WHITEHOUSE — John Tyler's girls gained the inside track thanks to a strong showing in the sprints and chased down the program's first district track and field title in 26 years. The Lady Lions ended a drought dating to 1987 with a championship performance at the District 16-4A track and field meet.
The host Whitehouse Wildcats tracked down a boys championship, the program's fourth in five years.
The JT girls scored 168 points and finished ahead of Lindale (154), Whitehouse (127), Jacksonville (64), Corsicana (48) and Nacogdoches (47) for district supremacy. The Lady Lions led Lindale by six points before clinching the title with four solid laps to place second in the mile relay.
"We knew going in it would be competition with us and Lindale," first-year JT girls track coach Tracy Walker said. "Fortunately we came out on top."
The title marked the first for the Lady Lions since Emma Barrett headed the program decades ago.
"It's a good feeling to get it done in the first year," Walker said. "We had a really good foundation from last year."
On the boys' side, Whitehouse beat out a field featuring Nacogdoches (140), John Tyler (122), Lindale (94), Jacksonville (75) and Corsicana (31).
The Wildcats went out in grand fashion with a win in the 1600-meter relay to end a festive night.
"All season we told kids it would come down to the mile and mile relay," Whitehouse boys coach Don Garlitz said. "That's what we've been working toward."
BOYS
Whitehouse won six gold medals, led by Colton Lampin sweeping the 110- and 300-meter hurdles and Troy Hayden going double-gold in the 1600 (4 minutes, 35 seconds) and 3200 (10:03.35) in his first action since the first of March. The Wildcats made huge strides by going 1-2 in the 400, with Chris Kunzman taking gold in 50.62, followed by teammate Alex Williams (51.68). Kunzman sprinted a leg on the gold-medal mile relay, teaming up with Alex Williams, Lampin and Tex Pierce, who also placed first in the 800 for the Wildcats.
JT's Andre Jefferson advanced to area in five events, winning gold in the long jump and on the 400 relay, and taking three silver —the high jump, triple jump and 800 relay. Freshman Bryston Gipson impressed in his first district meet, qualifying for area in three events with a first-place finish on the 400 relay, third-place effort in the 100 and fourth-place showing in the triple jump. In the end, no team or individual prevented Whitehouse from standing highest on the podium after seeing a three-year streak of titles end last year.
"I may not show it but I'm ecstatic," Garlitz added. "That's four out of the last five years we've found a way to win. The kids really stepped up. We ran very well. The mile relay competed hard, all four legs ran strong. Senior leadership really played a big part."
GIRLS
The Lady Lions relied on a host of legs to get the job done, led by a triple-gold performance from junior Christina Lampkin. Along with winning the 100-meter dash, Lampkin participated on the gold-medal winning 400 and 800 relays.
Junior sprinter DeShalyn Jones claimed two golds (400, 4x100) and a silver (4x400) and junior sprinter Tanisha Vaughn also left with three medals for the Lady Lions, including gold in the 4x100 and 4x200 and a bronze in the 200. Senior Briana Callier copped two medals, including gold in the triple jump and bronze in the long jump, and freshman Dalelasha Rollins medaled in the same two events (second, long jump; third, triple jump).
The Lindale girls contended for first thanks to gold medals from Gracie Tucker (100 hurdles, 300 hurdles), Travicia Acy (high jump) and Mackenzie Bateman (pole vault).
The Lady Lions' depth allowed them to qualify 18 entries into area. The top four finishers from district advance to the area meet (District 15-16) on Friday, April 19, in Lancaster. From the area meet, the top four go to regionals the following week in Arlington, with the top two making the state meet in Austin in May.
"We had a couple young ladies that helped us in the field events — the long jump and triple jump, so those points kind of gave us a little bit of incentive to go into the finals," Walker said. "It wasn't just one (girl standing out). It was a combination."
District 16-4A Track and Field Championships
At Wildcat Stadium
Boys
Boys Team Totals - 1, Whitehouse, 162; 2, Nacogdoches, 140; 3, John Tyler, 122; 4, Lindale, 94; 5, Jacksonville, 75; 6, Corsicana, 31.
Field Events
Long Jump - 1, Andre Jefferson, John Tyler, 22-6; 2, Shemar Smith, Whitehouse, 20-5 1/2; 3, D'Ante Riggins, Nacogdoches, 20-1; 4, 4, Ken Rogers, Nacogdoches 19-10 1/2; 5, Latavian Forest, Nacogdoches, 19-10 1/4; 6, Nate Brooks, Whitehouse, 19-8.
