Pirates hurdlers looking forward to chance to qualify for Class 2A State Meet

The Gore Pirates three hurdlers, Devon Mannon, Trenton Cunningham and Weston Cunningham, have had very successful springs in both the 110-meter and 300-meter hurdles this track season. They each credit motivation and hard work for their successes so far this spring.

“I just like chasing the gold (medal, meaning winning either or both hurdling events),” Mannon said.

“It’s mainly because of the practice and the drill our coach (T.W. Estes) has us do,” Trenton Cunningham said. “Those help a lot.”

“I credit it to all the hard work coach has us put in,” Trenton Cunningham said.

All three hurdlers have been in the top 15 in Class 2A in both hurdle events this season, which has been a pleasant surprise to the Pirate trio.

“It feels really good being ranked as a freshman,” Weston Cunningham said. “I really didn’t really expect it, but I’ll take it.”

“It feels good to be ranked,” Trenton Cunningham said. “I really didn’t expect it being a freshman.”

“It feels really good,” Mannon said. “Coach makes us work hard.”

Upon visiting Gore Event Center, on the northside/ visiting wall are sports banners. Among those are banners to honor former Gore All-Staters Ty Bliss and Hallie Kinion. All three hurdlers say seeing their names up on the wall is a great motivator.

“We look up to them,” Mannon said.

“It helps push myself to have my name up there one of these days,” Trenton Cunningham said.

“It just makes me want to work harder and get my own banner with my name up there,” Weston Cunningham said.

The Gore hurdlers will try to qualify for state at Saturday’s Class 2A Regional Meet at Atoka’s Phillips Field. However, a bigger goal for them is to do something not yet achieved — having all three finish 1-2-3 in either or both hurdles events.

“It would be amazing,” Weston Cunningham said. “I would love to do that (finishing with all three Pirates in the top three). That (making state) would mean we would go another week of practice together. Then, we’d go out the next Friday and Saturday and push each other there (at the Class 2A State Meet at Oklahoma City Western Heights High School), too.”

“It would be so amazing because I’ve been wanting us to get in the top three — finishing first, second and third — all year,” Trenton Cunningham said. “It hasn’t happened yet. Hopefully, it will happen Saturday (at the Class 2A Regional Meet). That would be great.”

“It would mean the most not just to me, but to my teammates and my coach,” Mannon said. “These two right here (Cunningham twins) have been working hard all track year. We just need it to happen.”

The three hurdlers and all the other local track athletes will be trying to qualify for state at their respective regional meets on Saturday.

The Sallisaw track teams will be at the Class 4A Regional Meet at Jay, the Muldrow squads will be at the Class 4A Regional Meet at McAlester’s Hook-Eales Stadium, the Roland teams (Class 3A) and the Gore, Central and Vian squads (Class 2A) will be at their respective regional meet at Atoka and the Gans and Webbers Falls tracksters will be at the Class A Regional Meet in Jay.

The top three finishers in each individual and relay event automatically will qualify for their respective state meets the following weekend, with the Class 3A-4A State Meet at Plainview Stadium on the campus of Plainview High School in Ardmore and the Class A-2A State Meet at Western Heights High School.

All the fourth- through seventh-place finishers at all four regional meets in each class will be put into one big group, with the next best four individuals and relays, including ties, earning at-large bids to their respective state meet.