Bennett County won their first girls state track championship since 1986 on Saturday from Howard Wood Field in Sioux Falls. Scoring a total of 85-points, 70 of those included the sister duo of Reagan and Peyson O’Neill.
Reagan won the 100m dash, the 200m dash, long jump, and was part of the 4X100m relay team that also won a title. She set state meet records in all of them. Peyson, who was also on the 4X100 relay team, won individual titles in 100m hurdles, 300m hurdles, and high jump. Her two hurdle runs in the finals were also state meet records.
Reagan O’Neill of Bennett County wins the B girls 200m dash with a time of 24.08. #SDTrack25 #SDPreps pic.twitter.com/J32iCZftK8
— SDPB Sports (@SDPBSports) May 31, 2025
The O’Neill sisters are young too. Reagan is a freshman, and Peyson is an eighth grader.
“There’s a lot of competition. In other meets, it’s kind of tough, but once you get to the state meet you see all these high competitors,” stated Peyson. “Being this young is really good, because you also have those older people out there, who you’re trying to catch up to.”
Peyson O’Neill of Bennett County (8th grader) wins the ‘B’ girls 100m hurdles title with a time of 14.3. #SDTrack25 #SDPreps pic.twitter.com/SzDeuNqbog
— SDPB Sports (@SDPBSports) May 31, 2025
For Reagan, she said the feeling of this year’s state track meet is surreal.
“When I was a seventh grader I came here, and getting to witness all the older girls compete and win. I’ve always wanted that,” exclaimed Reagan. “We put in the work, and we get to come here this year and do this. It’s what I’ve been dreaming of, and I finally got to accomplish it.”
It’s a been an incredible few months for the O’Neill sisters of Bennett County as this March they also won the ‘B’ girls state basketball championship.
“That kind of hit me during state basketball. Especially having such a young team,” said Peyson. “Our whole track team has been young. All of us girls, we’re so young, and we’re just getting to be the best we can.”
“[Basketball] got us a little head start for state track, getting us all pumped up and ready to do it at state,” added Reagan. “The sendoff for state basketball and everything, our town is so supportive – it’s amazing.”
The O’Neill domination at this year’s state track and field meet doesn’t just end with Reagan and Peyson. Their brother Rush O’Neill, a sophomore, also had a solid week on the boys' side of the competition winning in high jump, long jump, and in the 200m dash.
Rush O'Neill - High Jump Champion 🦾
“Nothing would be possible without God. The first day, long jump, my legs felt amazing, and I started off hot. I wasn’t really tired or anything. Second day I came in and won high jump,” Rush told. “I had the 200 [Saturday], I was saving everything for that race, I love that race.”
That’s ten event championships on the weekend for the O’Neill Family.
“It shows you how much work all three of us put in together,” explained Reagan. “We push each other every day at practice, and it all pays off in the end.”
“We’re putting Bennett County on the map,” stated Rush. “That’s all we think about is the people back home who support us like crazy. Our coaches support us like crazy. The support is crazy from a small town. We’re starting to finally win state championships again at Bennett County.”
Being the youngest of the trio, Peyson knows she’s lucky having Rush and Reagan to look up to.
“It’s really good. Especially being the youngest, I have great role models,” she told. “Having family to support us is really good. We train together; we do a lot of our work together. Having [Reagan] push me, it’s really good. She’s older and she’s had more work, but I’m definitely trying to get there, and we just keep pushing each other to be our best.
The O’Neill’s success at this year’s meet carried over to the awards ceremony as Reagan and Rush earned Class B meet MVP honors in field, while Peyson was the ‘B’ girls MVP in overall track.
