Track and field

Connelly, Fields capture medals

Garrison wraps up sterling career

Posted Thursday, May 21, 2026 6:05 pm

Yuri Arcurs

The contingent was small but the performances were big from the three competitors the Aledo High School program at the University Interscholastic League Class 5A Track and Field Meet on May 15.

Competing in five events at Mike A. Myers Stadium on the University of Texas campus in Austin, senior Molly Garrison, junior Tyler Connelly, and sophomore Addie Fields posted top-five finishes in all. Connelly and Fields also brought home a pair of bronze medals.

Fields, competing in the girls pole vault, cleared a career-best 12 feet, 6 inches to finish third. She actually tied for second, but had more misses to drop the tie-breaker.

Her performance was 6 inches higher than her previous best of 12 feet, which won her the Region I championship in early May.

“It was a great meet for Addie. The sophomore definitely let the big meet nerves affect her early as she needed all three attempts to clear her opening height of 10 feet, but after that she settled down and got on a roll. She didn’t have another miss until 12 feet - which she cleared on her second attempt and then popped over 12-6 on first attempt,” Aledo pole vault coach John Rhodes said.

“When you have big meet adrenaline, warm weather, and fast surface, you run faster, which requires you to move to stiffer poles. Many kids are not mentally tough enough to do this. Addie proved she is because most of her jumps were on poles bigger than she had ever jumped on.

“This combined with her work ethic tell me she has a very positive future. We have some great young female vaulters at AHS, so I am expecting big things from them in the future.”

Ladycats head track coach Mike Pinkerton added, “After almost giving everyone a heart attack, she did an amazing job,” he said with a smile. “She went on to clear a new PR of 12-6. That’s two new PRs in the last two meets. So proud of her and the way she composed herself early when things were a little rough.”

Connelly posted a time of 9:15.33 seconds to place third in the boys 3200-meter run. It was almost 11 seconds faster than his time of 9:26.09 that placed him second at the regional meet.

“He ran a great race and found a way to get on the medal stand. Getting on the medal stand at state is a lot harder to do than people think,” Bearcats head coach Andy Clark said. “He will be back and ready to compete at the 6A level next year.

In addition, Connelly clocked a time of 4:24.22 to finish fifth in the 1600 run later in the day.

Late last year Connelly helped the Bearcats cross country team to a fourth-place finish at state, their highest ever, by placing third individually.

Garrison wrapped up a sterling high school career that saw her reach state numerous times in both track and cross country. This season she placed fourth in the 3200 and fifth in the 1600 after placing sixth and third in 2025, respectively.

Garrison improved on both of her regional-winning times. She ran a 10:48.76 in the 3200 compared to 10:52.24 at regionals, along with a time of 4:58.63 in the 1600 compared to 5:02.8 at regionals.

“Molly has done an amazing job throughout her high school career. Her work ethic and leadership are unmatched,” Pinkerton said. “She did incredible at the State Meet. I know it isn’t exactly how she expected to finish, but her times were just amazing. I couldn’t ask any more of her, and couldn’t be prouder.

“Molly will be attending the University of Texas to continue her running career, where I know she will be highly successful.”

Along with her back-to-back state track appearances in these two events, Garrison leaves Aledo with a host of cross country successes. She helped the Ladycats to a runner-up state finish in 2023, along with back-to-back third-place finishes in 2024 and 2025.

Individually, Garrison was state runner-up in state cross country in 2025 and sixth in 2024. She qualified for state all four of her high school seasons and was named the Texas Girls Coaches Association Cross Country Athlete of the Year as a senior.