Of all the city and county championship meets in Colorado, probably none rival the Boulder County Championships for the level of intensity that the athletes bring to the meet. While the Nike Littleton meet is undeniably the "big" meet in the state this weekend, there will be no shortage of quality track at Longmont High School.
Many of the best track and field teams in the state of Colorado will gather this Saturday for the 32nd annual Boulder County Track and Field meet. This is a one of kind meet that brings two school districts and one county together to determine a champion. Over the years, many state champion runners have competed at this meet including names like Melody Fairchild (her all-classification state record at 3200 meters was set at the Boulder County Championship meet), James Hatch, and Griffin Matthew, just to name a few. The track at Longmont High School should be on fire with the competition this Saturday.
Girls Preview
Longmont girls were the winners last year, beating a very good Fairview squad 147 to 93. But this is a new year and Bethany Praska is gone. The Trojans will rely heavily upon pole vault phenom Elizabeth Stover (pictured at left anchoring the 4 X 100). The Trojans will also need big performances from other young runners and jumpers to match last year’s success.
The Broomfield Eagles will be the first team the Trojans have to watch for. The Eagles were third last year behind Fairview. But the Knights lost distance standouts Sarah Coco and Meredith McGregor, each of whom scored valuable points for the Knights. Led by hurdlers Kayla Wein and Ashley Mikins, the Eagles will look to take down the Trojans and get back to the top. Broomfield should have the advantage in the depth department and the distance races, where the Longmont is vulnerable. The relays may be the place where this battle is decided.
There are two dark horse teams that no one is really talking about; Lyons and Niwot. 2A Lyons, lead by distance standout Melissa Roberts and sprinting sisters Rachel and Marcie Hinker, is a team that can score in a lot of places, even for a small school. This team could beat a lot of 4A and 5A teams this weekend, so watch out.
Niwot is the other team that has thus far flown under the radar, maybe that is because this team has no real stars. It’s as close to a team as you are going to get. The key word for this team is consistency. At the RE-1J meet in March, they placed two scorers in almost every event, a feat that will have to be matched if the Cougars want to contend for a title on the girls side.
For many of the other schools, a team title is out of the picture, but individual titles and state qualifying marks will be first on the list for many of the athletes, coaches, and relay teams.
Boys Preview
While the girl’s team title may be up for grabs until the final event, the boys team title should be a two horse race between Longmont and Broomfield. Over the last three years, these two teams have battled back and forth with either school finishing first or second. This year should be no different.
The Trojans will be once again be led by 4A (200, 400) state champion Matt Butcher. Last year, Butcher won the 100, 200, 400 and anchored the Trojan 4x400 relay. Expect a repeat performance for Butcher as he once again goes for MVA honors. But, don’t be deceived into thinking it all rests on Butcher’s legs. The Trojans have one of the deepest teams in the state, and added even more depth in the middle sprints with new addition Daniel Berry. They also have state qualifier Beau Brittenham and Tevin McIntire leading the way in the jumps (triple and high), while Casey Honeycutt and Scott Coyle will lead the way in the throwing events. The Trojans could have scorers in every event.
The one area where the Trojans are not as strong happens to be the strength of the Eagles--middle distance. Look for the Eagles to score big points behind standouts Ian Donaldson and Matt Biegner. The question will be whether Donaldson and Biegner can bring in enough points to help Broomfield win the team title. The Eagles will also rely heavily on thrower Nick Zissimos in the shot put and discus. His performance in these events could be pivotal for the Eagles' hopes of regaining the title. The Eagles should also be able to score big points in the relays. Alex Weinheimer, Trevor Blackman, and Dain Kahn are the top distance runners for Fairview High School and should be capable of scoring significant points in distance events as well.
Look for Lyons to once again be the dark horse team on the boys side. Lyons, led by Colin Anderson (at left) and Andrew Roberts, will score points in all the distance events and relays, but the question will be can they keep up with the bigger schools in the sprints and field events. If they can get some solid performances in the field and do as predicted in the distance events, then a third or fourth place finish is not out of the question.
This meet will, without question, be one of the top meets this year in the state of Colorado. Like past years, this meet is the place where state champions get their start and the 32nd edition of the Boulder County Track and Field Championships should easily live up to the hype.