Mackie Land and Kyla Kane combine for five gold medals at Texas UIL State Track and Field Meet
AUSTIN — Macklynn Land solidified her Panhandle region legend status on Friday night and put a final stamp on her high school career with three gold medals added to her already outstanding resume.
The senior with the powerful stride and perfected form stormed around the track at Mike A. Myers Stadium in her first race of the day to win with a time of 54.21 seconds.
"Not many people get to compete with people like her," Panhandle junior Avery Sides said. "It's an honor to have her on our team."
Land followed that up with a blistering fast performance in the 200 where she pulled away in the final 50 meters to notch her second gold of the night. She ended with a time of 23.75 seconds, which was 0.83 seconds quicker than second-place finisher Victoria Byrd from Joaquin.
To cap the night off, Land ran the anchor for the Panhandle 1,600 relay team of Sides, Sydnee Adee, and Leah Land.
The Ettes held a 0.37 second lead over silver medalist Haskell when Land was handed the baton from her little sister. The elder statesman of the quartet then showed her elite speed as she pulled away once again and Panhandle won gold with a Class 2A state meet record time of three minutes, 55.79 seconds.
That mark broke Panhandle's own record from last spring (3:56.09), which was something that this group was aiming for when they arrived at the University of Texas this week.
More: UIL STATE NOTEBOOK: Three Panhandle athletes win bronze at 2022 UIL state track meet
"I think that coming out here with the mindset that we want to break our own record and we can break our own record if we try hard enough," Land said. "I think that's what we all really wanted to accomplish today more than anything."
The 800 relay team of Leah Land, Adee, Grace Sims, and Sides won a silver (1:46.09) as Panhandle also took home a second-place team finish after finishing two points behind Class 2A state champion Haskell (60).
Land has left her mark on the Panhandle track and field program with six state golds in the past two years and will now head off to Texas Tech to compete at the next level.
She could not have left the Texas Panhandle without taking a few more golds with her.
"Coming down here with that chip on our shoulder where everywhere we walked we were the defending 2021 state champions," Land said. "People just want to beat you and coming out here and doing this is just a big deal."
Kane wins gold in 800 and 1,600
Wellington senior Kyla Kane was looking to add some more hardware to her trophy cases.
Kane picked up wins in the 800 and the 1,600 under the lights of Mike A. Myers Stadium on Friday night at the UIL state track and field meet to up her medal count to four and gold count to three over the past two seasons.
She ran a time of two minutes, 20.65 seconds in the 800 after taking home a silver medal in the event last year. Kane defended her title in the 1,600 with a final time of five minutes, 17.0 seconds for a narrow win over Normangee senior Cassidy Bilsing (5:17.11).
"I just told myself I wasn't going to be coming back next year to make up for missed titles if I don't win it this year, so I can't lose," Kane said.
Kane has a high school athletic resume that includes three cross country state titles, three state track meet gold medals, and three All-State selections in basketball.
The versatile and speedy junior will now take her talents south to Canyon where she will compete for the elite West Texas A&M women's basketball program.
"Coming from a small school is harder I think because you have to do every sport," Kane said. "Being a Wellington Lady Rocket is the best thing ever. I'm going to miss it so much but I'm glad I'm going out on a big win."
Sandies 800 relay rallies for bronze
Following a fifth-place finish in the Class 5A boys 400 relay, Amarillo High bounced back to earn a bronze medal.
Xavin Landry, Tyreese Molden, J.Q. Ervin and Jameson Garcia teamed to run a 1:25.43. That was good for third behind Fort Bend Marshall (1:23.60) and Lancaster (1:24.93).
More: Canyon Lady Eagles win team title, Spearman's Thompson sets records in 100 & 200
“We came this far, we ain’t going to leave without some hardware,” Garcia said. “We had to give our all on this last race. We knew this was it. It’s a special group. We’re losing two seniors, but me and J.Q. are going to come back next year and try our best.”
Molden, who ran on both relays, also placed fifth in the 200 in 21.25. Grouped with two bronze medals from distance runner Isaac McGill, the Sandies finished fifth in the team standings with 30 points.
McGill set the Amarillo High school record with his time in the 1,600 by two seconds (4:15.21) and now holds the school's records in the one mile, two mile, and 5K. He will head off to the University of Portland where he hopes to continue his record-setting ways and will always be one to deliver a memorable quote.
"I'm not really as sad as I thought I would be because it doesn't feel like I'm hanging anything up," McGill said. "It feels like I'm just passing it on. I don't think Isaac McGill and the spirit of Isaac McGill are going to leave Amarillo. Those kids coming up cut mullets, man. They wear nose strips. I like to know and love that I have an impact on these kids and I think for many years to come, Isaac McGill's never gonna leave."
McConnell takes home silver in the 1,600
Following a tough sixth place finish in the 800 where she got boxed in and scraped up a little, Randall senior and Oklahoma State commit Cameron McConnell won a silver medal in the 1,600 with a final time of four minutes, 51.26 seconds.
"Afterwards I knew I had one race left in my high school career so I really just have to do whatever I can," she said. "I'm really happy with how it went."
McConnell scored nine points by herself on Friday night and added a silver medal to her one year of success at Randall that includes a Class 5A cross country state championship.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Mackie Land, Kyla Kane combine for 5 gold medals at Texas UIL meet
