AUSTIN — The gold medal for the Class 6A 200-meter dash is back in Port Arthur after a one-year absence.

Port Arthur Memorial junior Kary Vincent Jr. won the event Saturday at the UIL Track and Field Championships at Mike Myers Complex.

Vincent’s state championship run finished at a personal-best 21.09 seconds. Mansfield’s Jackson Gleeson placed second at 21.34.

“It is a blessing,” Vincent said. “We work hard down in Port Arthur with great athletes and great leaders like Corey Dauphine and Kameron Martin. We have guys to push you and to look up to.”

Dauphine won the gold in the 200 two years ago and finished second last year.

“I am at a loss for words right now,” Vincent said. “It is a great feeling. It means a lot to bring the medal back to Port Arthur. I am just so blessed. I am so happy for myself and I am so happy for my team. I wouldn’t have made it here without them. They support me.”

Vincent said he and Dauphine have spoken about running the 200. Vincent first ran the race at the District 21-6A Track and Field Championships. That was only three track meets ago.

So what did the 2014 200-meter champ say to the future champ?

“It was simple,” Vincent said of Dauphine’s advice. “Get gold. That is what we come here to do. That is all he said, ‘Get gold.’”

Going into the track season, the Titans were thinking a team state title. That was not going to happen going into Saturday after Memorial only qualified one relay team along with Vincent and J’Koven Celestine in the triple jump.

Memorial’s 4×100 relay team of De’Andre Angelle, Vincent, Gregory Leday and Martin finished the race fourth with a time of 41.12. DeSoto won it at 40.34.

Vincent said his medal is shared with his teammates.

“This helps the team,” Vincent said. “My teammates, I am sure, are even more happy than I am right now. This is what we wanted. We wanted to leave with a medal and that is what we did. We did it.”

Vincent also has a knack for getting sick after the 200. It did not change Saturday in Austin, but the sickness did not stay around too long.

“It does help having the medal,” Vincent said with a laugh while grabbing the gold around his neck. “I can already feel myself coming back right now and that is crazy. It never happens like this.”

Memorial track coach Darrell Granger would not make any excuses Saturday after the Titans’ 4×100 meter relay team failed to pick up a medal.

The excuses could have been easy for Granger to make.

First, start with the fact that rain pounded the Austin area Saturday and caused several delays.

“We were going to come up here at 3 but then I got a call it was delayed,” Granger said. “It was tough now knowing when you might run but every team had to deal with that.”

Second, the rain left a lot of water on the track, and the 4×100 meter relay is the first race of the meet.

Memorial ran out of Lane 1 for the third year in a row, and this time the lane bit the Titans. De’Andre Angelle did not come out the blocks as well as he had over the last few meets due to his block sitting in a puddle of water.

“He almost slipped coming out of the block,” Granger said. “Once he was able to get going, Angelle was flying. But once again, everyone had water on the track.”

The last excuse Granger did not use was the injury that has slowed down senior Martin since the regional meet.

“We had him run last so that he wouldn’t have a big turn,” Granger said. “He was not his normal self but Kameron gave it all there at the end and I couldn’t be more proud.”

Gabriel Pruett: 721-2436. Twitter: @PaNewsGabe