WINTER PARK -- Dynasty restored.

A year after its reign as the state's best track and field team was interrupted, the Northwestern's girls' team found itself crying together again.

It was the good kind of tears this time, though.

On the strength of its depth, Northwestern distanced itself from the rest of the field early and cruised to the Class 4A state championship at Showalter Field on Saturday night.

The Bulls won their fourth state championship in the past five seasons, and their sixth overall, which ties them with Southridge for the most of any girls' track program in Miami-Dade County.

Northwestern finished with 98 points, 45 ahead of runner-up Lauderdale Lakes Boyd Anderson. It was the largest margin of victory for Northwestern at the state meet.

Strangely, the Bulls had only two individual championships, and did not win any of the three relays.

But Naquia Williams (long jump, 100 hurdles), Lavernia Cameron (100 hurdles), Brittany Pringley (400), Sandy Jean (300 hurdles), Destinee Romain (shot put), Shannon Spence (triple jump), Shehara Parmer (shot put) earned points in their events to set the foundation for the convincing victory.

A PROUD COACH

Several of them contributed to the Bulls finishing second in the 400 and 3,200 relays, and third in the 1,600 relay.

''I couldn't be more proud of them,'' said Northwestern coach Carmen Jackson, who huddled with the team and coaches to pray after the meet. ``We had some setbacks, and we didn't have our best meet, but they never quit.''

One of Northwestern's victories, however, was historic.

Senior Skyler Wallen, a state champion on multiple relay teams for Northwestern who has signed to play at Ohio State, broke the state meet record in the 800 meters with a time of 2 minutes, 9.44 seconds to win her first individual state title. Wallen had run a national-best 2:09.00 at the University of Florida Relays in early April.

''I've been waiting four long years to break this record and win this [gold] medal,'' Wallen said. ``When I glimpsed at the clock when I was getting close to the finish line, I started counting in my head.''

Senior Brianna Rollins entered the meet with aspirations of joining Harris and Tiffany Ross as Northwestern athletes to win three or more events at one meet. But after finishing second in the triple jump, Rollins was called for a false start in the 100 hurdles and disqualified.

Rollins bounced back by winning the 300 hurdles with ease in 42.56 seconds.

''We talked to her and one of our runners Naquia Williams told her, `Hey Brianna, we've still got more of a meet to run,'' Jackson said. ``Those girls are so tough.''

EUTSEY DOUBLES UP

Southridge's Ebony Eutsey put her name a little higher on the list of the county's most successful runners, but missed the state meet record she had been coveting. Eutsey won the 400 meters for the third consecutive season, but her time of 52.68 was just short of Olympian and former St. Thomas Aquinas runner Sanya Richards' record of 52.51.

Eutsey came back and won the 200 in 24.06 to secure her fifth career individual title, and she ran the 1,600-meter relay that finished second to help the Spartans finish third in the team standings. The most individual state titles won by any Dade female athlete is six (Northwestern's Lizzie Harris, Gulliver's Gina Derks and Southridge's Akera Lathan and Zakeya Stinson).

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