Guthrie saw a surge in traffic over the weekend, all thanks to the growing success of the 2nd Annual Clay Tarter Memorial Invitational. The two-day event featured middle school races on Friday and high school races on Saturday, drawing 1,091 runners from 29 schools to Cottonwood Flats on Guthrie’s west side.
Guthrie High School head coach Bryce Balenseifen expressed excitement over the event’s growth. “That’s more than twice as big as last year,” Balenseifen said. “This (is) the biggest middle school cross country meet in the state this year.”
In the high school girls’ division, Edmond North took the team title with an impressive 18 points, followed by Guthrie with 99 points, and Kingfisher in third place out of 10 teams. North’s Emma Johnson claimed the individual win with a time of 18:19, besting a field of 79 runners.
For the Lady Jays, sophomore Taylor Schroder led the way, finishing 8th overall with a time of 20:25.38. Senior Raley Hooper placed 17th (21:36), followed by senior Peyton Read in 23rd (22:29), freshman Jaydin Alexander in 29th (22:40), and sophomore Addie Poupard in 32nd (22:57).
On the boys’ side, Guthrie placed 5th out of 10 teams. Edmond North once again claimed the team victory with 27 points, while Classen SAS finished second with 85 points. Guthrie’s junior standout Isaiah Blevins placed 2nd overall, clocking a time of 16:01, just behind North’s Will Mourning, who won with a time of 15:57.
Junior Kallon Cyphers narrowly missed the top 10, finishing 12th with a time of 17:08. Other Jays finishers included junior Isaac Talley in 34th (17:58), freshman Easton Smedley in 39th (18:13), and sophomore Josiah Dement in 41st (18:18). The boys’ race featured 87 competitors.
In the junior varsity races, 60 runners competed in the girls’ division and 118 in the boys’ division. The Guthrie Fun Run capped off the weekend with 39 participants.
The Clay Tarter Memorial Invitational continues to grow, solidifying itself as one of the state’s premier cross-country events.
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