Track athletes Brittany Floyd and Marlisa Scott missed the early part of track season this year at Columbus High School. Ordinarily, such absences might result in disciplinary actions or other repercussions at the discretion of the coach. For Floyd and Scott, however, their lack of attendance at a few practices and a couple of meets didn’t bother their coach, Robert Peters.
“It worked out fine,” Peters said about the athletes, who actually had a really good reason for their late start. “They came in like they hadn’t missed anything.”
Both young women were members of Columbus High School’s girls basketball team, which took top honors in March as AAAA state champs.
“It was exciting,” Floyd said with a big smile.
Scott not only echoed her teammate’s feelings about the winning season, but she said the team set a goal to go all the way to the title win.
“We were ranked No. 1 in the preseason,” Scott said. “We knew we could do it, so that was our goal.”
The seniors just ended their high school years and will be attending colleges on athletic scholarships. Surprisingly, neither will be playing basketball as collegiate athletes.
Floyd, 5’4” and a two-sport athlete, signed as a track and field athlete with the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She got her start with the sport in the seventh grade and will be used at UAB for the long jump, triple jump, and 800-meter race.
“They wanted me to run cross country, but I don’t think I will be doing that,” Floyd said. “I love the long jump. I love jumping in the sand.”
At Columbus High, Floyd was a long jumper, participated in the triple jump, ran the 800, and was a member of the 4×400 meter relay team. Her fastest time in the 800 prior to this track season was 2 minutes, 20 seconds, and the senior set a goal to shave five seconds off that by the end of the 2017 season. She also planned to be first in the state in her school’s classification for long jump.
Scott signed an athletic scholarship to play softball at Jackson State in the fall. The 5’8” centerfielder and secondary shortstop has been playing softball for years. She started playing baseball at the age of 5 and eventually moved to softball when she wasn’t allowed to play baseball any longer.
“Yes, I played baseball first but had to change to softball because I was a girl,” Scott said, laughing.
She chose to attend Jackson State over some other offers because of tradition.
“It’s a Historically Black College,” Scott said. “Both my parents attended Historically Black Colleges, and I liked the idea of continuing in that tradition.”
As a track and field athlete for four years at CHS, Scott participated in the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdle events and was a member of the 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams. She got her start in hurdles because her father ran hurdles and Scott decided she wanted to see how it was done.
Both young women selected Columbus High School after middle school because of the school’s reputation for high academic standards. Students who attend CHS learn to adapt to the rigorous course load, and managing one sport much less two or three in that environment is impressive. Floyd ended her senior year with a 3.9 GPA while juggling two sports, and three-sport athlete Scott graduated with a 3.5 GPA.
Playing basketball together for four years provided them with a lot of great memories. Floyd, a point guard, and Scott, a shooting guard, discovered their freshman year at Columbus High it wasn’t the first time the two played basketball together. Back in elementary school they played on the same team for a local YMCA youth league. Unlike that experience, the athletes’ time as part of the Lady Blue Devils ended with seeing a state championship goal become a reality.
One of the best rewards for that accomplishment came in the form of jewelry: a state championship ring. When asked if they had received theirs, the young women said they hadn’t been sized yet for the rings and didn’t know when the rings would be delivered. The anticipation of that event was still exciting to them, though.
“I can’t wait,” they said, almost in unison.
Columbus High School requires their seniors to participate in a senior project prior to graduation. Floyd and Scott have outgoing personalities that were evident when asked about their projects.
Tumbling was Floyd’s senior project, and due to spending so much time with basketball and sports, she was a little afraid of not making it to the deadline without getting a “tuck” nailed down. Laughing at herself, Floyd said she learned quickly that what looked so easy on television was actually hard work.
For her project, Scott chose to take up crocheting. As she described the intricate work involved, she had both young women laughing when she said she was almost finished with her crocheted dog rattle. Eventually, Scott clarified it was a baby rattle crocheted in the shape of a dog.
Columbus Valley/June-July 2017
Brittany Floyd and Marlisa Scott
Columbus High School
Columbus, GA
By Beth Welch
Photos by George McDuffie
Multisport Athletes Have Eventful Senior Year
