GREENSBORO — This weekend’s 1-A state championship track meet proved relatively fruitful for Southside. Over 20 Seahawks made the trip to North Carolina A&T. Eminey Redmond was the team’s lone medalist — a fourth-place finish in the long jump.

As a team, Southside had eight top-10 finishes. Coach Andrea Quinerly believed that some of his athletes had the potential to finish higher, but was still pleased with the overall effort.

“The one thing I can say positive about it is the kids gave their best effort I thought,” he said. “A lot of them had some shaken nerves, but we gained a lot of experience for a very young group. … I told them they had nothing to be ashamed of coming in in various places. A lot of kids across the state didn’t have that opportunity. For them to be there, I’m extremely proud of them.”

Quinerly was confident that Raekwon Mourning would take home a medal in the shot put, but he finished sixth.

“I was really hoping for Raekwon. I really thought he was going to place in the top three,” Quinerly said. “He came in sixth and there’s nothing wrong with that. He’s been nothing but positive all year. He’s been a first-place finisher up until states.”

Among the most promising groups for Southside moving forward are the relay teams. The girls’ 4×400- and boys’ 4×400- and 4×800-meter relays team will return in their entirety.

One of the team’s better performances came in an exciting 4×200-meter relay saw Southside finish sixth. The only member that group will lose is soon-to-be graduate Lawrence Brown.

“They put in a lot of effort. They’re a young group and I know they’re going to rebound,” Quinerly said.

More valuable than any medal or top finish is the experience gained by this young group. The stage can oftentimes be intimidating for younger athletes. Quinerly expects the team’s freshmen and sophomores will learn from their trip to Greensboro and use it to build toward something grander in the future.

“You could see it on their faces a little bit and it took them a while to get adjusted,” Quinerly said. “I think they’re going to do very well because now they’ve seen it. They’re already expressed to me that next year they know what to do and what to expect.”

As a team, Southside’s boys ranked 34th in the state in the 1-A classification. The girls finished at 25th. Individually, Andrea Waters placed ninth in shot put, Lawrence Brown finished 10th in the long jump, Redmond also picked up a seventh-place finish in the 400-meter dash, Ronald Dennis finished 14th in the 110-meter hurdles, Jonquil Haywood finished 14th in the 800-meter run and Brianna McLaurin finished 13th in the 100-meter hurdles. The boys’ 4×800-meter relay team finished 13th and the Lady Seahawks finished 12th in the event. The girls took sixth in the 4×400-meter relay while the boys finished seventh.