Sky Pointe girls win 5A cross country title; Clark sweeps 4A crowns

Heading into Saturday’s 5A state cross country championships, there were only two major heights Sky Pointe’s girls program hadn’t already reached.

Senior Aislin McMahon and her teammates fixed that problem in less than 21 minutes.

McMahon covered the 5-kilometer course at Boulder City’s Veterans Memorial Park in 18 minutes, 45 seconds to give the Eagles their first 5A individual champion while also leading the team to its first 5A title.

“I’ve just tried to stay consistent with my training,” said McMahon, who finished second in the regional meet last week. “In regionals, I just wanted to qualify for state and I didn’t want to push it too much.”

Freshman Rayna Lewis finished second, 7 seconds behind her teammate as Sky Pointe compiled 37 points to beat second-place Faith Lutheran by 42 points. Reno (102) finished third.

Lewis, who will get three more shots at a state title, said she finished with no regrets.

“It was really important just to make sure I helped my team,” said Lewis, who credited McMahon as a mentor.

Eagles coach Paul Sheppard said his elite duo made it possible.

“One of the best things was for us to get Rayna,” said Sheppard, whose team had won 3A and 4A titles before Saturday. “That really helps your point differential. But we didn’t have one kid who was not locked in. Every single one of them wanted this more than anything.”

Clark’s Caylee Hernandez won the 4A race in 20:10 to lead the Chargers to their second straight team title. Teammate Payton Howse finished third in 20:56.

“You just have to embrace monotony,” said Clark coach Chuck Bennion, whose boys team also repeated. “Day by day, there are no results, but the miles are king, and they put in the miles.”

The Chargers finished with 31 points, followed by Foothill (45) and Sierra Vista (111).

Truckee dominated the 3A girls race, scoring 20 points to cruise past Elko (66). Pahrump was the South’s top finisher, claiming third with 110 points.

Lincoln County and Incline tied for first in the 2A final, while North Tahoe’s Lucia Avril won the individual championship in 18:33.

Boys cross country

Sky Pointe’s boys finished second in the 5A final for the second straight year, scoring 67 points to finish 14 points behind defending champion Galena.

Sheppard said he was not disappointed with his team’s finish.

“I’m very happy,” he said. “I don’t think anyone could beat that Galena team without a miracle. They were just unstoppable.”

Centennial’s Calvin Rivera finished fourth in 16:13 to nab the highest finish for a Southern Nevada runner, while Sky Pointe’s Shane Ramirez finished a second back for fifth place.

Reno (72) finished third in the team standings.

In 4A action, Andrew Duncan (16:01) and Erasmus Gladden (16:35) claimed the top two spots to lead Clark’s boys to another championship. Bennion said the individual titles were merely a bonus.

“I don’t set individual championships as a goal,” he said. “That’s not the focus, but our program facilitates that.”

Foothill’s Grant DiNicola finished third individually at 16:35.4.

The North dominated the 3A race, with Tahoe scoring 33 points to blow out the field. South Tahoe scored 60 for second place, and Pahrump Valley squeezed into the top three with 85.

Truckee’s Connor Bilodeau won the race in 15:50, and Moapa Valley’s BJ Robison was the South’s top finisher at eighth place (17:19).

Lincoln County won the 2A team title, while North Tahoe’s Max Avril won the individual championship in 16:33.