BENTONVILLE — The Bryant Hornets fought through extreme conditions to place 11th in the[more] 16-team Class 7A State Track Meet in Bentonville on Thursday. The Hornets scored 23 points, with Rogers Heritage taking the team championships with 108.
Spencer Sullivan and John Winn both earned All-State honors, with Winn placing second in the 400 meter dash in a time of 51.20, while Sullivan placed 3rd in the 110 meter hurdles in a time of 15.21. Winn also placed 8th in the 200 meter dash in a time of 24.56, while Sullivan placed 6th in the 300 meter hurdles in a time of 43.53.
Also scoring for the Hornets were Justin Combs in the pole vault (6th at 12' 6"), and Darian Jarrett in the long jump (7th at 20' 5.75"). The 4 x 400 meter relay team of Jarrett, Pierce Finney, Steven Murdock, and Brenden Young placed 2nd, but were later disqualified for a lane violation.
"I'm very proud of how hard the boys competed,” said Hornets coach Steve Oury. “Every one of our boys who stepped on the track gave great effort in what could be called ridiculous conditions. It would be easy to make excuses and not have the right frame of mind in such miserable weather, but our boys didn't. I told them that we have to be ready to compete in any weather or location.
“It was such a shame that the 4 x 400 relay was disqualified,” he noted. “I didn't see the violation, so I have to take the officials' word for it, but that was a real kick in the gut at the end of the meet.
"We have a young team, and most of our core group will be back next year, but I'm really proud of the seniors,” the coach added. “Jalen Bell, Tyler Haden, Damian Kropp, Lester Lowery, Spencer Sullivan, and Rocky Thornberry have all done a great job for us and will be missed. We wish them all well as they venture off to college next year."
