ROGERS -- A change of tactics yielded the same results for Springdale Har-Ber senior Elise Reina.
Reina pushed to the lead early, and the Lady Wildcats cross country runner pulled way from the pack with more than a mile to go to win the 7A-West Conference cross country championship Tuesday in a time of 18:59.1. Reina won the conference meet for a third consecutive year, and she is the two-time defending Class 7A state champion.
7A-West Conference Cross Country Meet
Boys
Team
Fayetteville^29
Rogers High^75
Springdale Har-Ber^77
Bentonville^78
Rogers Heritage^116
Springdale High^163
Fort Smith Northside^197
Fort Smith Southside^251
Individual
T.J. Sugg^Springdale Har-Ber^16:00.1
Camren Fischer^Fayetteville^16:14.4
Collin Pilkington^Fayetteville^16:15.7
Johnathan Prince^Bentonville^16:21.5
Jessie Ramirez^Rogers High^16:39.3
Kaid Hurd^Fayetteville^16:39.4
Diego Contreras^Rogers High^16:42.6
Tyler Davis^Fayetteville^16:43.6
Sammy Casey^Springdale Har-Ber^16:49.4
Jordan Pilkington^Fayetteville^16:51.6
Girls
Team
Bentonville^31
Rogers High^48
Fayetteville^69
Springdale Har-Ber^111
Rogers Heritage^125
Fort Smith Northside^194
Springdale High^209
Fort Smith Southside^228
Individual
Elise Reina^Springdale Har-Ber^18:59.1
Lainey Quandt^Bentonville^19:18.6
Katie Andrews^Bentonville^19:19.3
Corrie Purcell^Fayetteville^19:32.4
Merrill Leak^Bentonville^19:36.8
Emily Efurd^Rogers High^19:43.4
Olivia Groeber^Rogers High^19:43.9
Rebecca Boushelle^Fayetteville^19:45.9
Lisa Lauschke^Rogers High^19:50.9
Cami Hedstrom^Bentonville^19:57.6
Har-Ber's TJ Sugg also defended his individual title as the Wildcats senior pulled away to win the boys race in 16:00.1. Sugg will look to defend his Class 7A title Nov. 7 at the state meet in Hot Springs.
Bentonville won the girls' team championship as the Lady Tigers edged Rogers High 31-48. Fayetteville easily won the boys championship as the Bulldogs placed five runners in the top 10.
Reina and Alex Ritchey of Mount St. Mary's will be the top two favorites at the state meet, and the Har-Ber senior said the change in tactics was prep work for the Class 7A State Meet. Reina had a 15-second lead with just more than a mile to go Tuesday.
"At the beginning of the first mile, my goal was to go in and take it strong," Reina said. "I am usually not that kind of runner. The first mile, I felt amazing and I went through at 5:55. From there on, I just wanted a strong finish. There is a girl from Mount St. Mary's that is running similar to me, so that is how I am going to go at the state meet."
Bentonville's Lainey Quandt (19:18.6) and Katie Andrews (19:19.3) finished second and third, respectively. Merrill Leak (fifth) and Cami Hedstrom (10th) also finished strong for the Lady Tigers.
Sugg was in a pack of four runners at the two-mile mark, but the senior pulled away for the 14-second victory.
"I let them keep the pace, and I thought they might be fatigued at that point," Sugg said. "I just kind of picked it up, and I increased my pace."
Fayetteville's Camren Fischer and Collin Pilkington were the next two runners to finish, posting times of 16:14.4 and 16:15.7, respectively. Kaid Hurd (sixth), Tyler Davis (eighth) and Jordan Pilkington (10th) also finished in the top 10 for Fayetteville.
Tori Willis of Haas Hall won the Class 6A and under race in 18:55.5 while Michael Harris of Elkins won the boys race in 17:20.4. DeQueen won both the girls and boys team titles.
Sports on 10/28/2015