AUSTIN – As the sun began settling outside Mike A. Myers Stadium Saturday night, the Wichita Falls area was still looking for its first medal of the UIL state track meet’s final day.

That drought couldn’t possibly compare to Archer City’s boys medal famine in Austin.

Senior Kweashad Brooks snapped both droughts with an impressive 10.91 in the 2A 100, grabbing silver with his fastest time of the season.

Shortly thereafter, Electra’s Alexa Daniel closed strong in the 2A 400 to win bronze by .009 of a second with a furious finish. Those were the area’s two medals on a day where podium finishes were hard to come by.

Running in his first state track meet, Brooks edged out De Leon’s Anthony Rangel (10.93) and West Texas’ Jaykob Hernandez (10.94) for the runner-up spot. Cornell Sayles of Kerens captured gold with a 10.79.

“My coach told me I had a really good start, but I think the part where I could have stepped up on was the finishing speed,” Brooks said. “I could have pressed a little harder, but I still pressed enough to get second.”

Brooks attended Archer City as a seventh grader, but later moved to Lubbock and then Georgia before returning for his senior season. He said he’d competed before in front of bigger crowds, but nothing like the raucous Mike A. Myers Stadium crowd.

Multiple Archer City officials couldn’t recall the last time a Wildcat had medaled at state, but it’s likely a drought that spans multiple decades. Brooks credited Wildcat coach Donny Gray for helping him reach the medal stand.

 

“Coach Gray has had an amazing impact on me this year,” Brooks said. “He’s really helped me push myself and perfect my craft running. He’s definitely a big part of this.”

Brooks was hoping for another medal in the 200 – his favorite event – but he came in sixth with a 22.23. Bosqueville’s Marcell Estell won that race with a 21.77.

“It means a lot to me,” Brooks said of the silver. “It’s my first time being in any state meet so it’s really incredible for me to get a medal. With all the pressure and all the people around, just stay cool under the pressure I guess.”

 

Electra’s Daniel rallies for bronze

Alexa Daniel entered the state meet with the slowest regional time in the 2A 400. The junior knew she’d have to leave every ounce of energy out on the track.

“I was going to have to run like I’ve never run before,” Daniel said after posting a season-best 1:00.76 that gave her bronze over Wellington’s Savannah Sumrall. Both girls officially finished with that time, but Daniel’s was .009 quicker.

Daniel was sitting in fifth with 100 meters remaining. While first-place Keanna Osby of Shelbyville (56.50) and runner-up Shatamrah Blakemore (57.65) weren’t going to be caught, Daniel began closing the gap on Albany’s Baley Green while Sumrall also charged.  

“I didn’t know what place I was sitting in, but I knew it wasn’t first, second or third,” Daniel said. “Hearing the crowd really fueled me. I’ve never heard anything like that before.

 

“I realized I was catching them and I gave it all I had. I knew (Sumrall) was right beside me. I figured a little further stretch would get it and it worked.”

Daniel said the bronze medal was a result of the hard work she put in as she lowered her 400 time by nearly a second.  

“I’ve never ran as much as I’ve ran the past two weeks and it paid off,” Daniel said. “I want to thank my coaches for pushing me to what I couldn’t think I could do.”

 

Here are how Saturday’s other area athletes fared:

2A girls discus: For the second straight year, Munday’s Kristen Kuehler came in fourth after a 122-2 on her second attempt. Seagraves’ Sirena Mijarez was the champ with a 136-11.

2A boys long jump: Olney’s Parker Mayers came in fifth with a 21-7 ¾ on his fourth attempt. Joaquin’s Connor Bragg was golden with a 22-6 ¾.

A girls 4x200: Benjamin’s Braleigh Blanchette, Macy Flowers, Myca Flowers and Temi Flowers ran a season-best 1:49.99 for fifth. Blum had a winning time of 1:47.77.

A girls shot put: Forestburg’s Lexi Britain placed fifth with a 34-1 ½, while Newcastle’s Arryn Eli took seventh (33-9) and Knox City’s Cheyenne Roberson was eighth (33-3 ½). Amherst’s Myeshia Thomas won with a 43-0 ½.

4A boys 1,600: Burkburnett’s Sloan Lewis came in sixth with a 4:30.04, while San Elizario’s Edwin Gomez won his second distance event of the weekend with a 4:23.14.

4A girls 4x200: Graham’s Summer Croxton, Claire Jones, Allison Lee and Rosie Schaffer finished sixth with a 1:43.96, while Vernon’s Shykerra Fanner, Bethany Jones, Avery Kinney and Rayah Coleman were right behind them in seventh at 1:44.02. Atlanta won with a 1:39.16.

2A boys 400: Archer City’s Coltin Knobloch placed fifth with a 50.77, and Milano’s Timothy Demeritt won with a 48.26.

2A boys shot put: Munday’s Kaven Lumsden set a personal best with a 49-0 ½ for seventh. Granger’s Ryan Pickett was golden with a 52-5 ¾.

A girls 4x400: Blanchette and the three Flowers sisters were seventh with a 4:19.47. Blum won with a Class A record 4:08.30, giving it the team title over Rocksprings by three points.

2A girls 800: Munday’s Kayla Taylor placed seventh with a 2:31.42. Shelbyville’s Keanna Osby was the champ with a 2:21.17.

2A boys discus: Munday’s Kade Sanders had a 149-1 on his last attempt to finish eighth. Sundown’s Bryce Spencer had a best throw of 174-6.

2A girls long jump: Pennartz took eighth with a 15-9 on her third jump. Refugio freshman Jai’lin King won with an 18-1 ¾.

2A girls 100: Pennartz, a sophomore, had another eighth with a 12.60 that was only .16 from medaling. Refugio’s Alexa Valenzuela was first with a 12.18.

A boys 100: Northside’s Ray Ditmore was eighth with an 11.37, while Rule’s Chase Thompson won by .01 of a second with a 10.88.