LAKEWOOD — Regis Jesuit freshman Ana Holland entered the Class 5A girls state meet as the top-seeded sprinter in the 200 meters. The 5-foot-1, 103-pound newcomer was the one to beat, but she lost her fragile edge Thursday, coming in second in a preliminary heat against Fountain-Fort Carson sophomore GinAsia Hamilton.
The much taller and muscular Hamilton produced a time of 24.56 seconds, about three strides ahead of Holland (25.07). Montbello senior Kayla Fisher-Taylor won the second heat with a time of 24.87, so Holland will enter today’s finals with the No. 3 seed.
Still, the petite freshman is optimistic.
“It’s exciting, and as a freshman, I’m just looking forward to the challenge,” she said. “I don’t really see myself as a freshman, just as an athlete looking to do as best as I can. If I place, that’s cool.”
Holland moved to Colorado three years ago from Missouri. She is just two months into her first competitive track season, and says her experience and strength disadvantages will be no excuse if she fails to place.
“They are more experienced, so I guess I’m at a disadvantage, and I’m not as big as them, but I have God-given talent and that gives me confidence,” she said.
Holland also competes in the 100. Among 18 state qualifiers, she was seeded fifth with a time of 12.34. She improved on that with a preliminary time of 12:19, second-quickest in her heat and overall. She is seeded third in Saturday’s 100 finals.
Fisher-Taylor ran an event-best 12:08 on Thursday, and senior Andrea Slouka of Heritage won the second heat in 12:35.
Among the top seven girls in the 100, Holland is the only non-senior.
Meanwhile, Doherty senior Jaden Terry captured one of the first field state titles. He won the boys discus throw at 177 feet, 1 inch.
He placed third as a sophomore and was eighth a year ago.
“Last year I did terrible, but this year I’ve been throwing great. My PR (personal record) was 185 and I just threw great today,” Terry said.
“It’s a great way to finish for me. That’s all I wanted for my coach and all I wanted for myself. It’s just an exciting time.”
