Arnold's Hyman, Hodges rule county meet with school records

PANAMA CITY BEACH — Arnold’s Challen Hyman and Mikayla Hodges put their foot on the gas immediately on Friday and didn’t let off until both set records.

The Marlins’ duo bested their own school marks in the Bay County cross country championship at Frank Brown Park. Hyman surpassed the 17-minute barrier for the first time this season, finishing first in 16:36.94. Hodges broke 20 minutes again with a season-best 19:18.55.

Teammate Christina Gaillard finished 30 seconds behind Hodges in second place, but became the second female runner in county history to run less than 20 minutes. She ended her day at 19:48.28, joining Hodges in the under 20-minute club.

Arnold’s boys won the team title. Arnold’s girls were second, as Rutherford won the crown with tightly-bunched finishes of fourth, sixth, eighth, ninth and 11th. Melissa Garred led the Rams with a time of 21:59.08.

Another Ram helped Hyman start fast and finish the same. Second-place finisher Andrew Wyllie stayed close and pushed Hyman hard for the first mile, which found both runners clocking times of a little more than five minutes.

Hyman won by 18 seconds, charging past the finish line like he was sprinting to catch a bus.

“I’ve worked very hard all year and I’ve had a bad season until now,” Hyman said. “I had a horrible mental block to break 17, I’ve been in the high and mid 17s, but couldn’t break it.”

Hyman lost the county title in a sprint to the finish as a junior last season. Wyllie wasn’t as close this time, but Hyman continued to charge as if he was being chased by the entire field.

He said all it took to bust the mental barrier was, as clichéd as it is, mind over matter.

“I was pushing harder, pushing past the point of pain,” Hyman said. “A lot of running is dealing with pain and pushing past it.”

Hodges said her run was a bit less strenuous. The junior won county for the second straight year and did so with an energy that bodes well for the district and regional events.

“I didn’t know what I was going to get, but I felt good out there,” Hodges said. “I was feeling really good after mile two and knew I could do well.”

Hodges lauded Gaillard’s personal-best as well, as the two shared a congratulatory hand shake and smile while they waited for the rest of the field to cross the line. Hodges said constantly cutting time helps not only her but teammates.

“It’s motivational to keep you working hard,” said Hodges, who hopes to go below 19 minutes next season. “You just hope you can keep improving.”