HARRISON -- While it was the same old story on the girls side, there was a new boys champion at the Class 1A state track and field meet at F.S. Garrison Stadium
Trinity Christian won the girls title for the fourth consecutive year as the Lady Warriors piled up 123.5 total points, easily outdistancing second-place Kingston, which finished with 62.
Jacksonville Lighthouse won the boys title, ending a three-year title run by Caddo Hills. The Wolves edged the Indians 109-102. Lighthouse was the runner-up to Caddo Hills last year.
The Wolves' Jordan McNair totaled 38.5 points to claim the individual medalist honor, beating out Caddo Hills' Christian Duggan, who had 36.
McNair broke the Class 1A state record he set last year when he won the 100 meters in 10.99 seconds, .09 better than last year. McNair also won the 200 and was second in the triple jump and long jump.
"I began coaching track [at Lighthouse] when McNair was a freshman," Wolves Coach Kelvin Parker said. "He was already running the 100 in the low 11s when he was a sophomore and set the record last year. His goal all season was to break the record again."
Lighthouse is a charter school that opened in the fall of 2009 and will have its first graduating class this month.
"Behind the leadership of McNair, we have built a good foundation over the last three years," Parker said. "We ran in a lot of meets this year against 6A and 7A schools and liked having that tough competition, getting us ready for the state."
In addition to winning four state titles in a row, Trinity Christian's girls have taken seven of the past nine. The Lady Wolves have also won eight cross country state championships in the past nine years.
"I've had great senior leadership every year," said Trinity Christian Coach Jeff Haynes, who has been at the school the past nine years. "This year has just been exceptional. Our seniors had a great day, but we have still have a lot coming back. We had some sophomores who did well, and I have an eighth-grade bunch that's going to be very strong."
Leah Shellnutt of Kingston won the individual girls points title with 32.5 points. But the next two highest were from Trinity Christian: senior Sydney Cowgill with 26 and sophomore Maddie Bowman with 25. Trinity Christian's Elizabeth Gillette, a senior who set a Class 1A girls state record in the 3,200, was fifth with with 23.5 points and teammate Anna Cree was seventh with 18.5 points.
Sports on 05/03/2016