Last year, George Washington swept the 5A track titles, putting 19 points on second in the girls' field and 33 points on second in the boys' field. This year the gap has closed considerably.
Although GW is well-represented again this year in the girls' field, the state meet looms near with no clear favorite in sight. Outstanding individuals in the field represent many different teams, but no team seems to quite have the critical mass on outstanding individuals that would make them a clear favorite.
Based on last week's regional performances, however, Fort Collins is bringing a formidable load of momentum into the state meet. If the Lambkins can pull it off, however, they will do it with only one top seed--Tati Ogan in the 800 meters. If Emmalie Pfankuch can get a high place in each of the three jumping events, that will go a long way toward a state championship as Fort Collins should be able to score mid-level points in a number of events.
Heritage is school with a shot but desperately needs huge days out of Taylor Baird (200, 100 hurdles) and Morgan Sedivic (shot put, discus). Outside of these two, the only other points Heritage can claim are in relays and from long jumper Andi Slouka.
George Washington's hopes will be pinned primarily on sprinter DeVen Hamlet, triple jumper Alexandra White, and their traditionally strong relays. GW has several other entries in the meet, but most will start in outside lanes looking in.
Montbello's bid will be predicated on short sprints, hurdles, and short relays. They have the firepower in these few events, however, to put up a host of points. Overland is another similar team with firepower in short sprints, short relays, and horizontal jumps.
ThunderRidge plays the role of dark horse. If Kelsey Williamson can have a career kind of weekend, this is a team that could sneak up on some people. Their relays are solid and they should pick up a little help from distance events.
Barring an extraordinary step up from one of the contenders, the 5A girls team race could easily come down to the final event, the 4 X 400. At the very least, it promises to be an intriguing couple of days.
On the boys' side, George Washington returns several placers from last year's state meet--most notably sprinter A. J. Whitaker and sprinter/jumpers Quinton Dodson and Joe Harris. While GW's relays don't return entirely intact from last year, nobody is taking those relays lightly. The Patriots remain a top contender for the state title.
Probably the surprise team in the boys' field is Loveland. Paul Bohannon and Jesse Lewis are solid sprinters. The Indians' sprint relays could be the class of this year's field. Jed Morgan is a solid distance runner caught in an incredible field of distance runners. Loveland's capable throwers find themselves in a similar dilemma--great seasons to date, but the field is loaded. Overall, look for Loveland to put up points with some hopes of earning a trophy.
Smoky Hill comes in with the top two seeds in the pole vault (Chase Cooper, at left, and James Nixon). Mark Sparks is a legitimate contender for both the shot put and discus titles. Unfortunately, however, the Buffaloes are unrepresented in any track event less than 3200 meters and have only the slightest hopes of making a run at a team title.
Nearby Cherry Creek, on the other hand, brings Roman Holmes (top seed in long and triple jumps, state record holder in the long jump), Charles White (a contender in all three distance events), and Kiel Pickett (#2 seed at 200 meters) to the table. If the Bruins are able to pick up a few points from other athletes, they may have a solid shot at a title.
Other Cherry Creek SD schools are well represented in the persons of Davis Burl and Shawn Tucker (Grandview) in the sprints and Tashaun and Tarique Hill (Eaglecrest) in the hurdles. Both teams have other entries at state as well, but may be just a couple pieces short of being able to contend as they would like to.
By way of comparison to previous years, Littleton is a little underrepresented in individual events, but their 4 X 400 and 4 X 800 relays give up nothing. Will Cernanec runs in a very tough 1600 field, but could pick up points there. Hurdlers Kumar Pinckney and Kyle McIntosh need to come up big for the Lions, as does pole vaulter Luke Biewick.
From the Colorado Springs area, Rampart and Palmer are the teams bringing the most potential for points at state. Sprinter Devin Mohn and pole vaulter Josh McMillin are crucial to the Rams' hopes. Rampart's relays should do well, but they will also need a few people to rise above their seeds. For Palmer, the best hopes for big points reside in the three jumping events. For both Rampart and Palmer, the competition will be much stiffer than they encountered in last week's regional meet.
Steve Kasica of Fruita-Monument returns to defend his state title at 800 meters, but he has to be wondering where all the new competition came from this year. It seems that another solid 5A 800 meter appears every time someone turns over a rock lately. Kasica returns as the #8 seed and he will have to run a solid race to keep that place.
Heritage's Jordan Edwards comes in as the top seed at 100 and 200 meters, no small feat. Thornton's Dey Tuach sits in the pole position for 800 and 1600 meters. Will Hunsaker of Durango carries the top seed in the discus and the #2 seed in the shot put. Wheat Ridge brings an incredible six entries into the three distance events--all with at least an outside shot at placing. Junior Henry Cowhick, at left, enters the state meet as the third seed in the 1600 and the fifth seed in the 800. The Farmers will not, however, be running a 4 X 800 relay.