Shot Put - 1, Lane Walters, Lindale, 45-4 3/4; 2, Jacob Bragg, Nacogdoches, 44-4 3/4; 3, 3, Zach Williford, Nacogdoches, 41-0 1/2; 4, Gregory Roberts, Nacogdoches, 39-9 1/2; 5, Brannon Beaton, Whitehouse, 38-5 1/2; 6, Jaylon Reese, John Tyler, 38-1.
High Jump - 1, Dadrian Franklin, Jacksonville, 6-4; 2, Andre Jefferson, John Tyler, 6-2; T3, Dzifa Mallet, Corsicana, 5-10; T3, Hector Calvillo, Corsicana, 5-10; 5, Andrew McCown, Jacksonville, 5-9 3/4; 6, Keenan Dowell, Corsicana, 5-8.
Pole Vault - 1, Noah Gilfillan, Corsicana, 15-0 1/4; 2, Mason Hardy, Nacogdoches, 15-0; 3, Reid Perry, Nacogdoches, 13-6; 4, Blythe Smith, Lindale, 13-0 1/4; 5, Jacob Voyles, 13-0; Lindale, 6, Andrew Broaddus, Whitehouse, 13-0.
Triple Jump - 1, Dadrian Franklin, Jacksonville, 43-10; 2, Andre Jefferson, John Tyler, 42-9; 3, D'Ante Riggins, Nacogdoches, 42-4 1/2; 4, Bryston Gipson, John Tyler, 41-9; 5, Delton Scott, Nacogdoches, 40-3 1/2; 6, Andrew McCown, Jacksonville, 39-11 1/4.
Discus - 1, Jacob Bragg, Nacogdoches, 135-3; 2, Jassavia Reese, John Tyler, 119-8; 3, D.J. Williams, Lindale, 118-3; 4, Stephen Smith, Jacksonville, 117-4; 5, Brannon Beaton, Whitehouse, 114-8; 6, Sam LeBlanc, Nacogdoches, 114-2.
Running Events
3200-meter run - 1, Troy Hayden, Whitehouse, 10:03.95; 2, Jeff Watson, Lindale, 10:17.04; 3, Andrew Cox, Lindale, 10:58.52; 4, Cameron Davis, Lindale, 11:00.00; 5, Joseph Mohr, Whitehouse, 11:26.41; 6, Estaban Cisneros, Whitehouse, 11:56.94.
400-meter relay - 1, John Tyler (Bryston Gipson, Andre Jefferson, DeQuante Woods, Reggie Gipson), 41.89; 2, Whitehouse (Alex Williams, Chris Reese, Chris Kunzman, Shemar Smith), 43.00; 3, Jacksonville (Londedric Taylor, Dadrian Franklin, Braylon Parrish, Dontavian Thacker), 43.50; 4, Corsicana (Trey Owens, Keenan Dowell, Kaley Washington, Xavier Bradley), 44.00; 5, Lindale, 44.50; Nacogdoches, DQ.
800-meter run - 1, Tex Pierce, Whitehouse, 2:02.53; 2, Ethan Carrillo, Nacogdoches, 2:06.43; 3, Rickey Estrada, Whitehouse, 2:09.62; 4, Xavier Mayfield, John Tyler, 2:11.97; 5, John Olsen, Lindale, 2:14.41; 6, Andrew Cox, Lindale, 2:15.62.
100-meter hurdles - 1, Colton Lampin, Whitehouse, 14.96; 2, Justin Dunning, Whitehouse, 14.98; 3, Ladarrius Session, Jacksonville, 15.31; 4, Cade Parrish, Whitehouse, 15.71; 5, Robbie Washington, John Tyler, 15.98; 6, Will Glover, Nacogdoches, 16.20.
100-meter dash - 1, Brandon Jones, Nacogdoches, 11.03; 2, Reggie Gipson, John Tyler, 11.13; 3, Bryston Gipson, John Tyler, 11.15; 4, Shemar Smith, Whitehouse, 11.20; 5, Deandre Williams, 11.36; 6, Chris Reese, Whitehouse, 11.38.
800-meter relay - 1, Nacogdoches (Alex Gregory, James Barnes, Brandon Jones, Jamar Woodard), 1:28.71; 2, John Tyler (Terry Ausborne, DeQuante Woods, Justice Liggins, Andre Jefferson), 1:29.12; 3, Whitehouse (Justin Dunning, Roy White, Chris Reese, Shemar Smith), 1:30.04; 4, Jacksonville (Dontavian Thacker, Ladarrius Session, Dadrian Franklin, Londedric Taylor), 1:32.08; 5, Lindale, 1:33.36; 6, Corsicana, 1:34.03.
