WATCH LIVE: THE POMONA INVITATIONAL
BEGINS AIRING AT 4:00 PM CST ON FRIDAY
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The 2022 edition of the Pomona Invitational is absolutely loaded.
We're rolling out the red-carpet for this one -- it's the MileSplit National Meet of the Week!
And guess what?
MileSplit Colorado will be streaming the meet LIVE!
If you can't make it to Jeffco Stadium, or if you want to watch our stream from the stands, we've got you covered - we'll be streaming both days of the meet. Friday's stream begins at 3 p.m. MT, and Saturday's stream begins at 9 a.m. MT.
Related Links:
Meet Schedule
Friday Heat Sheets
Now that you know we'll be live streaming the meet, here are six events (plus a few bonus events) for you to tune in to this weekend.
We'll start with Friday's action.
Editor's Note: Friday's portion of the meet will run on a rolling schedule, so you'll want to tune in a little earlier than noted to insure you do not miss the action.
4x800
Ok. So to clarify - when I originally wrote "six events to watch" it's more like nine - and that's excluding the "Bonus" on the bottom of this article. This is how loaded this meet is - it's high quality and quantity across the board.
The 4x8s will feature two defending 5A state champion squads...
The Mountain Vista boys enter with a 8:00 seed time. The defending state champions haven't put together an A-squad 4x8 yet, but Friday looks like the opportune time to do it. They'll have Rocky Mountain to battle with - the Fort Collins squad has already run 8:10 so far this season.
The girl's 4x800 will feature the No. 1 squad in the state - Cherry Creek. They've already run a US No. 8 of 9:17 - and that's excluding any altitude adjustments. They're sort of in their own race at this point, which means it's likely that they'll be racing the clock.
3200
Ok. We'll start with the fact that there are 138 entries between the boys and girls race. That's a high quantity race. But - it's also high quality...
The girls race will feature six who have run under 11 minutes already. Valor Christian's Keeghan Edwards enters with the top seed. Edwards has run 10:33 at lower elevations at Chandler Rotary. Of those on the entry list, Central (GJ)'s Tristian Spence owns the fastest Colorado 3,200 run this season with her 10:52 from the Warrior Wild West Invite, while 2021 5A runner-up - Pomona's Emma Stutzman is hot on her heels with her 10:54 from the Broomfield Shootout. Like Wilson and Edwards, Fort Collins' Ella Johns hasn't run a 3,200 in Colorado yet, though she's coming to Jeffco hot off her 10:52 from Arcadia last week. Likewise, Pueblo West's Aspen Fulbright is running her first 32 in Colorado this season, though she ran 10:57 at the Texas Distance Carnival.
The boy's race will feature 20 with seed times under 10 minutes.
Already, this looks like an eight-lap battle between Valor's Ty Garrett and Mountain View's Jackson Shorten. Garrett has run one 3,200 at lower elevations - a 9:20 clocking from the Chandler Rotary Invite, while Shorten soloed a 9:21 at the Broomfield Shootout several weeks ago. Cheyenne Mountain's Knox Exton could make this a three-man race. He's run 9:50 so far this season, though his 2021 cross country season sheds a bit more light on his abilities - he's run 14:37 in the 5k. Drew Costelow is another runner to keep an eye on. He's entered in the 1,600 as well, and has run 4:16 in the 1,600 down low at the Chandler Rotary Invite.
A Wild Card in this race is the 5A state cross country champion - Tanner Brown. He's only raced twice this outdoor season, including a 4:35 1,600.
Onwards to Saturday's Big Day.
1,600
Anytime Riley Stewart steps on the track you can expect to see something amazing. The Cherry Creek senior consistently brings the fire. Stewart heads to Jeffco off her 4:40 full-mile from Arcadia. Add that she's run 2:10 in the 800, and 10:20 in the 3,200 - both in Colorado. She'll likely have Emma Stutzman and Tristian Spence hot on her heels. The question with the girl's 16 is: how fast will they run?
Tune in to watch the girl's 1,600, which is scheduled to run at 10:20 a.m.
Meanwhile Drew Costelow looks to be in prime position to pop a fast 1,600. The Valor senior is coming off a dominate 1:54 800 from last week's Mullen Invite. So far he's run 4:13 in the 1,600 at lower elevations at the Chandler Rotary Invite. Golden's Bryce Reeburgh looks to be in the mix as well. He hasn't run a 16 this season, though he ran 1:55 in the 800 just last week, meaning he's got the wheels for a kickers race, which is most likely what this race will turn into. Rocky Mountain's Dalton Kaines could be a Wild Card here. His most impressive performance to date is a 9:23 3,200 clocking from the Altitude Invite, which suggests he's got the strength to run a solid mile.
