AUSTIN — The Franklin High girls weren’t supposed to do what they just did.
The Cougars came into the Class 6A UIL state championships seeded sixth in the 4×400 relay, a big accomplishment for a program and a team sent to do battle with state juggernauts like Duncanville and Lancaster, the latter of whom was doing a victory parade for their team state championship.
Franklin was supposed to be part of the others, the filler in the field, a team celebrating the end of a fantastic season.
Except Sumaya Chavez, Mackenzie Martin-Collins, Chloe Raines and Samaya Scranton didn’t believe in the odds — they believed in themselves. Now, they have a silver medal to show for it.
“That was crazy, I didn’t expect this to get that high up, we were seeded sixth,” the anchor Scranton said. “Then I got (the baton in third), I felt a girl behind me, I kept fighting, trying to get the girls in front, they slowly started dropping off, I finished strong. All the training we’ve done before really came to that moment.
”It’s such an unreal moment to get on the podium at state.”
The lead leg Chavez and the second leg Martin-Collins kept the Cougars competitive, as they bounced around between fifth and third. Martin-Collins finished strong to give Raines the stick in third behind Duncanville and Lancaster, who looked to be waging a two-team duel for the top spots.
Franklin was in a battle with Humble Summer Creek and Keller Timber Creek for the final podium spot, or so it looked, but Raines had other ideas, moving into a clear third and into the battle with the front runners.
Scranton continued the charge, entering the battle for gold. Franklin finally ran out of room, but that was good enough for silver in 3:42.78, a two-second season’s best. Duncanville won in 3:41.52 while Summer Creek rallied past Lancaster and snatched bronze in 3:43.44.
”I didn’t think (we’d get silver) but I still believed in us, I believed we had a chance,” Raines said. “This feels great, we’re all excited, we all worked hard for this moment. We’re all proud of each other.”
The euphoria went all the way around.
”We’re grateful, we’ve worked hard for years for this,” Martin-Collilns said. “This is a surreal experience to be here and get a medal.”
“It’s overwhelming, there are a lot of people,” Chavez said. “Once you’re on the line everything goes silent, then the gun goes off and it’s everything you have. Then you just hope for a good outcome.”
Franklin got an amazing outcome, one few people in Mike A. Myers Stadium could have foreseen. But the moment wasn’t too big for four fighters from Franklin who achieved what seemed impossible when the gun went off.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached, bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Franklin girls stun with second-place finish in 4×400 relay at UIL state
Reporting by Bret Bloomquist, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
