THOMASVILLE — It is not often that a high school athlete can break a school record and finish first in the Class AAAA Sectionals. But that’s what happened with Thomas County Central standout Ethan Phillips on Saturday. He established a new school record in the 110-meter hurdles, breaking Nic Dodson’s mark of 14.01 seconds.

“Ethan has been chasing Nic Dodson’s records in both the 110 hurdles and the 300-meter hurdles since he was a freshman,” Central coach Mikeal Lovejoy said. “Coach Dodson’s records have stood for 15 years, and it’s been a motivating factor for Ethan to surpass them. The closer he got the more driven he became. Coach Dodson was one of the first to congratulate Ethan on his accomplishment.”

Phillips was one of many track and field athletes that starred for Central on Saturday. The top eight finishers from the meet qualified for the state championships. Those from Central that qualified included: Tykeem Wallace, first place, 100-meter dash; Wallace, first place, 200-meter dash; De’shaun Lovejoy, sixth place, 400-meter dash; Phillips, first place, 110-meter hurdles; Phillips, first place, 300-meter hurdles; 4×400-meter relay (Al’Marion Thomas, Ladarius Paytee, Lovejoy, Phillips), second place; 4×100-meter relay (Thomas, Jordan Jones, Travion Huewitt, Wallace), first place; Bryce Bodiford, sixth place, 3,200 meter; Jodee Penrice, seventh place, high jump; Jones, fourth place, triple jump; Ashton Jones, fifth place, pole vault; Jeremy Roberts, seventh place, pole vault.

“While we cherish all the accomplishments of the season, the team competes with the mindset that every meet is practice and preparation for the state finals,” Lovejoy said. “They are excited about their chance of having a strong showing in this year’s finals.”

The Yellow Jackets will travel to Albany for Thursday’s start of the championships, which conclude on Saturday.