Watauga's girls indoor track and field team won the inaugural North Carolina High School Athletic Association 6A state championship on Thursday at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem. The Lady Pioneers secured the title with 78 points, nine more than Ragsdale. This marks their third team championship of the 2025-26 season.
The victory is the second state indoor track and field title in program history for Watauga, the first since 1997. The Lady Pioneers led Ragsdale by 16 points entering the final events, the 3,200-meter run and the 4x400 relay. Elle Dawson of Ragsdale won the 3,200 to earn 10 points for her team, while Watauga had no entrant in that event and did not compete in the 4x400 for Ragsdale.
Watauga's 4x400 relay team of Cali Townsend, Eden Krenzin, Vivian Hans and Tessa Buchanan finished sixth, securing three points to clinch the win. The team scored points in all 11 events they entered, with the top eight finishers earning points in each.
Sydney Helms provided the team's only individual state championship, winning the pole vault at 10 feet even. Helms, along with Sophie Robbins and Gracyn Blanton, finished in the top six of the pole vault for 18 combined points. Lily Stough, named the NCHSAA sportsmanship winner, medaled in four events: high jump, triple jump, pole vault and 300 dash, with runner-up finishes in the high jump and triple jump. Cali Townsend added a second-place finish in the 1,600.
The Watauga boys team finished 10th out of 34 with 21 points. Nyle Peays placed second in the 300 dash, and Coy Johnson took fourth in the shot put.
Mount Tabor won the boys 6A championship.
