CATOOSA — By the time the medals were handed out in Catoosa, the exhausted smiles told the story.
A leap that rewrote expectations, a hurdle race run faster than ever before and a school record years in the making.
For Mannford Pirate track teams, proof that this spring’s state meet was about far more than points — it was about growth. It was about breakthrough performances, but for three Pirates in particular, it was about reaching a level few athletes touch.
Landon Owens soared to a state runnerup finish in the Class 4A high jump, clearing a personal-record 6-foot-4 mark that now ranks among Oklahoma’s Top 25 jumps this season. The Mannford standout tied for second place and delivered one of the biggest performances of the weekend for the Pirates boys team.
Owens wasn’t done there. He also competed in the 200 meters, running 22.45, placing 12th in the preliminaries. He added a ninth-place finish in the long jump with a leap of 21 feet, 1.75 inches.
Some athletes spend a season trying to find a great moment. Owens stacked up three.
Meanwhile, on the girls side, Madison Hale delivered the kind of race every hurdler dreams about at the state meet — the best one of her life.
Hale raced to a third-place medal in the 300-meter hurdles, clocking a personalrecord 45.75 that vaulted her into Oklahoma’s Top 25 rankings this season.
It was the perfect finish for one of Mannford’s most consistent athletes all spring.
Hurdles are unforgiving events. One bad step can destroy months of preparation. But Hale attacked the race with confidence from the opening hurdle and never let the moment get too big.
By the finish line, she had earned a place on the podium.
And then there was Max Moore. Every few years, athletes show up on the rosters who quietly grind while no one’s paying attention, then suddenly they rise to the surface and outperform just about everyone. Moore became one of those stories.
The Mannford hurdler placed sixth in the 110-meter hurdles with a personal-record 15.25 — a mark that also established a new school record — and placed him among Oklahoma’s Top 50 for the season.
School records, especially in hurdles, never happen by accident.
They come from hours at the track, repetition, technique work, building muscle memory. Countless practices spent shaving fractions of seconds from races that last just a quarter of a minute.
Moore’s performance gave the Pirates boys another state medalist and added to a growing sense that Mannford track is building a sustainable formula.
The Pirates boys finished 23rd in Class 4A with 11 team points.
Jerrett Robinson added another point with an eighth-place finish in the 100 meters at 11.07, while the 4x200 relay team of Luke Naylor, Robinson, Trey Scott and Owens placed ninth in 1:30.12.
The boys 4x800 relay team of Ben Shasteen, Isaac Brown, Evin Hollaway and Robert Gonzalez finished 14th in 8:42.56, while Joey Bish tied for 11th in pole vault by clearing 11 feet, 6 inches.
Rider Tidwell also competed in the 110 hurdles, placing 11th in preliminaries with a 15.75 effort.
The Mannford girls finished 12th in Class 4A with 20 team points.
Distance runner Marley Beshear delivered another strong state-meet performance, placing seventh in the 3200 meters with a 12:16.26 finish and adding a 10th-place effort in the 1600 at 5:33.51.
Ella Maxville earned a medal of her own by finishing seventh in high jump after clearing 5 feet even.
Addison Pehrson reached the 200-meter prelims and ran 26.22, while Jayden Epperley competed in the 100-meter hurdles and finished 10th in preliminaries with a 17.20.
The Lady Pirates also qualified relay teams in the 4x100, 4x200 and 4x800 relays, continuing a season that showcased depth across nearly every event group.
And maybe that’s what mattered most by the end of the weekend.
Not just the medals. Not just the rankings. But the fact that Mannford didn’t send one athlete to state hoping to survive the moment.
The Pirates arrived en masse, ready to compete.