Christian Groendyk came. Saw. And conquered.
The pre-race favorite ran according to plan, capping his senior season with the 5A Colorado State Cross Country Championship title - his sixth-consecutive victory.
The Fort Collins senior had Penrose almost entirely to himself, as he torched a 15:13.50 - that's the third-fastest on the course behind former state champions and current NCAA stars Parker Wolfe and Cole Sprout, who ran 15:10, and 15:12.
Groendyk's performance is in really good company...
While Groendyk had the final say in the race, Valor's Dane Eike, and Mountain Vista's Tyler Downs had their's earlier.
Eike was the first to stride, as the Valor junior set a blazing pace to keep this race honest just as he did in last week's 5A Region 5 meet.
As the pace whittled down the pack Downs made his bid for the state title in the final mile, and nearly got away with it. The Mountain Vista senior stretched the invisible tether that binds runners in a tight race - and nearly broke it.
But Groendyk timed this one to perfection.
The hill down to the creek-crossing was his final attack on the field, and this one stuck.
The Fort Collins senior - who is known for his prowess on trails in the mountains - utilized the course's double-hill over the final 600 meters to run away with the state title.
Groendyk put 10-seconds on the field over those hills.
Valor's Drew Costelow kicked late as well, gulping up Downs in the final strides to finish second in 15:23. Downs finished third, running a second back in 15:24, while Eike finished fourth in 15:30.
Valor's 3-4 finish would be huge in the team race, which was insane.
In a race almost too close to call, Valor took the lean with Kaeden Dendorfer finished ninth, giving them three in before anyone's two.
Valor's three made it difficult for any team to battle back, but as the tally began to take shape, it was clear this team race would be tight.
Enzo Swan and Judah Crooks finished 76, and 79 to close the door, capping Valor's scoring at 155 for the state team title.
Behind them, well, things were bananas...
Two squads snuck in and quite nearly stole the show. While all eyes were on Mountain Vista, Cherokee Trail, and Rock Canyon, it was Centaurus and Fairview who stunned the field.
Centaurus - running in 5A for the first year - tallied 170 points to take the runner-up spot, while Fairview tallied 184 to finish third. Four points behind them was Mountain Vista, who finished fourth with 187, which was two points in front of Rock Canyon's 189. And, Cherokee Trail was just six-points back with 195 for sixth.
In other words - 11 points separated third from sixth, and 40-points separated first from sixth...
That's how close this team race was...