A Look Ahead At Sante Fe League Girls


Rylee Haynes will be looking to lead Crowley County to a league title this year.

League TeamsCrowley CountyFowler, HoehneJohn MallLas AnimasRocky Ford, RyeSwallows Charter, Swink

Last Year's League Results:
Last year saw the most rare of occurrences: a three-way tie for first. Fowler, Hoehne, and Crowley County scored 112 points. While the three schools tied for the league title, Crowley did go on to lead the league at state, finishing eighth, while Hoehne finished 16th.

Key Athletes Lost to Graduation:
Crowley County: Tessa Vaughan
Hoehne: Zoe Revas
Rye: Natalie Phillips 
Swink: Toki Hirakata 
Key Returning Athletes:
Crowley County: Rylee Haynes
Hoehne: Shaelyn Walton 
John Mall: Amanda Dotter
Swallows Charter: Jennie Ann West

The Outlook:
This looks like it could be another three-way battle for the league title, but I doubt it'll end in a tie like last year. On paper Crowley County is the favorite, as they return the most depth, though count on Fowler and Rye to be nipping at their heels every step of the way. 
Swink's Skyler Jones returns as the favorite in the sprint events. The path is paved for her to take the 100 and 200, but the 400 is where Rye's Kylie Baudino takes the nod as the favorite. The 100 hurdles doesn't appear to have much depth in the field, but defending state champion Rylee Haynes is sure to make the event worth watching. 
In the 800 Hoehne's Shaelyn Walton should dominate the field, but she might have company from Shallows Carter's Jennie Ann West, who could make a race in anything from the 800 to the 3,200. 
The field events are where the league is strongest. Haynes and Walton should be a great battle in the high jump, though I'd bet Haynes has an edge here, having lost the state title in the event in a jump-off. Being denied her second state title at the meet had to burn a little. Additionally, Walton returns is the No. 3 returner in the event.
And the high jump won't be the only battle Haynes could find herself in at the league. The long jump appears to be a two-way battle between her and Swink's Brianna Denton. Meanwhile, John Mall could get on the board with a performance from Amanda Dotter in the triple jump. She'll likely be competing against Jones for the title. With all of these two-way battles going on, that doesn't look like the case in the discus, where Rye's Felicity Phillips is the clear favorite.