After a long season filled with numerous top three finishes, Eastside junior Kendall Bryant reached the pinnacle when he claimed the Class AAAA long jump championship.
Bryant was the lone Eagle to earn a first place finish, and he did it at the classification’s state meet at East Jackson High School.
After entering the state meet off a first place finish at Sectionals, Bryant knew he needed to up the stakes if he wanted to become a state champ.
“Friday I was a little nervous going into it but I realized that that is a normal feeling and all the other guys out have the same feeling as me,” Bryant said. “As long as I come out and do what I was taught and just jump, everything was going to be OK.”
When the time came, Bryant did not just win the state title, he produced his best jump of the season.
Bryant scored 23-6.5 — his best mark on the season which also set a personal record and was just shy of the school’s all-time long jump record of 24-0.5, which was set by Dominique Hubert in 2009.
With the adrenaline pumping, it took a while for the state champion results to settle in, but the moment was well worth it for the junior.
“The moment I secured the champion title it didn’t feel real and I was still locked in,” Bryant said. “The emotion hit after [and] it felt good to have that name and secure that name, because where I came from I was always told I would never accomplish anything like that in life so that was a big moment to prove [them] wrong and show myself I have it in me.”
The first place finish in state for Bryant was the last in a long line of strong results across his junior campaign.
As a junior, Bryant finished no worse than third in every long jump event he competed in.
Bryant claimed first place at the Grayson Home Meet No. 5, George Walton FAT No. 5, George's Lowcountry Table Invite, Social Circle’s Home Meet, Class AAAA Sectionals and the Class AAAA Championships.
Additionally, Bryant earned second place in two other meets.
For Bryant, his progression over the course of the season has been easy to see.
“I have improved on a lot. To start, it's being more focused and more coachable,” Bryant said. “And to be able to get my form down pat. Learning everyday to get my form down pat was a great improvement.”
Bryant’s long jump career began in the eighth grade. Ever since, it has been the No. 1 event for the current state champ.
“The passion for just stepping on that runway and going down to jump was always a great feeling to me so my love has been with long jump since I started track,” Bryant said.
The individual title for Bryant did not stop him from discussing the strengths of Eastside’s entire track and field team, which posted strong results all throughout the 2025 season.
Two other Eagles, Jonas Davis and Kamarra Trisch, finished inside the top three in their respective events at the Class AAAA Championships.
“Things that made this group special were just the love we had for one another, and the way we were willing to help each other to improve,” Bryant said. “And how everyone gave that boost to one another when someone did bad in an event to push them to go harder when the event comes back around.”
As a junior, Bryant will now have a chance to defend his state title in his senior season. A thought that already has Bryant looking at ways to become even better.
“Yes and that’s the goal to go back-to-back,” Bryant said. “And [find] ways I can improve forms and techniques. There’s always room to work on that. But also, [I] can improve on getting the right amount of pop and hitting the right spot of the board when coming down the runway. This offseason, those [are] the main things to work on — hitting the right spot of the board, getting great pop and my form while I'm floating through the air.”