400-meter dash - 1, Chris Kunzman, Whitehouse, 53.38; 2, Alex Williams, Whitehouse, 51.68; 3, T.J. Griffin, Lindale, 52.33; 4, Nathan Evans, Lindale, 52.56; 5, D'Nalo Mitchell, Nacogdoches, 52.60; 6, Traven Johnson, John Tyler, 52.79.
300-meter hurdles - 1, Colton Lampin, Whitehouse, 39.74; 2, Robbie Washington, John Tyler, 41.60; 3, Conner Lind, Lindale, 41.94; 4, Cade Parrish, Whitehouse, 41.95; 5, Will Glover, Nacogdoches, 42.35; 6, Andrew McCown, Jacksonville, 43.31.
200-meter dash - 1, Jamar Woodard, Nacogdoches, 22.15; 2, James Barnes, Nacogdoches, 22.57; 3, Alex Gregory, Nacogdoches, 22.68; 4, Terry Ausborne, John Tyler, 22.70; 5, Bryston Gipson, John Tyler, 22.76; 6, Datavian Thacker, Jacksonville, 23.04.
1600-meter run - 1, Troy Hayden, Whitehouse, 4:35.00; 2, Jeff Watson, Lindale, 4:42.00; 3, Ethan Carrillo, Nacogdoches, 4:49.00; 4, Jerry Romano, Jacksonville, 4:58.00; 5, Joseph Mohr, Whitehouse, 5;04.00; 6, Cameron Davis, Lindale, 5:06.00.
1600-meter relay - 1, Whitehouse (Alex Williams, Chris Kunzman, Colton Lampin, Tex Pierce), 3:29.00; 2, Jacksonville (Londedric Taylor, Ladarrius Session, Dadrian Franklin, Ozzian Claybone), 3;32.00; 3, John Tyler (Robbie Washington, Terry Ausborne, Traven Johnson, Xavier Mayfield), 3:34.00; 4, Lindale (TJ Griffin, Nathan Evans, Damian Howard-Hines, Kolten Pierce), 3:35.00; 5, Nacogdoches, 3:40.00.
Girls
Girls Team Totals - 1, John Tyler, 168; 2, Lindale, 154; 3, Whitehouse, 127; 4, Jacksonville, 64; 5, Corsicana, 48; 6, Nacogdoches, 47.
Field Events
Pole Vault - 1, Mackenzie Bateman, Lindale, 10-0; 2, Noah Vittrup, 9-0; 3, Baylie Horneman, Whitehouse, 7-6; 4, Catalina Heredia, Whitehouse, 7-5 3/4. Triple Jump - 1, Briana Callier, John Tyler, 34-10 1/2; 2, Chassity Sims, Lindale, 34-1; 3, Dalelasha Rollins, John Tyler, 33-2 1/2; 4, Raven Bryand, Lindale, 33-1; 5, Megan Harris, Whitehouse, 32-9 1/2; 6, Rhyan Rand, Lindale, 32-3.
Discus - 1, Justice Lockett, Nacogdoches, 105-5; 2, Domonica Franklin, Jacksonville, 104-9 1/2; 3, Nicole Borger, Lindale, 97-2; 4, Alexandra Gonter, Whitehouse, 94-0; 5, Beth Hood, Whitehouse, 91-0; 6, Faith Deckard, Nacogdoches, 90-9.
High Jump - 1, Travicia Acy, Lindale, 5-5; 2, Fulani Petties, Whitehouse, 5-4; 3, Symonne Brookins, Lindale, 5-0 1/2; 4, Monique Parks, Nacogdoches, 5-0; 5, Kelly Keller, Whitehouse, 4-11 3/4; 6, Jadia Lampton, John Tyler, 4-10.
Shot Put - 1, Justice Lockett, Nacogdoches, 36-3; 2, Domonica Franklin, Jacksonville, 34-11 1/2; 3, Jacqueline Kindle, John Tyler, 31-10; 4, Rykeisha Rivers, Jacksonville, 30-11 1/2; 5, Faith Deckard, Nacogdoches, 30-10 3/4; 6, Makenna Allen, Lindale, 30-5 1/4.
Long Jump - 1, Jasmine Parson, Jacksonville, 17-0 3/4; 2, Dalelasha Rollins, John Tyler, 16-4; 3, Briana Callier, John Tyler, 16-1 3/4; Chassity Sims, Lindale, 15-10 1/4; 5, Megan Harris, Whitehouse, 15-5; 6, Morgan Tauscher, Whitehouse, 15-2 1/2.
