Cougs run well at 5A regional

David Seeley Guest Sports Writer Ada Evening News

Moore — Ada Cougars track coach Nathan Elliott believed his team would have to battle the rival Ardmore Tigers to win Saturday’s Class 5A Regional Meet at Lions Stadium. For the most part, Elliott was correct.

Other than a key miscue in the final exchange in the 400-meter relay, the Cougars got several athletes qualified for next weekend’s Class 5A State Meet at Tulsa East Central High School. However, the disqualification in the 400-meter relay may have cost Ada a runner-up spot at the regional as Ardmore won team title with 159 points, but Carl Albert slipped into second place with 114 points. Ada was third with 108.

The Cougars crowned five regional champions and one relay champion on the day. Eddie Brown won both hurdle events, getting first in the 110-meter (15.68 seconds) and the 300-meter (40.51). Josiah Biles won the 1,600-meter run (4:43.89), Christian Johnson was the champion high jumper (6-4), Qumain Black took first in the long jump (21-10) and Nick Anderson won the pole vault (14-0).

Biles, Colin Earle, Cale Prince and Matt Smith won the 3,200-meter relay (8:46.8).

But the chance at a second relay regional title ended for the Cougars on the final exchange in the 400-meter relay as the third- and fourth-leg runners could not get the exchange of the baton done in the required amount of distance, and were disqualified — and will not make it to state.

But there’s still a lot of Cougars who punched their tickets to Tulsa who were not regional champions. Prince was third in the 3,200-meter run (10:44.1), while Travis Cowan was third in the 300-meter hurdles (41.18 seconds).

And the Cougars could get even more state qualifiers. If their fourth-, fifth- and sixth-place finishers are among the top four from all four regional meets combined (excluding all the top three finishers at all four regionals), they will get at-large berths to the state meet — which will likely be known by no later than Monday. And there are quite a few of those candidates for the Cougars.

Johnson was fourth in the long jump (20-0), Earle was fifth in the 800-meter run (2:14.5), Smith was sixth in the 1,600-meter run (4:56.77) and Andrew Scribner was sixth in the shot put (37-10). Ada’s 1,600-meter relay team of Cowan, Black, Chase Bowker and Brown was fourth (3:34.11).

“Carl Albert kind of snuck up,” Elliott said. “Other than our sprint (400-meter) relay, we qualified everyone I thought we would. I think our mile (1,600-meter) relay will get in on time (as an at-large entry). Our two-mile (3,200-meter) relay really ran well — that’s the best they’ve done. We won the high jump, the pole vault and the long jump — and Eddie won both hurdles. We were looking for some points from the sprint relay, and that’s why we coaches hate running that event because anything can happen. We had a really good meet. We’re happy. We’ve got a good group to take to the state track meet, and we’ll see what we can do.”

One Ada Lady Cougar made state, and did so as a regional champion. Jenna Huling won the high jump with a leap of 5-2.

“I am so proud of her,” Ada Lady Cougars coach Michelle Shannon said. “She has stayed focused throughout the season. Up until today, she had only cleared 4-10.”

Shannon also praised the efforts of Ada coach Darin Kapella, who worked closely with Huling throughout the season.

“He’s really helped her in the long jump and the high jump,” she said.

Huling has a chance at a second state event as she was fifth in the long jump (14-4), and will have to wait to see if she is one of the top four long jumpers from the non-automatic state qualifiers.

Huling will not be alone on the waiting list. Catie Newport was sixth in the 200-meter dash (27.73 seconds) and Megan Whitting was sixth in the 3,200-meter run (14:56.56), and they will have to wait to see if they will qualify for state with an at-large berth.

As a team, the Lady Cougars tied for sixth place along with Lawton MacArthur with 14 points. Chickasha won the regional title (139 points), followed by Carl Albert (125), Durant (112), Western Heights (98) and Ardmore (93).