UIL State Track: Refugio track wins boys, girls state titles for second straight season
AUSTIN — One state title was up in the air until the final second of the final lap of the final event of competition in Class 2A. The other was decided well before the starting pistol even fired to start the 1,600 relay.
Despite different paths to the same outcome, the Refugio track programs won their ninth (boys) and 13th (girls) overall state championships on Friday at the UIL State Track Meet at Mike A. Myers Stadium.
The boys claimed their third straight crown in runaway fashion while the girls settled for sharing the team title with Panhandle after the Ettes took second in the 1,600 relay and forged a tie atop the standings with 64 points.
"There were a lot of emotions and I can't say enough about that set of girls," Refugio girls coach Katie Green said. "They want to be perfect, but at the end of the day you are competing against the best in the state and everyone wants to be perfect. You are going to have to take some of things that aren't perfect and realize they are helping you too."
It was the second straight year the Refugio girls shared the state title with Panhandle. In 2023 the duo were tri-champions with Stamford.
Refugio earned points from Jazmyn Howard (second, long jump; third, triple jump) and Ciara Tilley (fourth, discus; fifth, shot put) and got off to a solid start with a second-place finish in the 400 relay. Howard contributed her third medal in the 100 (third) and Riley Haug won the 400 to contribute to the Bobcats 13th girls title.
The boys won all three relays and Ernest Campbell won his fourth straight Class 2A 100-meter dash along with a second-place finish from Jason Moore to run away with the team title. In field events, sophomore Kolton Taylor took third in boys discus.
Refugio (84 points) outpaced Stockdale by 54 points and that came with Campbell dropping the long jump and missing out on qualifying in the 200 due to an injury at the Region IV-2A meet.
Coach Adam Spiegleman said despite the winning margin, a lot of work goes into Refugio's success, and the path isn't always smooth.
"They were never complacent," Spiegleman said. "They wanted this so bad but they knew that it doesn't just happen. This state is so talented. Just getting here is hard. They knew what it was going to take and they never took a day off. They knew this is what they wanted to do and every day from the start of the season until now led up to it.
"We were running alternates and trying to keep people healthy and the relays were never as consistent as I wanted them to be, but that is the cool thing. Every kid contributed. They all ran at different points in the season and helped us get here."
Other highlights
• Veterans Memorial high jumper Brody Garcia finished third in the high jump, clearing 6-foot-6
• Gregory-Portland had two pole vaulters earn silver medals — sophomore Ryder Harrison cleared 14-6 in the boys pole vault and sophomore Tristen Grimes cleared 12-9 in the girls event.
• Flour Bluff closed out the night with a bronze medal in the 1,600 relay (Austin Villanueva, Owen Aggus, Elijah Gonzales and Zach DeWalt) as anchor leg Zach DeWalt made a huge kick down the home stretch to chase down multiple runners and push the Hornets to a medal (3:17.03).
More: 2024 UIL State Track And Field Championships: Live Results
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Refugio boys, girls track adds to legacy with double state titles
