RHS Panthers bring home state track medals

RANGELY I The Rangely High School Panthers qualified three seniors and a junior for the 2014 Colorado State Track and Field Championships in Denver and returned home with several medals, personal bests, two new school records and a seventh-place team finish for the boys.
Rangely senior Andrew Morton qualified in four events and earned a place on the podium in all four events, including a silver and bronze and two sixth-place finishes. Morton finished second in the triple jump with a personal best of 44-1 and recorded a personal best and school record in the 110-meter hurdles, to earn a bronze medal in the event. The new Rangely High School record in the 110-meter hurdles is 15.56. Morton also long-jumped 20-5 and he cleared 6-1 in the high jump, to make the podium in both events, in sixth place.

Senior Connor Phelan qualified in two events, set personal bests in both, made the podium in one and set a new school record. Phelan set a personal best in the 200-meter dash (23.43) and set a new school record in the 400, completing the lap in 51.29.

Rangely senior Aimee Hogan was the only girl to qualify for the Panthers. After switching from distance to sprints this year, she qualified in two events, the 200 and 400, earning a personal best in the 200.
“Aimee didn’t make the finals in either event, but she did get a solid personal best in the 200 at 28.03,” Rangely coach Cody Brunton said. “We however were super proud of her as she ran distance the last three years and decided to do sprints this year to see if she could find more success and ended up making state in two events she never really dedicated herself to until her senior season.”

Colt Allred, a junior, qualified in the shot put and discus throw and made the podium in both events.
“Colt was our only junior to qualify, and he had a very impressive meet, placing seventh in the discus with a personal best of 139-7,” Brunton said of the junior, who threw the discus 10 feet further than his previous personal best.

Allred also made it to the fourth position on the podium in the shot put with another personal best of 44-3.
This will be coach Stephanie Kahler’s final year as Rangely’s track and field coach.
“It’s been a great season with this team and a great way to end a five-year experience,” coach Kahler said. “I’m proud to be a part of such great accomplishments.”