ROCKY POINT — Southside overcame a handful of injuries to win the 1-A eastern regional meet this past weekend. A total of 21 Seahawks and Lady Seahawks, plus three alternates, will travel to Greensboro on Friday to compete for state championships.

Coach Andrea Quinerly and the team were confident in their ability to send a handful of competitors to the state championship. Winning the region as a team — especially considering the injuries — was a pleasant surprise. Younger Seahawks stepped in and filled the openings to ensure that the team wouldn’t miss a beat.

“We lost our first leg (of our 4×400-meter relay team) and he had been a factor all year,” Quinerly said. “Yahkeil White, I was very impressed with him. We’ll get our other guy, Jamison Bennett, back for states. I’m looking forward to th4 4×400 to have a good time there.”

It was just as important for the team’s top athletes to work to their potential, too. As important as the somewhat surprising efforts were from some younger runners, Quinerly had expectations for a lot of the older, more experienced Seahawks.

Among them was Raekwon Mourning. He went into the regional meet ranked fourth in the shot put. He ended up taking home a medal as the top competitor.

“I expected him to win,” Quinerly said. “There were three guys going in with better throws than him, but I just felt good about him coming out victorious because he’s actually thrown his competition the whole year. He got first in the region for the second year in a row.”

Other No. 1 finishes included Briana McLaurin in the 100-meter hurdles, Eminey Redmond in the 400-meter dash and triple jump, the girls’ 4×400-meter relay, the boys’ 4×800-meter relay and Jonquil Haywood in the 800-meter run.

The Seahawks also had plenty of other high finishes to help them win the meet as a team.

“It’s something that I preach myself, and so do the rest of the coaches,” Quinerly said. “It’s how we finish. Everything we do in practice, we go to that finish line, whether it’s first or last. We stress all year long that it’s not always first place. Every place is important: second, third, fourth and all the way through. Those pushing through, fighting and putting that effort in helped the team.”

Even as regional champions, Quinerly sees a tough challenge ahead in Greensboro. He said the teams on the western side of the state are pretty impressive, especially when it comes to distance running.

Quinerly is excited to see how his boys’ 4×800-meter relay teams contends with the best North Carolina has to offer. Haywood and Luke Matthews are both freshmen while Remmington Huggins and Tyrese Johnson are sophomores. Even through they won the east, it will be interesting to see how this young quartet takes the experience and applies it over the next two or three years.

“They’ll have some stiff competition from out west, but my expectation is for them to come home as medal winners,” Quinerly said. “… It’s great. They think there was pressure on them this year, there’s going to be pressure on them for the next two or three years. … We build off of our past success to groom our future success.”

Redmond will compete in three events for the girls. Her main event is the 400-meter dash. Quinerly said the sophomore standout has shined this season and expects her to rise to the level of her competition.

“She’s looking to get under a minute at states and I believe she can,” Quinerly said. “Everybody she ran against this year, she beat by about five seconds. She’s going to see competition at states. I think it will help her get a better time.”

Until Friday, the focus is oriented more toward mental preparation. Quinerly and company are trying to keep their athletes fresh and prepared for this weekend.