Texas State Meet

Ryan Schoppe Crushes UIL Meet Record With 14:14

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Ryan Schoppe took advantage of a perfect day to run at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock and sped through the UIL State Championships 5,000-meter course in 14:14.02 on Saturday and shattered the meet record by 20 seconds. 

Schoppe, a Nike Elite Camper, won by 25 seconds and showed that he could be a national championship contender. His performance was the second-fastest 5,000-meter effort in prep history, trailing only the 14:10.40 achieved by Dathan Ritzenhein of Rockford High at the 2000 Michigan State Championships. 

Anthony Monte from Austin Vandegrift was second in 14:39.59 and Spencer Cardinal of The Woodlands was third in 14:45.01.

Southlake Carroll beat traditional rival The Woodlands 80-115 to win the 6A boys title. The Dragons made it a program sweep with victory in the girls championship (45 points).

Sophomore Aubrey O'Connell of Prosper won the 6A girls race in 17:05.95. 

Seniors Graydon Morris and Gracie Morris of Aledo nearly pulled off the family sweep of the Class 5A titles. Graydon won a tough race with El Paso Hanks standout Michael Abeyta to win his third straight title in 14:33.5, just a second ahead of Abeyta. Gracie, who has recovered from injury, finished second in the girls race (17:25.16), behind Colleen Stegmann of Frisco Reedy (17:17.03).

El Paso Eastwood won the 5A boys team title with 51 points, putting five scorers in the top 21.

Boerne Champion put five scorers in the top 24 places and also scored 51 points to claim its first girls championship.

Judson Greer of Melissa, one of the undisputed top runners in the state, won the 4A boys final for the second year in a row, in 14:34.66. His winning margin was 32 seconds. 

The Decatur boys edged San Elizario by three points 98-101 for the team championship.

Canyon's girls prevailed in a tight battle in the 4A girls team competition, scoring 109 points to squeak ahead of Celina (113) and Hereford (114). Jaci McGregor of Salado ran 11:24.05 for 3,200 meters to win the race.

Edwin Zamudio from Luling won the 3A boys race in 15:35.87 as Eustace claimed the team championship with 85 points. Dalton Page led Eustace with his second-place finish.

Holliday won the girls team title with a sophomore and three freshmen all finishing in the top 24. Peyton Muntz of Whitesboro won the individual title when she ran 11:28.06 for 3,200 meters.

The Great Hearts Monte Vista boys put four in the top nine and ran away with the Class 2A championship with 35 points. Senior Diego Flores ran 16:04.76 to lead the team with his first-place finish. 

Allison Hedrick of Lindsay won the girls 3,200-meter race in 11:33.99. Gruver scored 62 points to win the team title.

Cumby Miller Grove swept the 1A team and individual titles. The boys maintained the title for the third year, while the girls bounced back after losing on a tiebreaker in 2018.

Sophomore Isaiah Billingsley ran 15:28.38 and teammate Kobe Robertson was second for the Hornets. Jorja Bessonett won the girls 3,200-meter race in 11:58.38.

Team Champions 

Class 6A - Southlake Carroll boys 80 points, Southlake Carroll girls 45 points - RESULTS

Class 5A - El Paso Eastwood boys 51 points, Boerne Champion girls 51 points - RESULTS

Class 4A - Decatur boys 98 points, Canyon girls 109 points - RESULTS

Class 3A - Eustace boys 85 points, Holliday girls 57 points - RESULTS

Class 2A -  Great Hearts Monte Vista boys 35 points, Gruver girls 62 points (3,200m) - RESULTS

Class 1A - Cumby Miller Grove boys 34 points, Cumby Miller Grove girls 54 points (3,200m) - RESULTS