Cold Springs’ Cayde Elliott races quickly out of the chute during the Blue and Gold’s 4x100-meter relay. The foursome finished fifth, while the Eagles snagged second as a team in 2A.

The boys in Cold Springs’ track and cross country programs have enjoyed a banner year, and nothing inside Cullman High’s Oliver Woodard Stadium Saturday at the Class 1A-3A state track and field championships could change that.

Heck, second place in Class 2A is hardly anything to be ashamed about. Yet as seniors Brian Williamson and Jake Haynes completed their last circuits as Eagles with Cayde Elliott and Christian Crandall in the 4×400-meter relay, their emotions were simply impossible to hold back.

They wanted the winner’s blue trophy and ultimately had to settle for runner-up red. Knowing Falkville had rallied late to escape with the first-place hardware — the Blue Devils edged Cold Springs 114.2-104.7 — Williamson and Haynes savored every hug and wore their hearts on their sleeves for all to see.

Crying didn’t make the teenage boys any less of men. It only served to show how much they care about being an Eagle and representing a community they’ve come to cherish so dearly.

“It was a blessing to be a part of Cold Springs High School,” Williamson said. “I had a great team all year long. They would do anything for me. I would do anything for them.

“We’re just really emotional right now. We all wanted to win.”

While winning was obviously the goal, Haynes showed maturity beyond his years by quickly putting the tight defeat in perspective.

“We worked our butts off, and these guys showed me how much family means,” he said. “If it comes down to us coming in second, then so what? I still have a family.”

Austin Moore, Adam Carney and Zac Ellison also closed out their Blue and Gold careers.

The conclusion of Cullman’s first year as small-school host was not all doom and gloom for Cold Springs.

Anything but.

The boys wrapped up the second day with a pair of golds and a trio of other medals.

Jared Stanley opened the morning by turning on the jets down the backstretch for first in the 3,200-meter run (10:26). The sophomore later snagged silver in the 800-meter run.

Austin Burwell was a one-man wrecking crew and points collector for Cold Springs, clinching the pole vault championship with a noticeably higher personal best (11-9) and — only about 15 minutes later — draining his tank to take fourth in the 300-meter hurdles.

As if either of those efforts weren’t enough, Burwell also notched fifth in the 110-meter hurdles earlier in the day.

The jack-of-all-trades wasted no words — only breaths — trying to explain his physical state after his flurry of events.

“Exhausted,” Burwell sputtered. “It was tiring, but the adrenaline helped.”

Kramer Crider and C.J. Lang rounded out the Eagles who added to their medal count. Both were third in one of their respective races, the former in the 800-meter run and latter in the 3,200-meter run, the same event Crider placed fourth.

Other scorers for Cold Springs’ boys were as follows:

% Crandall, fourth in 200-meter dash

% Lucas Gay, fifth in pole vault

% Elliott, Crandall, Williamson and Haynes, fifth in 4×400-meter relay

% Crandall, River Banks, Williamson and Haynes, fifth in 4×100-meter relay

% Elliott, seventh in javelin and T-eighth in high jump

% Trevor Slayton, T-eighth in pole vault

Though Haynes and the squad’s other soon-to-be graduates won’t be around next spring, the multi-sport athlete made his predicition for which school will take home the 2016 2A boys blue map loud and clear.

It’s Cold Springs.

Imagine that.

“They’re going to win it next year,” Haynes said, repeating it twice for emphasis.