MEEKER | After returning from spring break, the Meeker High School track and field team was back in action Saturday at the Mickey Dunn Invitational. Competing against larger schools, the Cowboys placed 19th out of 26 teams.
Head coach Jordan Brown acknowledged the challenges of the meet.
“There were quite a few more teams at this meet, as well as much bigger schools such as Lewis-Palmer, Grand Junction, Fruita, and Central, all of which are 4A and 5A schools, so we were competing against top athletes,” Brown said.
Brown also noted the team’s improvement from its first meet of the season on March 14 in Rifle.
“Much improvement from the first meet in Rifle. We had better weather in Grand Junction, which helps with performance. We had a lot more athletes competing this weekend, which was enjoyable to watch,” she said.
Leading the Meeker boys was senior Sam Hightower, who placed second in the pole vault with a height of 12 feet, 6 inches. While it was not a personal record, it marked his best performance of the season after clearing 11-6 two weeks ago.
“This was much better than my first meet, as I was running off a six-step approach, so I could run faster and put more power into my vault,” Hightower said. “I think I can get higher if I am able to find a taller pole and am not tired from vaulting as much as previously.”
Hightower added that he has been focusing on form and consistency in his run and hopes to break the school record and reach 14 feet.
Senior Alex Garcia finished 10th in the high jump at 5-6, while the boys’ 4×200-meter relay team of Sam Smithers, Tristin Rollins, Trent Sanders, and Sam Conrado placed 15th with a time of 1:43.02.
For the girls’ team, junior Addie Knowles led the way, placing seventh in the shot put with a mark of 32-2.5. She also secured a fifth-place finish in the discus with a throw of 105-8.
The 4×100-meter relay team of Taylor Garcia, McKenna Berthelson, Braydin Raley, and Adison Selle placed ninth with a time of 53.89 seconds, improving from their 11th-place finish two weeks ago (58.40 seconds).
The girls’ 4×200-meter relay team—Selle, Berthelson, Raley, and Garcia—also cracked the top 10, finishing eighth in 1:54.92.
Brown highlighted several standout performances, including Clay Crawford, who recently joined the team this past week.
“We threw him in the boys’ 4×100 relay with Sam Smithers, Sam Conrado, and Tristin Rollins at the last minute without any hand-off work, and he performed above expectations,” Brown said.
She also praised Kenadie Greenburg’s performance in the girls’ 200 meters, along with strong showings from Norah Loar in the 100 and 200 meters and the boys’ 4×200 relay team, which showed improvement.
Brown noted the team’s overall progress since the first meet, particularly in relay hand-offs, block starts, and running form.
“Taylor Garcia and Braydin Raley helped improve the girls’ 4×100 and 4×200 times from the Rifle meet. Alex Garcia also improved his high jump performance,” Brown said. “Addie Knowles had a personal best of 32-2.5 in the shot put and placed seventh. She also placed fifth in discus.”
The Cowboys will return to Grand Junction on Saturday, April 5, with events beginning at 9 a.m. However, Brown noted that the team will have fewer athletes competing due to scheduling conflicts.
“This next meet is hard because we have the ACT and a band function going on at the same time, so we do not have as many athletes attending this meet,” Brown said. “We will mostly be focusing on individual open events and not so much on the relays this week.”
RANGELY TRACK
RANGELY | A group from the Rangely High School track and field team traveled to Grand Junction to compete in the Mickey Dunn Invitational last weekend, competing hard and getting an early chance to go head to head with some of the Western Slope’s best athletes.
The boys 4×800-meter relay team got the day started for the Panthers. Chance Allred, Kellen LeFevre, Tavan Morgan and James Talbot finished ninth overall after an impressive final leg from Talbot. The team ran 9 minutes, 18.70 seconds, improving its season-best time.
A few of Rangely’s sprinters took to the track next, racing down the straight for the 100-meter dash. Ashlynn Ducey ran 13.61 in the girls competition. Logan Peterson and Davon Lucero followed with times of 11.95 and 12.90, respectively, in the boys competition.
Davon Lucero had his hands full during this time. He had just finished high jump prior to his race, then immediately began long jump where he leaped 16 feet, 7 inches. Natalie Bollinger jumped 13-8.25 in the girls long jump competition. Chance Allred went 33-1 in the boys triple jump. Cutler Mergelman threw the boys shot put 35-5 while Taylor Fouch threw the girls discus 81-10.
Across town, Miah Wren finished third in the girls pole vault after clearing 8-6. Kira Jo Benson and Natalie Bollinger shared ninth place with a height of 6-6 and a pair of new personal records. Clay Allred set a new PR with a clearance of 9-6 in the boys pole vault and took ninth place.
Back on the track, Taya Wren fought not just a trio of 5A runners from the Denver metro area, but rain as well, in a tough girls 1,600. After four laps, Taya crossed the line in third with a new PR of 5:21.53. Addison Thayn and Faith Preito competed equally hard in their first 1,600 races of the season, running 6:52.34 and 6:57.73, respectively. Likewise, in the boys 1,600, Kellen LeFevere ran hard and cut nearly 20 seconds off his previous best time, running 5:23.43.
Without much rest, Kellen LeFevre stepped back onto the track for the boys 400 and finished in 1:05.39. James Talbot tried his hand in the one-lap race as well, finishing fourth overall in his first open 400 of his career with a time of 52.12. Miah Wren made her way to the track to compete in the girls 300-meter hurdles, finishing sixth in 50.23.
Taya Wren finished fourth in the girls 800 in 2:27.50. James Talbot raced his way into second in the boys 800 in 2:06.96. Davon Lucero wrapped up the track events for the Panthers in the boys 200 dash with a time of 26.08.
While the track events were finished up for Rangely, Taylor Fouch kept on representing the RHS team in the finals of the girls shot put. Keeping her hot streak going, Taylor threw a big PR of 32-4 to finish sixth.
“The Mickey Dunn was a great meet for us,” said head coach Beth Scoggins. “The kids competed really hard and set lots of new season bests and personal records. It’s hard to believe that we are already a third of the way through our season, but I think a meet like this is a great sign that we are moving in the right direction.”
The Panther tracksters will be competing in Gypsum next weekend at the Eagle Valley Invitational.
