Region cross country: Sky Pointe boys, girls claim 5A titles — PHOTOS
Welcome to the top classification of high school cross country, Sky Pointe.
The smallest Southern school in the biggest classification made the loudest statement at Friday’s Class 5A Southern Region meet in Boulder City.
Sky Pointe dominated the 5-kilometer course at Veterans Memorial Park to win the boys and girls titles in the program’s first season in 5A.
The Sky Pointe boys scored 36 points to take the title over Bishop Gorman (94 points) and Shadow Ridge (111). The girls’ race was a little closer, but Sky Pointe racked up 54 points to claim the title over Coronado (73) and Faith Lutheran (84).
“We knew it wasn’t going to be a cakewalk,” Sky Pointe coach Paul Sheppard said. “They really had to push it, and they all performed outstanding.”
Faith Lutheran’s Brady Anderson won the 5A boys individual race with a time of 15 minutes, 34.1 seconds. He outlasted Sky Pointe’s Carter Prater (15:35) and Sawyer Hutton (15:38), who finished second and third in a sprint to the finish.
“It wasn’t an easy race,” said Anderson, a senior and first-time region champion. “I had a lot of good competition, but it came down to kind of a gutsy finish, and I had my mind set on what I wanted and wasn’t going to let anybody get in the way.”
The 5A girls individual race wasn’t as close, as Coronado’s Brooke-Lynn Miller won with a time of 18:40.8. Sky Pointe’s Aislin McMahon (18:54.8) was second and teammate Lacy Tippetts (18:58.2) third.
“I’ve been working really hard this past year because I wanted to redeem myself from last year because I felt like I didn’t perform as well as I thought,” said Miller, a senior and first-time region champion.
The 5A, 3A and 2A state meets are Nov. 8 at Rancho San Rafael Park in Reno. Veterans Memorial Park will host the 4A state meets Nov. 8.
Eagles soaring
Sky Pointe, a charter school located in the northwest part of Las Vegas, has been on a rapid rise since the boys finished second in the 3A state meet in 2022 and the girls won the state title that year. The Eagles boys and girls swept the 4A state titles in 2023 and 2024, and moved up to 5A in the offseason.
“We only have, depending on the year, between 1,000 to 1,200 kids at our (high) school, but we have some gems of students,” Sheppard said. “Even though we have less of a population, we have absolutely stellar students. It feels good to be the underdog on top.”
The Sky Pointe boys had four runners earn finalist medals — Prater, Hutton, Shane Ramirez (sixth) and Ryan Petty (seventh). The girls had four runners finish in the top 15.
Class 4A
Desert League
Clark won the 4A Desert League boys and girls titles.
The Clark boys finished with 24 points, decisively defeating Rancho (89 points) and Western (100). Clark’s Benjamin Killebrew won the individual title (17:22.2) over teammate Andrew Duncan (17:22.3).
The Clark girls claimed the title with 17 points, topping Spring Valley (82) and Amplus Academy (93). Michelle Stana of Clark won the individual title (21:19.9) over Western’s Yalitzi Muro (21:48.8).
Mountain League
Foothill’s boys and girls teams swept the 4A Mountain League titles.
The Foothill boys won with 33 points over Basic (53) and SECTA (84). Basic’s Ryder Ports (18:08.9) won the boys individual title over Foothill’s Grant DiNicola (18:20.2).
The Foothill girls (40 points) edged SECTA (45) for the title. Basic’s Emma Ansorge won the girls individual title (21:32.7) over Silverado’s Elizabeth Neumann (21:41.7).
Class 3A
Pahrump Valley’s boys and girls teams won the 3A Southern Region titles.
The Pahrump Valley boys scored 34 points, outdistancing runner-up Moapa Valley (56).
Moapa Valley’s Hal Thompson ran away with the boys individual title (17:10.3) over Pahrump Valley’s Joaquin Flores (18:05.1) and Moapa Valley’s BJ Robinson (18:05.7).
The Pahrump Valley girls scored 16 points to claim the title over Moapa Valley (45). The Trojans swept the top four spots — Julianna Ondrisko (22:53.7), Sophie Romero (23:22.6), Rylan Bliss (24:04.4) and Kaylan Robinson (24:15.6) — and six of the top seven.
Class 2A
Lincoln County’s boys and girls teams swept the 2A Southern Region titles.
The Lincoln County boys scored 12 points to win the title over GV Christian (39) and Founders Academy (39).
Lincoln County swept the top three spots in the boys race — Brad Pike (18:14), Will Pike (18:17.9) and Benson Bleak (18:26.2).
The Lincoln County girls swept the top five spots and scored 10 points to earn the title. GV Christian finished second (35 points). Kensley Bleak (23:25.7) won the girls individual title over teammate Sadie Ivins (23:47.1).
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
