Caleb Lafferty and Zach Meagrow spent the past four years excelling in academics and other areas during their time at Lafayette High School, but also in silent competition with one another. On Thursday, the school announced Lafferty as the valedictorian for the Class of 2019. Meagrow was named the salutatorian in a near photo finish.

The school held their first Announcement Day at the LHS library with Lafferty and Meagrow’s family and a few fellow classmates in attendance.

“Both of these young men have done a tremendous job as a Lafayette Commodore,” Lafayette High School principal Dr. Glenn Kitchens said during the ceremony. “They have a bright, bright future. We are very proud of them.”

Lafferty, the son of Andrew and Karen Lafferty, finished his Lafayette academic career with a 4.43 grade-point average and a 101.5 on the 100-point scale the school uses. He will  attend Brown University, something Dr. Kitchens noted might be a first for a Lafayette graduate. Lafferty plans to major in computer science. Following a road trip with his parents to scout colleges, Lafferty applied only to Brown.

Throughout all four years, Lafferty and Meagrow were essentially joined at the hip when it came to their class’ top GPA. The two rotated out of the top spot a couple of times.

“It was pretty hard,” Lafferty said.

An extra layer is added to Meagrow’s accomplishment, as he took on the challenge of balancing life as a student-athlete. Meagrow is a member of the baseball team and had to find a way to finish each school year strong since baseball season is in the spring. He succeeded, as he will complete his academic career with a final GPA of 4.25 (100.16).

“It was hard to balance, but with studying and the teachers we have here it made it a lot easier,” Meagrow said. “I knew (Lafferty and I) were battling throughout the year. Once I realized I was at the top of my class, I was like, ‘wow, I would like to finish at the top,’ but second’s alright, too.”

Meagrow is the son of Stuart and Dana Meagrow. He will attend Mississippi College in the fall with plans to major in biology.

Lafayette High School’s graduation is scheduled for May 17 at the Tad Smith Coliseum on the University of Mississippi’s campus.