Wylie East junior Elliana Young poses for pictures with the first-place medal that she won at the Class 6A state track and field meet in the girls high jump. Photo by David Wolman / C&S Media
By David Wolman
Wylie East junior Elliana Young originally planned to go to college to compete in gymnastics and tumbling.
Both she and her older brother, Jayden, a 2025 Wylie East graduate who currently competes in the hurdles for North Central College, have a lengthy background in gymnastics. Elliana tried tumbling for 10 years with Texas Dynamix. But when she had a growth spurt in middle school, her coaches told her that she was too tall to compete in gymnastics.
Elliana was left feeling heartbroken, but she didn’t give up on her athletic endeavors. She gave basketball and soccer a try, but she never became as passionate about those two sports like she did with tumbling.
While in the seventh grade at McMillan Junior High, Young wanted to give track and field a try. However, she told coach Brittany Gray that she “absolutely did not want” to compete in the high jump. Gray, though, told Young that she had the athletic ability to perform well in the event, and it’s a decision that, although Young felt was forced at the time, is one that she is glad she made.
In her first-ever meet, Young jumped 5 feet. By the time she concluded her middle school career, she had gone as high as 5-2.
It was the start of big things to come for Young.
Last year as a sophomore, Young qualified for the Region II-6A meet in Waco, but she came up just short of earning her first-ever state berth as she earned fourth place.
Entering this year’s regional meet, Young was battling the flu. However, she persevered through the illness and earned her first-ever state qualification.
Both Young and Klein senior Kamdyn Spencer cleared 5-6, but Young won the tiebreaker based on the greatest number of successful attempts to earn second place and an automatic berth in the Class 6A state meet in Austin.
Young faced a much different obstacle upon her arrival in Austin: the wind.
With a stiff breeze blowing directly from her side, she told herself that she had to maintain her form as she approached the bar and to keep her posture up.
“The wind was getting to a lot of people, but I had to make sure that I stayed focused and do what I needed to do,” she said. “I was quick to adjust because I have jumped in all kinds of conditions. The most wind that I had faced was last year at regionals. It was blowing the bar off.”
Young adjusted to the windy conditions at Mike A. Myers Stadium, but so did Comal Canyon freshman Sophia Martinez and Houston Memorial junior Cate Bryant.
Their ability to adjust made for a neck-and-neck battle. None of the three missed on any of their attempts from 5-2 to 5-6. But after all three missed each of their three attempts at a height of 5-8, Young initially thought a jump-off would be held to settle the three-way tie and determine which athlete would be crowned state champion.
That jump-off never happened.
A meet official approached Young, Bryant and Martinez and told them to gather their belongings and head to the medal stand.
Young, Bryant and Martinez were crowned co-state champions in the high jump.
“It was crazy,” Young said. “At first, we started laughing because it was hilarious. It was unheard of and never happened before. We just thought it was a joke. But they were serious. And we were all in shock.”
Young wouldn’t have complained if there had been a jump-off.
“Honestly, yes,” she said. “Because if we would have done a jump-off, I felt that I could have won it. But I was happy to see the other girls get a medal because everyone had been working so hard. But if I had it my way, I would have wanted a jump-off.”
Despite finishing in a three-way tie for first place, Young was thrilled to win her first state title.
“It feels great,” she said. “All my hard work paid off. It’s just really exciting. I’m glad that I got that experience of winning state.”
And she has her middle school coach to thank.
“I’m glad she did because otherwise, I didn’t know what I would have done,” she said. “I would have done running, which is not my specialty. I probably wouldn’t have made it to state. I’m glad that I listened to her.”
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