Crowning achievements : Lady Tigers repeat while Mounties win triple crown
Posted on Friday, May 16, 2008
FAYETTEVILLE - The Rogers Mounties came to the right place to finish off a monumental season.
The Mounties and Bentonville Lady Tigers successfully defended their Class 7 A state track titles by running away from the competition late Thursday.
The Mounties scored 125 points to win the meet at McDonnell Field - home of the University of Arkansas' combined 22 conference and five NCAA triple crowns - to win their own high school triple crown.
Rogers also won cross country and indoor state titles this year and has won five of the past six track / cross country state championships.
The Mounties are only the second large school to win the triple crown.
Russellville did it during the 2001-02 school year as a member of the Class 5 A. The DeQueen boys (2002-03 and 2003-04 ) and DeQueen girls (2003-04 ) have also earned a high school triple crown in Class 3 A.
The Mounties dominating distance crew spread its skills around - from staying fresh for a single race to gutting out multiple events - to give the team the best opportunity to win.
"We got real close (this year ) and our whole goal was the triple crown and we knew we couldn't do it without the team effort," junior Cameron Efurd said. "There was no complaints and everybody did it and it was awesome. We pulled it off today."
Efurd had a late push to beat Fort Smith Southside's Caleb Hanson on the final lap of the 1, 600-meter run and then came back with a gutsy performance in the 800.
Senior Taylor Surly, senior Tyler Rose and Efurd finished 3-4-5 in that race to push Rogers way ahead.
Senior Aaron Hamilton won the 3, 200 to seal the team victory.
The Mounties did not run the same team that set a school record on this track a month ago but the team of Ben Peterson, Jordan Falls, Robert Dorch and Rose won it in 8: 13. 74.
Rogers got lots of points from junior Michael Tibbs, who finished a busy day with a win in the discus, a third-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles and a fifth-place finish in the pole vault.
Dexter Kemmet (high jump ) and Zac Lane (shot put ) added fourthplace finishes for Rogers while Mikey Inthavong broke a school record while taking third in the triple jump (44-10. 25 ).
Junior Austin Young won the 300-meter hurdles and came from behind on his anchor leg of the 1, 600- meter relay to give Rogers a second-place finish.
The Lady Tigers, who finished with 107 points, also got a big boost from their distance runners.
Junior Katie Dalton won the 3, 200 to seal Bentonville's victory. Dalton, junior Mackenzie Bloom and sophomore Shannon Sullivan added points in the 1, 600 while Sullivan and junior Kayla Horton placed in the 800.
Horton, Bloom, Sullivan and Dalton also combined to win the 3, 200-meter relay.
But the balanced Lady Tigers got points from everywhere.
"It was definitely a team effort and we couldn't have done it without everyone," Dalton said. "Winning two times in a row, I'm just so happy for us."
Senior Kayla Middlebrook came from behind to win the 400 and placed in the 100 and 200.
Junior Jeanna Sheppard took third in both hurdle races.
Bentonville also scored points in the field events.
Senior Kasey O'Connor took second in the pole vault for the second straight year and the Lady Tigers scored in both throws.
All those points were enough to push Bentonville past a strong - and fast - Pine Bluff team.
"There's a couple of events they just demolished us," BHS coach Randy Ramaker said. "But we scored in everything and where Pine Bluff can't. We had some kids that could get the job done."
Bentonville senior Stephon Ferriel defended his title in the 800 as the Tigers finished seventh with 41 points.
Sophomore Ethan Sandusky highlighted the Tigers' day with second-place finish in the pole vault by clearing a schoolrecord tying 14 feet, 4 inches.
Senior Natalia Guerrero and junior Courtney Efurd scored in both the 1, 600- and 3, 200-meter races as the Lady Mounties finished sixth with 42. 5 points.
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