Viper boys cross country fourth time as state silver medalist, girls place 12th

The Vandegrift Vipers boys cross country team on the medal podium after winning second place at the UIL Class 5A state cross-country championships on November 1 at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock. Head coach Colin Sully is on the right and assistant coach Caitlin Sawyer is on the left.
Kai McCullough, Vandegrift senior, finished 5th individually at the UIL 6A Cross Country State Championships on November 1 at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock.

By LYNETTE HAALAND, Four Points News

The Vandegrift boys cross country team placed 2nd at the state meet on November 1 and the girls team finished 12th.   

“This was our fourth runner-up finish in a row for the boys. Boys led by Kai McCullough in 5th overall,” shared Colin Sully, VHS cross country head coach.  

The Vipers scored 98 points behind state champion Southlake Carroll’s 71 in the Class 6A boys race at the 5K course at Old Settlers Park.

“Last year we were within four points of Southlake Carroll,” Sully said.

He shared with the Austin American-Statesman “It takes a lot of composure and discipline to know that you’re still in the fight. I think we were in seventh place at mile one, then moved into fourth before finishing second behind Southlake.”

Senior Kai McCullough finished fifth among 6A high school runners in Texas and according to the Statesman, he is weighing his college options between Texas, Duke and Georgia. 

“After the first mile, I just started picking people off,” McCullough said in a Statesman interview. “I ran faster in the second part of the race, which is something not many people do. They kind of just slow down over the course of the race. It was definitely a good race for me.”

McCullough finished fifth overall in 15:00. Avinash Dewagan earned 17th place with a time of 15:32; Collin Goodwin was 23rd (15:38), Miles Nutt 53rd (15:57), Anderson Mills 56th (15:58), Atticus Reyes 70th (16:08) and freshman Devin Celkis 72nd (16:08). Dewagan and Celkis are freshmen; Mills and Reys are sophomores.

“We have a young team this year and I’m not sure we were picked to even make the podium so this is an amazing accomplishment,” Sully said. “The boys ran with the belief that they could win the first state title for the school and got pretty close.”

Sully also said he was impressed with where the girls team finished despite some challenges.

“I’m really proud at what both teams have been able to accomplish this season,” Sully said. “The girls ran without one of their top runners and everyone stepped up. I’m thrilled they were able to place 12th against the best in Texas.”  

The Vipers headed to a Nike regional qualifier in College Station on November 24. 

“Last year we received an at-large bid to the national meet in Portland where the boys finished seventh in the nation,” Sully shared.