 team that included Emmanuel Stewart, Damien Daniels and Jaquez President, as Class 3A gold medalists from Pinellas County.
Bromell also took second in the 200, giving Gibbs 28 points, good enough for fourth place, the best team finish in school history.
“I’m very proud of them,” coach Anthony Givins said. “If we could have gotten a few more through, I think we could have won this thing. But they had a great season.”
Bromell won his 100 in 10.45 seconds, and ran the 200 in 21.41.
Gibbs’ time in the 4x100 was 42.26, far off its best time of the year but strong considering the windy, wet conditions.
The bad weather wore down Cook-Martin, but not before she was able to get in her winning jump in a drizzle before the heavier rains, and the temperature, started to fall.
“The rain started to take a toll,” she said. “My bones and muscles started aching. By the time the finals came, it was impossible to keep my body warm.”
Cook-Martin and Hallandale’s Lia King were the only jumpers to clear 37 feet, each doing it three times.
Cook-Martin won the first state title for girls track at Boca Ciega since Neidra Covington won the long jump in 2005.
For Cook-Martin, it was a satisfying end to her prep career, which included a sixth-place finish in 2010, fourth in 2011 and third last year.
“I was really positive about this year and I knew it was going to happen,” she said. “There was pressure, but positive pressure. I just really wanted to do this for my school …and I wanted to (reward) those who have been behind me, and be someone they can brag to their friends about.”
The only county athlete to score in three events Friday other than Bromell was Dunedin’s Ahmad Middleton.
The junior finished fifth in the 300 hurdles (39.79), sixth in long jump (22-10.5) and seventh in the 110 hurdles (14.82).
Osceola had pair of pole vaulters score, as sophomore Jennifer Kistemaker finished fourth (9-6) in the girls competition and Carson Waters was the fifth-best boy with a vault of 13-6.
3A meet at Jacksonville
Girls
Team results: 1 Miami Northwestern 74.50, 22 Boca Ciega 10, 43 Osceola 4.50, 47 Largo 3
Individual results: High jump: 1 Greene (PV) 5-05.00; pole vault: 1 Fowlie (Cha) 11-00.00, 4 Kistemaker (Osc) 9-06.00; long jump: 1 Williams (Hal) 18-07.50, 10 Cook-Martin (BC) 17-00.25; triple jump: 1 Cook-Martin (BC) 38-04.00, 6 Brown (Lar); discus: 1 Cameron (Nor) 146-08; shot put: 1 Cameron (Nor) 44-03.25; shot put adaptive: 1 Norton (Bel) 17-05.75; 4x800: 1 Estero (Cline, Slater, Solis, Smith) 9:26.58; 100 hurdles: 1 Whitaker (PF) 13.92; 100: 1 Whitney (ER) 11.79; 1,600: 1 Edwards (FM) 5:00.60; 4x100: 1 Stanton (Long, Taralyn and Kayla Heard, Chambers) 48.90; 400: 1 Wimbley (Dil) 55.69; 300 hurdles: 1; 800: 1 Zarrella (LR) 2:16.45; 800 adaptive: 1 Norton (Bel) 3:02.75; 200: 1 Whitney (ER) 23.40; 200 adaptive: 1 Norton (Bel) 37.15; 3,200: 1 Givens (Chi) 11:00.25; 4x400: 1 Miami Northwestern (Williams, Baker, Springer, Harris) 3:57.82
Boys
Team results: 1 Bartram Trail 47, 4 Gibbs 28, 22 Dunedin 9, 41 Osceola 4
Individual results: High jump: 1 Harris (Spr) 6-02.00; pole vault: 1 Akins (Cel) 14-06.00, 5 Waters (Osc) 13-06.00; long jump: 1 Webb (Gai) 23-04.50, 6 Middleton (Dun) 22-10.50; triple jump: 1 Green (Hil) 48-02.00; discus: 1 Droogsma (GB) 183-03; shot put: 1 Droogsma (GB) 57-02.50; shot put adaptive: 1 Giardino (Lec) 23-02.00; 4x800: 1 Belen Jesuit (Rojo, Isaac, Rosete, Lopez) 8:01.98; 110 hurdles: 1 Burns (Nor) 14.31, 7 Middleton (Dun) 14.82, 9 Daniels (Gib) 15.12; 100: 1 Bromell (Gib) 10.45; 1,600: 1 Morken (Nic) 4:23.79; 4x100: 1 Gibbs (Stewart, Bromell, President, Daniels) 42.26; 400: 1 Uruburu (BT) 48.28; 300 hurdles: 1 Burns (Nor) 38.33, 5 Middleton (Dun) 39.79; 800: 1 Moore (Jef) 1:55.21; 800 adaptive: 1 Giardino (Lec) 2:53.30; 200: 1 Williams (Sta) 21.12, 2 Bromell (Gib); 200 adaptive: 1 Gibbs (Van) 38.31; 3,200: 1 Howell (Nic) 9:34.67, 10 Stahl (LOL) 9:58.42; 4x400: 1 Bartram Trail (Martin, Taylor, Davis, Uruburu) 3:19.86