ARKANSAS STATE MEET

Haley Loewe, Hudson Betts Win; Bentonville Runs To Class 6A Sweep

By Mary Albl of DyeStat

In her first cross country season at Bentonville, Haley Loewe has quickly made a name for herself. The junior transfer from Wisconsin led Bentonville to a fifth straight Class 6A title on Thursday at the Arkansas State Cross County Championships in record-setting fashion. Loewe won the 5,000-meter race at Oaklawn Park in in Hot Springs with a time of 17:43.70, shattering the meet record of 18:14.04 set in 2020. She is the third female runner in Arkansas to break 18 minutes at state. 

As a team, Bentonville had six runners in the top 11 to score an impressive 22 points. 

The boys 6A final also featured a meet record, but it was a much closer race. Fayetteville senior Hudson Betts won his second straight title in 15:09.53, edging out Rogers' Sam Boyer (15:12.24). Betts’ time surpassed the previous meet record of 15:14.70 set in 2013. 

In the team race, the Bentonville boys made it a program sweep again, claiming their sixth straight championship with all seven runners finishing in the top 15 to tally 44 points. 

The Greenwood girls won the program’s first state title as sophomore Carole Werner led the way with a second-place finish (18:56.36). In total, Greenwood placed five runners in the top 13 to score 33 points. University of Arkansas-bound senior Olivia Pielemier of Lake Hamilton led wire-to-wire, winning the 5A title in 18:40.92. 

The 5A boys title was claimed by Mountain Home with 54 points, while Greenwood senior Noah Embryo easily won the individual crown in 15:27.12, more than 20 seconds faster than second place. 

The Kingston girls had another dominant showing, defending the 1A title with 20 points. Led by senior Aubrey Henderson’s third-place finish (22:58.61), Kingston went 3-4-5-6-7-8. Mount Ida’s Peyton Macejewski won in 21:17.32. 

The Ozark Catholic boys also made easy work of defending the 1A title with 38 points. The team was paced by sophomore Isaac Pohlmeier, who won the race in 17:55.67. 

4A-3A-2A, Friday

Clarksville senior Matthew Dunsworth won his third 4A title on Friday, covering the course in 16:37.31. Pea Ridge won the team title as Grandon Grant (17:00.51) and Tian Grant (17:01.95) went 2-3 to help lead the team over defending champion DeQueen, 57-64. 

Clinton’s Maddie Cabana easily ran away with the 4A title by more than a minute, crossing the line in 18:41.25. The team title went to Gravette with 46 points, as five runners all finished in the top 20. 

Senior Juliah Rodgers of Jessieville defended her 3A title, winning in 19:04.66, while Episcopal also defended the team title with 54 points as sophomore Ella Gary placed second overall (19:30.94). 

Jessieville junior Kaleb Eskew made it a program sweep for the second year in a r row, defending his title in 17:24.52. The Green Forest boys scored 60 points to win the 3A crown. 

In 2A, the Quitman girls repeated as champions with a near perfect performance, placing five in the top 14 to score 18 points. Elizabeth Merritt of Magazine won the individual title in 21:05.40.

Quitman’s Tate Stacks led his team to a 2A title (60 points) winning the race in 16:43.81. 

Team Champions

Class 1A: Ozark Catholic boys 38 points; Kingston girls 20 points - RESULTS

Class 2A: Quitman boys 60 points; Quitman girls 18 points - RESULTS

Class 3A: Green Forest boys 60 points; Episcopal Collegiate girls 54 points - RESULTS

Class 4A: Pea Ridge boys 57 points; Gravette girls 46 points - RESULTS

Class 5A: Mountain Home boys 54 points; Greenwood girls 33 points - RESULTS

Class 6A: Bentonville boys 44 points; Bentonville girls 22 points - RESULTS