Walden wins fourth straight OK 6A title

By Adam Kopet for DyeStat

Cheyenne Walden, of Charles Page Sand Springs, rolled to victory in the Class 6A girls race, winning her fourth title by over 40 seconds in 17:55.6.

The Class 6A and 5A championships were held October 29 in Edmond and the Class 4A, 3A and 2A championships were held a week earlier in Shawnee.

Bartlesville swept the Class 6A team titles. The boys scored 55 points to win after finishing second last year while the girls scored 57 points to win their third straight team championship.

Jenks senior, Matt Young, ran 15:50.3 to win the Class 6A boys race. He finished second last year by 0.2 seconds.

In Class 5A, Laynie Nichols of Claremore, a freshman, ran 19:11.4 and won the girls race by 30 seconds. In the boys race, senior Coal Phillips of Carl Alberta came away the winner in 16:55.9.

In the team competition, the Bishop McGuinness girls beat Guymon, 58-73. But it was the Guymon boys scoring an impressive 43 points to beat Tahlequah by 48 points.

Small schools last week

In Shawnee last week, Class 4A Lincoln Christian won boys and girls state titles. The girls scored 66 points and the boys earned their third straight title with 57 points. In both races, Metro Christian Academy finished second.

Individually at the Class 4A level, senior Daniel Mazzei of Berryhill won in 15:33.18. He also won as a sophomore and finished second as a junior. Sophomore Maicie Brown of Weatherford ran 11:35.62 to win the 3,200-meter girls race.

In Class 3A, Marietta swept the boys and girls team titles. The girls placed five runners in the top 17 to earn their fourth straight title with 36 points. The boys went 1-2, led by sophomore Zane Nutter in 16:55.91, to score 38 points to secure their 2nd straight title. Senior Barbara Johnson of Heavener ran 11:53.81 for 3,200 to win by 0.5 seconds over Marietta freshman, Mandy Sykora.

Lomega scored 56 points to win the Class 2A boys team title. They were led by Isai Rodriguez, a senior, who won his third straight title, running 15:05.41 for 5k.

After finishing second last year in Class 2A girls, Warner moved up to the top spot, scoring 57 points. Sophomore Ellie Gilbreath of Regent Preparatory won her second state title, running 11:48.70 for 3,200.