GREENSBORO -- Cassie Crawford was rolling from the start of the competition. Chris Barfield’s best didn’t come until the very end.

Both methods worked on May 23 in the NCHSAA 4-A state track and field championships as Barfield earned the boys’ discus state title and Crawford took the girls pole vault gold medal.

During his senior year at Cary, Barfield had endured much more than the typical senior season. His mother passed away during football season, then he went through the second torn ACL rehab of his high school career.

It was all he could do make it back from the December surgery in time for track season. Then, with one throw — of 161 feet even — he reached the pinnacle during a year that would have zapped the will out of most athletes.

The throw followed a couple of weeks of struggles. Barfield threw just 144 feet in the regionals and wasn’t feeling right mechanically the week before states.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Barfield said of his championship-winning throw, which came on his final attempt. “It just straightened out and kept going. I don’t know how to explain it other than the grace of God.”

Barfield’s throw wrested the state title away from Clayton’s Kyle Barbour who had led the majority of the competition with a throw of 158-2.

Crawford cleared each of the three heights she attempted on her first try in the pole vault (10 feet, six inches, 11-0, 11-6). When the competition ended, the junior from Panther Creek, was the only entry able to clear 11-6. It was the third time in competition that she’d made the height.

“Being able to perform and win here means a lot,” Crawford said. “There are so many good vaulters here. When you win here, you feel like you’ve earned it.”

Green Hope’s distance strength carried the Falcons to a third place in the boys’ team race. The Falcons’ Zak Roshdy won the state 1,600-meter title in 4:16.32. The 4x800 team of Patrick Moakley, Scott Hefner, Doug Black and Roshdy was second in the state at 7:48.78.

Falcon entries Bryan Spreitzer, Moakley and Hefner also finished in the top-five in the state in individual races. Moakley took a fourth place medal in the 800 (1:56.46); Spreitzer’s fourth place effort came in the 3,200 (9:28.21). Hefner was fifth in 4:27.29 in the mile.

With Barfield’s state-championship effort leading the way, Imps took seventh in the boys’ standings.

Mohammed Abushouk finished second in the 3,200 in a brisk 9:12.36. State champion Taylor Gilland, who broke a 26-year old state championship record (9:01.68), gave Abushouk credit for the pace of the race.

"When Mo went out early, I had to go with him,” Gilland said. “His pace helped make it possible for me to get the record. This is my last big 3,200 race of the year, so I just wanted to go after it as hard as I could."

Fre’Shad Hunter took the bronze in the spot put for the Imps, at 50-8 ½.

Cary’s 4x400 boys relay team finished seventh in the state; the Imp girls 4x800 team ran third. Apex’s 4x200 relay group was sixth.

Cary’s Torrey Bussey was sixth in the girls pole vault as well. The Imps also picked up a third place finish from Deanna Foshee in the 800 (2:15.99) and a seventh place effort from Erin Foshee in the same event.