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Provo • The Davis High boys didn't want to lose the state title by a point and a half. Not again.
The Davis girls didn't want to finish second for the fourth consecutive year. And there was just enough competition in the field and just enough natural insecurity to make the Class 5A state track and field championship almost a nonstory.
Almost.
The Darts swept the state meet Saturday with a combination of talent and depth that no other team could match. The girls, with 146.5 points, won their first state title in recent years by blowing through their competition. Riverton, for example, came in second with 73 points.
The boys faced a little more adversity but still came away with a championship by scoring 93 points. Both teams fed off the disappointment of last season, when both entered the state meet as heavy favorites, only to lose.
"It's something that we didn't want to feel again," senior sprinter Sarah Oldham said. "A lot of us have been on the team for every second-place finish, and we didn't want to experience that. We were focused this weekend. We came out ready, and we did everything that we needed to do."
There were several standout performances from both sides for the Darts. Sophomore Shea Martinez, who was running in junior high school a year ago, won the 1,600 and the 800 meters and anchored the 1,600 relay.
Brady Nye, one of the premier distance runners in the state, won the 800 and finished second in the 1,600. Spencer Betker won the javelin to boot. But what set Davis apart was its superior depth.
The Darts scored in almost every event. They were the deepest team in the state meet, and the numbers were too much for opponents to overcome.
"The boys had a rough start, and some things went wrong, but they hung tough and they got it done," Davis coach Corbin Talley said. "Everyone remembered some of the things that have happened in the past. Nobody wanted to lose. We showed a lot of heart and character today. We came through big time today."
Highlights
R The Davis High girls win the state title in convincing fashion, with Shea Martinez winning three events.
• The Davis boys use superior depth to win their title.