Running Events
3200-meter run - 1, Anna Hayden, Whitehouse, 12:34.05; 2, Claudia Charles, Lindale, 12:39.01; 3, Jessica Saenz, Jacksonville, 14:48.51; 4, Joy Brown, Corsicana, 14:57.80.
400-meter relay - 1, John Tyler (Sydney Jenkins, Christina Lampkin, Briana Callier, Tanisha Vaughn), 48.47; 2 Lindale, (Hannah Malone, Joshlyn Harp, Gracie Tucker, Symonne Brookins), 49.50; 3, Corsicana (Ernisha Ballard, Robin Henly, Makenzie Lee, Jacorey Sneed), 49.75; 4, Nacogdoches (Brosha Dunn, Shy'Keya Gregory, Ma'Kashia Lampkin, Destiny White), 51.57; 5, Whitehouse, 51.67; 6, Jacksonville, 54.11.
800-meter run - 1, Samantha Anderson, Whitehouse, 2:19.70; 2, Kaylah Callaway, Lindale, 2:33.60; 3, Jadia Lampton, John Tyler, 2:37.20; 4, Victoria Cardwell, Whitehouse, 2:40.77; 5, Christina Belk, Jacksonville, 2:42.21; 6,Kinley Holloway, Whitehouse, 2:52.78.
100-meter hurdles - 1, Gracie Tucker, Lindale, 16.25; 2, Jade Caldwell, John Tyler, 16.52; 3, Briana Callier, John Tyler, 17.20; 4, Alexandra Stokes, Nacogdoches, 17.40; 5, Travicia Acy, Lindale, 17.45; 6, Madison Jacks, Whitehouse, 17.55.
100-meter dash - 1, Christina Lampkin, John Tyler, 12.64; 2, Shamara Taylor, Corsicana, 13.02; 3, Sydney Jenkins, John Tyler, 13.02; 4, Symonnne Brookins, Lindale, 13.04; 5, Destiny White, Nacogdoches, 13.05; 6, KeeAnna Ward, Lindale, 13.39.
800-meter relay - 1, John Tyler (Breuna Gipson, Christina Lampkin, DeShalyn Jones, Tanisha Vaughn), 1:42.28; 2, Corsicana (Ernisha Ballard, Robin Henley, Makenzie Lee, Jacorey Sneed), 1:44.57; 3, Lindale (Hannah Malone, Chassity Sims, Rhyan Rand, Symonne Brookins), 1:50.00; 4, Whitehouse (Victoria Taylor, Chelsea Rider, Deja Austin, Lauren Smith), 1:51.07; 5, Nacogdoches, 1:52.61; 6, Jacksonville, 1:55.68.
400-meter dash - 1, DeShalyn Jones, John Tyler, 61.37; 2, Catalina Heredia, Whitehouse, 62.76; 3, Erin Strickland, Whitehouse, 63.87; 4, Sha'Kendra Tilley, John Tyler, 64.05; 5, Jasmine Lane, John Tyler, 66.17; 6, Ashley Lacy, Lindale, 66.96.
300-meter hurdles - 1, Gracie Tucker, Lindale, 46.49; 2, Jade Caldwell, John Tyler, 49.07; 3, Morgan Taushcer, Whitehouse, 50.14; 4, Madison Jacks, Whitehouse, 50.71; 5, Alexandra Stokes, Nacogdoches, 52.02; 6, Briana Callier, John Tyler, 52.82.
200-meter dash - 1, Jasmine Parson, Jacksonville, 25.07; 2, Ernisha Ballard, Corsicana, 25.74; 3, Tanisha Vaughn, John Tyler, 26.03; 4, Breuna Gipson, John Tyler, 26.56; 5, Rhyan Rand, Lindale, 26.66; 6, Jasmine Lane, John Tyler, 27.57.
1600-meter run - 1, Anna Hayden, Whitehouse, 5:42.13; 2, Claudia charles, Lindale, 5:44.21; 3, Kaylah Callaway, Lindale, 6:05.31; 4, Victoria Cardwell, Whitehouse, 6:058.1; 5, Jadia Lampton, John Tyler, 6:40.73; 6, Joy Brown, Corsicana, 6:46.00.
1600-meter relay - 1, Whitehouse (Samantha Anderson, Catalina Heredia, Kenslie Dews, Erin Strickland), 4:12.00; 2, John Tyler (DeShalyn Jones, Sha'Kendra Tilley, Jasmine Lee, Elwenna Key), 4:18.00; 3, Jacksonville (Tempest Silvers, Jada Parson, Christina Belk, Megan Cumbi), 4:19.00; 4, Lindale (Hannah Malone, Kaylah Callaway, Rhyan Rand, Joshlyn Harp), 4:26.00.