Carroll boys take 2nd, girls 3rd at UIL state cross country

Southlake Carroll's boys cross country team earned state runner-up at the UIL Class 6A State Cross Country Championships in Round Rock on Friday, Nov. 6.

The girls squad grabbed third place at the same meet, finishing just two points out of second, according to Southlake Style.

Both squads reached the podium.

Boys finish behind El Paso Eastwood

The Dragons posted 68 team points in the boys 5K. El Paso Eastwood won the title with 56 points. DyeStat, a national track and cross country outlet, described the result as No. 6 Eastwood taking down No. 4 Carroll in the 6A boys final.

Junior Kai Gutierrez paced Carroll with a fifth-place individual finish in 14:43.10. Senior Jaxon Glenn crossed 13th in 15:19.40. Senior Claudio Auns followed in 14th at 15:22.20.

Grant Norgart placed 24th in 15:38.30. Senior Evan O'Donnell rounded out the scoring five in 30th at 15:42.90. Adhavan Palanivelrajan finished 66th in 16:02.40, and sophomore Cameron Perez placed 67th in 16:02.80.

Girls miss second by two points

Senior Abigail Perez led the Carroll girls with a 14th-place finish in 18:20.20. Megan Bergman followed in 26th at 18:32.50, and Quinn Salstrand finished 53rd in 18:56.10.

Sophomore Nora Farden crossed in 58th at 18:58.60. Senior Landry Lambert placed 60th at 19:01.20. Kameron Dukes finished 75th in 19:10.80, and senior Grace McIlvain came in 84th at 19:16.00.

Southlake Style described the girls' third-place finish as the result of a breakthrough season in which the team steadily climbed into the state's top tier.

Season built on early results

The boys entered the state meet after a fall that included winning the Woodbridge Invitational Sweepstakes title Sept. 19 in Irvine, Calif. Carroll ISD called it a program first, with the Dragons scoring 140 points against a field of nationally ranked programs. Gutierrez placed second overall in 13:40 at Woodbridge, which Carroll ISD said was the highest individual Woodbridge finish ever by a Carroll runner.