Hall County hasn’t been known in recent years for its abundance of speed.
Basketball? We’ve got game. Football? Hall County is on the rise. Track? Pole vaulters and distance runners aplenty.

But for speed — pure, track speed — you’d be best served looking elsewhere. Until recently, anyway.

When Flowery Branch’s Erika Rucker placed third in the 200-meter dash as a sophomore in 2009, it marked the first time a Hall County runner of either gender had placed in the state’s top four since Gainesville’s Brandon Sims took third in the 2003 100- and 200-meter dashes.

Rucker followed her 2009 performance with a first-place finish in the 400-meter dash last season and is well-positioned to defend her title at this weekend’s meet in Albany.

In addition, West Hall has its sights set on the podium. Led by freshman Maia Booker and sophomore LeNiesha Kearse, the Lady Spartans have qualified for state in seven events and have a shot a placing in most of those.

Booker has blown away area competition in her first varsity season, recording the fastest 200-meter qualifying time (24.94) and the second-fastest 100-meter qualifying time (12.20) in Class AAA.

“I think it’s all genetics,” said West Hall coach Cindy Herford, laughing and eschewing any credit for the Booker’s success. “She’s been consistently great all year. I saw her run some in middle school, so I knew what we were getting, and we were chomping at the bit to get her out there.”

Booker, who moved to Hall County from Oklahoma in 2009, says speed has always come easy. She started running competitively at 7 years old and honed her skill racing her older male cousins.

“They used to always beat me by a couple of steps,” Booker said. “But I can outrun most of them now.”

To her surprise, she’s handled the transition to Georgia competition with equal aplomb, taking second in the 100 last season in statewide middle school track meet last season and rarely finishing anything but first since.

“I didn’t expect to qualify at region,” Booker said. “There was some tough competition; I guess I just found it within me to pull through.”

Booker also anchors the Lady Spartans 4x100 relay team, which qualified with the state’s eighth fastest time.

Kearse will run the second leg of the relay, and has also qualified in the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles.

Like Booker, Kearse began running at an early age and later moved to Hall County.

“I started running at 7 years old and I always thought the hurdles looked fun,” the Florida native said. “When I was old enough, I tried them and it just felt kind of natural.”

Last season Kearse qualified for the state in the 100-meter hurdles and learned from that experience that the competition in Albany will be stiff.

“You can’t underestimate any of the girls at state,” she said. “Even if you’re ranked higher, you can’t pay attention to that because anybody can win at state.”

Kearse has shaved more than a second off her time from last season in the 100 hurdles and enters the weekend with the third-fastest qualifying time in Class AAA (14.97).

Joining Booker and Kearse from West Hall will be their 4x100 relay teammates, Simone McGee and Victoria Tuttle, as well as Ryan Sherry (800-meter run) and Haley Hayes (high jump).

Rucker leads the remainder of the area qualifiers. After claiming her first state title in Class AAA, the Lady Falcon heads into the weekend with the fastest 400 time in Class AAAA (54.62) by almost two full seconds. She has also qualified in the 800.

Other top contenders from the area include Gainesville’s Sara Hayes, who qualified with the fifth-fastest Class AAA times in the 800 and 1600; Buford’s Maya Dillard (2nd best time in the Class AA 800); White County’s Jessie Dotson (3rd best time in Class AAA 1600, 2nd best time in 3200); North Hall’s Victoria Rogers (3rd best time in Class AAA 3200) and Dawson County’s Madalyn Walters (3rd best time in Class AA 3200).

Running events begin at 4 p.m. today and conclude Saturday. Field events will be held Friday beginning at 9 a.m.