Tune in to watch the boy's 1,600, which is is scheduled to run Saturday at 10:50 a.m.
Girls 400
Six girls are entered with times under 60-seconds. Six.
Cherry Creek's Kel McDavid owns the fastest time from this season with her 58.73 clocking from last month's Centennial League opener. She's actually run that exact time twice. More recently, McDavid is coming off a 25.99 200 from the Altitude Invite, meaning she's sharping up. Valor's Jocelyn Millican is always a threat. She's run 59.19 this season, and she's coming off a 100/400 double from Mullen. Mountain Vista's Ashley Hollingshead has run the third-fastest quarter-mile of this crew this season. She's run 59.41, though she's coming off a 12.91 100 from the Legend Titan Clash. Loveland's Kiarra Lapp has run just one 400 this season, and it was 1:00.12 clocking. She's bound to dip under that coveted 60-second mark with another shot on the line. Likewise, Avani Houston has run two 400s, and gone from 1:03 to 1:01, meaning she's on the downward trend in terms of time. The Wild Card here is Eaton's Andie Rasmussen. She hasn't run one 400 this season. In fact, she's run the 1,600 twice, and done the long jump once. But, she's the 2021 3A State runner-up in this very event. At last year's state meet she ran a monster three-second PR of 56.95. You can never count out someone who has run that fast.
Tune in to watch the girl's 400, which is scheduled to run at Saturday 11:55 p.m.
Boys 300H
Ohhh we've got a tight race on tap here... The top-four seeds have already dipped under 40-seconds, and share the same-second in terms of season-bests.
Resurrection Christian's Tre Garcia enters with the fastest time to date, a 39.38 clocking from the Erie Twilight. Valor's Jack Wetterling and Cherry Creek's PJ Robinson have run within one-hundredth-of-a-second of each other this season, with Wetterling clocking a 39.85 to Robinson's 39.86, while Eaton's Zac Grable has run just four-hundredths-of-a-second back in 39.90.
Four hurdlers within half-a-second of each others means this one is likely going down to the line...
Tune in to watch the boy's 300H, which is scheduled to run at Saturday 12:15 p.m.
Girls 800
On the topic of tight races on tap - -cue the girl's 800. Four of the top-eight half-milers in All-Classifications are on the start list.
Cherry Creek's Kinsey Christianson owns the fastest Colorado-run 800m with her 2:13.86 from the Broomfield Shootout, though she's run 2:10 at lower elevations indoors and has 56-second 400m speed. If this race goes down to a kick, Christianson could be very dangerous.
Berthoud's Jaycee Williams has been on a PR rampage in recent weeks. She's run 2:14.56 in Colorado and 2:13.05 down low at Arcadia last week. Valor's Keeghan Edwards will be doubling back from Friday's 3,200m to toe the line in the quarter of the distance. She's has run 2:16.96.
Cherry Creek's Addison Price could be a Wild Card here. While she's run 2:18 in the 800m this season, her recent 5:02 1,600 from the Legend Titan Clash last week suggests she's found a new gear.
This race could play host to a wild final 100 meters.
Tune in to watch the girl's 800, which is scheduled for Saturday 12:20 p.m.
Bonus
Boys Long Jump
Two of Colorado's best long jumpers will battle Friday. ThunderRidge's Grant Haskins has already leapt to a CO No. 2 of 24-1 this outdoor season, while Jefferson Academy's Chrisly Kelly-Cannon leapt to a 24-0 mark indoors. Outdoors he's gone 21-10. The boy's long jump is scheduled for Friday at 3 p.m.
Pole Vault
The pole vault will feature the best in the state.
The last time Legend's Jackson Wray and Riverdale's Lucas Couron met, they both cleared 15-6 for big PRs. These are the top-two ranked pole vaulters in Colorado, and they'll battle once again at Pomona Saturday at 11 a.m. Meanwhile, The Classical Academy's Anna Willis leads the girl's entries with her state-leading 13-0 from the Broomfield Shootout. The girl's pole vault is scheduled for Saturday at 9.a.m.
Girls High Jump
The best high jumper in Colorado is set to star in this event. Fort Collins' Brooke Naughton has cleared 5-8 twice this season already, and the 5A defending state champ owns a PR of 5-9 from 2021. The girl's high jump is scheduled for Friday at 3 p.m.
Girls Discus & Shot Put
The best thrower in Colorado is set to compete at Pomona. Northfield's Giavonna Meeks owns state-leading marks in both events, and heads to Jeffco with season-bests of 150-9 in the discus from last week's Mullen Invite, and 46-3.25 in the shot put from last month's Dr. Dan Caprioglio Early Bird. The girl's discus is scheduled for Saturday at 9.a.m, and the girl's shot put is scheduled for Friday at 3 p.m.