High school officials are collecting a surplus of fire extinguishers in preparation for this weekend’s boys state track and field championships. Looking at some of the recent times that have been posted, there is good chance the track could catch fire.
“There are going to be some tough, hot races,” said Montbello coach Don Gatewood, who will bring the fastest team of sprinters to the big-school meet.
Classes 5A and 4A will be held at Legacy Stadium in Aurora, and 3A and 2A will be in Pueblo at Dutch Clark Stadium. Four finals and the bulk of the preliminary heats will be run Friday, and the meets will finish Saturday.
For big schools, the big story is speed.
George Washington sprinter Jeremy Dodson owns the nation’s fastest high school time (21.08 seconds) in the 200-meter dash and the nation’s third-best 100 time of 10.41. That is also the fastest 100 meters clocked in Colorado high school history.
Montbello already has state records in the 400 (41.24 in 2004) and 800 (1:25.90 in 1997) relays, but Gatewood said this group is ready to break those marks.
“They said it’s time for those records to go,” Gatewood said. “If they can pull the times together that they are capable of running, they can set two records that they already have.”
Sedgrick Myles, A.J. Whitaker, Lionel Lawson and Darryl Sampson will team up for the 400 relay, and Aaron Stubblefield will replace Whitaker in the 800 relay.
Smoky Hill is the two-time defending 5A champion, and the program is again loaded with talent and depth in nearly every event. Brandon Woods is a threat to win the 300 hurdles, and Kirk Cooper could end up in a pole vault showdown with Levi Gallas of Chaparral, the defending state champion.
In 4A, Mullen has won four team titles in a row and is favored to get a fifth.
“The only team that is going to beat Mullen is Mullen. The only way other teams will be able to beat them is if they fail,” said D’Evelyn coach Micah Porter, whose team looks to be in a line for a top-three finish.
The Mustangs won their regional meet by nearly 100 points against talented teams such as Broomfield and Mountain View. They took the top three spots in the high jump and pole vault, and won both the 400 and 3,200 relay to showcase their versatility.
For D’Evelyn, which moved up to 4A this season, John McGuire heads one of the premiere distance teams in the state, and Dustin Pittman has found his groove in the long and triple jumps.
“We’ve been running faster and jumping farther every week,” Porter said.
In 3A, the race is a bit more open. Brush, Pagosa Springs, Platte Canyon, Buena Vista, Roosevelt and Frederick are just a handful of teams coming off strong regional performances.
In 2A, defending champion Limon, coached by Warren Mitchell, are paced by Jordan King. King runs the 100, 110 and 300 hurdles, and one relay event, and he has been nearly unbeatable this spring.
