Sky Pointe junior eyes 5A state cross country individual, team titles

All the races have been run but one. And for Sky Pointe junior Aislin McMahon, that’s the only one that matters.

The Class 5A girls state cross country meet is scheduled for Saturday at Reno’s San Rafael State Park, and McMahon will have redemption on her mind.

She went into last week’s Southern Region meet at Veterans Memorial Park as the top-rated 5-kilometer runner in Southern Nevada and was favored to win the race. But Coronado’s Brooke-Lynn Miller had other plans, finishing in 18 minutes, 40 seconds to defeat second-place finisher McMahon by 14 seconds.

Eagles coach Paul Sheppard offered no tips for McMahon, arguing that her last race was close to perfect. Miller’s was just a little more perfect.

“I think it had more to do with Brooke-Lynn,” Sheppard said. “She’s got a ton of talent, and she’s got a new coach who’s phenomenal. It’s more about what she did than what Aislin did. She just had a great race.”

But it was just one race, and McMahon thinks she can finish the season with the individual state championship.

“I felt OK last week, but I hadn’t run a race in a while,” said McMahon, who defeated Miller earlier this season. “I needed to knock some of the rust off. This race will come down to whoever wants it more.”

Her coach agreed.

“Aislin will do everything she can to redeem herself,” Sheppard said. “But she’s going to have to at least take down Brooke-Lynn and a girl (Gioia Coudriet) from Galena. It’s going to come down to who plays it out the smartest.”

McMahon and Miller will face a significant disadvantage Saturday because the Northern runners are acclimated to running at Reno’s higher altitude.

“All you can do is prepare,” Sheppard said. “We’ve run eight or nine times at Lee Canyon, and the kids are prepared for what it feels like to run at altitude. They’ve never seen the course, but they’ve watched a video I took, so it won’t be a total shock.”

McMahon feels ready for the challenge.

“We’ve trained for this,” she said. “We’ve trained at altitude, and I think we’re prepared.”

McMahon knows her individual title won’t be the only thing on the line. Her team will be looking for its first 5A state title and will enter as the favorite after winning last weekend’s regional meet.

“I think we can win it,” McMahon said. “The girls just need to work really hard and work together. If that happens, we will have a good chance.”

Faith Lutheran, Shadow Ridge and Coronado will be the Eagles’ biggest threats from the South, but the North’s Galena also has garnered much attention as a potential champion.

McMahon said she would be satisfied with her performance as long as she contributes toward a team title.

“It would show the amount of hard work we’ve put in,” she said.

Sheppard has become a believer, too.

“Our girls raced out of their minds last week,” he said. “They’re going to have to do that again, and more.”

Other runners with a strong chance of winning the individual title include Shadow Ridge’s Elynn Okuda, Faith Lutheran’s Sophia Weisz and Sky Pointe’s Lacy Tippetts.

Clark won last weekend’s 4A Desert League race, nearly sweeping the top five spots ahead of Spring Valley and Amplus. The Chargers will contend with Foothill and Tech, the top two teams from the Mountain League, for the state championship.

Pahrump Valley dominated last week’s 3A regional and will enter as the top team from the South.

Races will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, starting with 5A boys.

Boys cross country

Sky Pointe also won the Class 5A boys regional last weekend, as expected. Along with Galena from the North, the Eagles will be favored to win Saturday’s state meet. Centennial and Bishop Gorman also will be in the hunt.

Faith Lutheran’s Brady Anderson and Sky Pointe’s Carter Prater and Sawyer Hutton are the top individuals from the South.

Clark, Foothill and Basic are the top 4A teams from the South, and Pahrump Valley and Moapa are the top Southern teams in 3A.

Contact Jeff Wollard at jwollard@reviewjournal.com.