Earning most of its points in the distance races and field events, the Palm Harbor University girls team scored 40 to finish fifth, the highest among county teams at the Class 4A, Region 2 meet at Palm Gardens Dwyer High.
The Hurricanes' lone champion was Kerry Savery in the 800 meters. Other PHU girls who qualified for next week's state meet were Lauren McNary, who was third in the 400, and Courtney LaCroix, who took second in the high jump with a season-best leap of 5 feet, 6 inches.
Savery and McNary also were part of the 4x800 relay team that finished fifth.
St. Petersburg was sixth with 35 points. Ashlee Kidd and Kerry Allen were both winners for the Green Devils.
Kidd remained undefeated in her showcase events, the 200 and 400. She ran the 200 in 24.81 seconds and the 400 in 55.90. Both times were her season bests and rank among the top five in the state.
Allen made up for not qualifying in the 1,600 by winning the 3,200 in 11:05.59, two seconds faster than her season best. St. Petersburg's Kyla Lemieux also qualified by finishing fourth in the pole vault.
Dominique Jacobs, who won the long jump and was fourth in the high jump, helped Pinellas Park finish eighth. The county's other state qualifier was Gibbs' Ebony Reed, who was third in the 200 and fourth in the 100.
The boys side did not fare as well as the girls.
Only three county boys - Gibbs' Rashad Etheridge (third in the 200), Pinellas Park's Ralph Butler (fourth in the high jump) and St. Petersburg's Thomas Hendry (third in the pole vault) - qualified for state.
Hendry was the region champion last season and entered the meet with season-best mark of 14-3, tops among 4A competitors. He went 12-6 Thursday.
Clearwater's 4x100 team also qualified, finishing fourth.
