AUSTIN -- Will Antkowiak started the final lap of the Class 4A boys 3,200 meters running to win Friday at Mike A. Myers Stadium. When he saw his time on the scoreboard, he ran for a record.

The Brenham junior got both.

Antkowiak pulled away from defending state champion Nathan Christianson and sprinted to the finish in a Class 4A record time of 9 minutes, 7.60 seconds at the UIL Track & Field State Championships. Antkowiak just broke the old mark of 9:08.14 set at the state meet in 2004, and he did it while breaking the unwritten rule of not looking over his shoulder.

"The last hundred meters I was, especially the last 50," Antkowiak said.

In this case, nobody was gaining on him.

"I made a mistake a few times of turning my head, looking back and seeing how well the field was running," he said. "I should have been looking forward and focusing on time."

By the final lap, no one was in front and no one close behind.

La Joya Juarez-Lincoln's Angel Banda (9:17.13) held off Christianson (9:18.97) for second place.

In the 4A boys 1,600, Christianson won going away at 4:14.19. Antkowiak finished second in 4:16.55.

"At the state meet, there is always going to be somebody helping to push the pace," said Antkowiak, who also thanked his coaches, teammates and family. "Last year, I didn't win and I really wanted to get a championship for my team."

Antkowiak's win came early in the day before rain and lightning postponed the field events for five hours and forced a rescheduling.

Somerville's Cody Holliday stuck his chest of at the finish of the Class A boys 400 relay to give his Yeguas the gold medal in a time of 42.99. An outstanding curve run by P.J. Pleasant set up Holliday, who then overtook the leader, Dallas Gateway's Tyrail Dotson. While Gateway was disqualified for running out of its lane, Somerville needed Holliday's lunging finish to hold back Lindsay's Robert Arend.

"My heart was pounding, and I was ready to get out," Holliday said. "I saw [Pleasant] coming around the turn, and he was right there with [Dotson]. I was ready. I wasn't looking back, just hoping I would finish first."

Dameon Brooks and Jeff Foster led off the Yeguas' gold-medal performance.

Somerville lost its chance at a relay double when the Yeguas slipped and missed their initial handoff in the Class A boys 800 relay.

Snook's Shakera Barnes made a spectacular debut in the Class A girls 400. The freshman took a large lead on the backstretch, lost some of it near the finish but still won in 58.64. Evant's Sidney Sieperet was second at 1:00.12.

After a short turnaround, Barnes added a second medal, taking a bronze in the 200 (26.12).

Bremond junior Johnathan White defended his state championship in the Class A boys 800 in a similar fashion to the way he won it as a sophomore. He shot to the lead over the first 500 meters and overpowered every contender, five of whom ran against White at state last year.

"[Elkhart Slocum's Logan] Foster beat me at regionals," White said. "He's a hard runner. He always pushes me at regionals and at state last year, and I knew [Timpson's Cameron Courtney] was going to be fast. To tell the truth, before the race I felt terrible. I thought I was fixing to run slow."

White nearly stumbled 10 meters from the finish but stayed on his feet across the line before collapsing. It added up to a 1:55.69, White's career best.

"I gave everything I had, and when I finished, I couldn't see," White said. "I was dizzy and everything was spinning."

In 2A action, Lexington's Courtney Jackson took third in the discus with a throw of 127 feet, 3 inches.

Lexington's Julien Clark was fourth in the high jump at 6-6. His teammate, Clint Hutson, was competing in the long jump late Friday.

Brenham's Derek Edwards, whose junior season this year marked his first appearance at regionals in the 4A boys high jump, placed third in the event at the state meet. He was the last of four jumpers to clear 6-4, getting over on his third and final try.

"It was a big distraction, but I can't blame it on that," Edwards said of the rain delay. "It's just hard getting mentally ready, and I was trying and trying. I did my best, and I'm happy with that and got third. I will be back next year. Put that on paper. I will be back."

Edwards fell short of the medal stand in the triple jump, taking fourth at 45-6.

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Round Top-Carmine's Laurie Byrd won her fifth and sixth gold medals at the state meet. She won 3,200 in 73-degree weather to open the meet Friday morning.

She wrapped up her long, rewarding day with a win in the 1,600, running a time of 5:13.98.

In the 3,200, Byrd ran shoulder-to-shoulder with Brackettville junior Kelsey Bruce for nearly two laps but surged forward on the final lap, sprinting to the finish in 11:19.08 and leaving Bruce more than 14 seconds behind.

When Byrd moved to the early lead, Bruce positioned herself on Byrd's right side, eventually taking the lead in at the midpoint of the race.

"I was really nervous, but once the race started going I calmed down," Byrd said. "I've run with Kelsey the past two years at regionals and she's a very competitive runner, so I knew that she would compete. I didn't know that she was going to be right on my shoulder. I wasn't ready for that,which is why I let her take the lead and set the pace so I could keep track of where she was."

Byrd won both the 1,600 and 3,200 last year and captured the Class A cross country title in November.

On the backstretch of the sixth lap Byrd moved aside Bruce, almost as a reminder that Byrd was the current and future champion.

"I was testing her to see if she was going to fight for the lead, which she did," Byrd said.

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NOTES -- Before the rain delay, Somerville's Jeff Foster took seventh in the Class A boys long jump, leaping 20-4 1/4 on his fifth attempt. ... The 3A boys triple jump, which had been scheduled for Friday, was delayed until at 8:30 a.m. Saturday. Cameron senior Dave Brown is set to compete in the event.