REGION 5 AA
Results
Wayne County boys took advantage of the home course edge to win the school’s third regional championship in one week, with the football and volleyball teams bringing home hardware earlier in the week.
The Cardinals’ Trevor Shearer led a close first leg over Tanner Carson of McCreary Central and his teammate Quentyn Parmley—after the first mile, Shearer clocked in at 5:40, with Carson at 5:41 and Parmley at 5:42. The two Cardinals were even at the two mile mark, but Garrad County’s Cole Grecco stepped up to overtake Carson. Shearer and Parmley would remain even throughout the rest of the race, with Parmley taking the lead for good near the end. Grecco surged at the finish to overtake Shearer.
Parmley’s 16:56.57 time gave him a regional title, with Grecco the runner-up at 16:57.71 and Shearer third at 17:00.74. Wayne County recorded 26 points for the team title, and Boyle County finished second with 74. Bell County (third, 89) and Garrard County (fourth, 108) also qualified for the state meet.
Individual state qualifiers were Carson of McCreary Central, Devon Hurley of Knox Central, Clay County’s Tanner Hacker, and Lex Burkhead and Dean Tyler of Mercer County.
Boyle County’s Lady Rebels set the course on fire to dominate the girls race. Nikki Coffey shot out to a quick lead, recording a 6:41 time after the first mile. Wayne County’s Sadie Martin (6:52) and Kelly Brown of Bell County (6:55) followed. Coffey continued her lead at the second mile mark, but Wayne’s Jennifer Sawyer overtook her teammate Martin for second. Brown suffered an injury and dropped out of the race at this point, paving the way for Coffey’s teammates Hannah Robertson and Ally Anderson to step up in the standings.
Coffey led the whole way and won the individual title with a 20:31.05 time, with her fellow Lady Rebels Robertson (20:53.37) and Anderson (20:56.42) in second and third. Boyle’s 36 points were good enough for the team crown, followed by the host Lady Cardinals at 57 points. The next two teams, Corbin (third, 64) and Casey County (fourth, 89) also punched their tickets for state.
Qualifying for state on an individual basis were Sabrina Elliott and Caseylynn Brooks of Knox Central, Taylor Gray of Mercer County, and Rockcastle County’s Alyssa Cox and Rachel Cain.