ARKANSAS CITY — Allen Community College’s men completed their running “triple crown” and narrowly missed out on a coveted Region VI championship in the process Friday and Saturday.
The Red Devils earned the top score among Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division schools, matching feats secured by ACC’s cross country team in the fall and during the indoor track season in March.
Perhaps most impressive, is the squad’s lofty rankings despite having seven open events in which Allen had no competitors.
“That’s a lot of points we didn’t have a chance to earn,” ACC head coach Vince DeGrado said.
The Red Devils racked up 212 points, 26 ahead of Coffeyville, its nearest Jayhawk East competitor. Among Region VI schools, Allen scored 129 points, five behind Coffeyville and 21.5 behing Region VI champion Colby.
Each event was scored for both Region VI and Jayhawk East. For example, Allen’s Brock Artis took home third in the 5000-meter run overall, but still was named Jayhawk East champion. Artis finished the 5000 with a time of 16 minutes, 5.0 seconds.
“To come that close with that many open events is something these kids can be proud of,” DeGrado said.
Among the highlights:
Terika Henry is the Region VI and Jayhawk East champion in the 200-meter dash, finishing in 23.16 seconds. Meanwhile, she took second in the 100 meters in both Region VI and Jayhawk East at 11.7 seconds. Elesha Alyn is the region and division champ in the triple jump, leaping 12.29 meters.
Dallas Snider shaved 10 seconds off his 1500 meter mark, taking second in Region VI and winning Jayhawk East with a time of 3:59.85 seconds. Tucker Morgan won the 10,000-meter run with a time of 32:46.49 among Jayhawk East competitors. He finished second in Region VI. That feat was equalled by Allen’s 4×400-meter relay team of Deandre Henderson, Rickcardo Bailey, Royal Gatson and Kyle Smith. The quartet finished in 3:14.41, best among Jayhawk East schools and second in Region VI.
Those who finished first in their respective competitions are recognized as conference and Region VI champions, while those who earn silver medals are listed as “second team” performers. Those who earn bronze medals receive honorable mention.
The weekend performances provided what DeGrado described as “redemption” for Allen and its athletes.
That it occurred at the campus of Cowley College was particularly sweet for DeGrado, who was named with assistant coach Tony Davis as Region VI coaches of the year. DeGrado formerly coached at Cowley and even won national championships in men’s and women’s cross country in 2010.
His departure from Cowley to Allen two years ago left raw feelings.
“I still love the school, but to be told we’d never win anything at Allen was something that sat with me for a long time,” he said. “All of the credit goes to these kids. Coach Davis and I have something special this year with these kids.”
