LAKEWOOD — There’s The Classical Academy, and then there’s everybody else.
When it comes to Class 3A state track and field, especially on the girls side, there’s been nobody better the past five years. That was proved again Saturday at Jefferson County Stadium.
When Kaitlin Hanenburg won the 1,600 meters Saturday — her third straight — all that was left to be determined were the final points because the team title had all but been decided.
Hanenburg’s sixth state title between the 1,600 and 3,200 — and her second this year after she won the 3,200 Thursday — propelled the Titans to their fifth consecutive title with 148 points, 95 points ahead of second-place Lyons.
The face of those teams the past four years has been Hanenburg, who also is a three-time cross country champion. The Classical Academy senior capped her prep career with one last win, one that will sit with her for some time to come.
“It’s just been so amazing to be a part of this team,” Hanenburg said. “I love my coaches, and I love my teammates. It’s just been such a blessing that I got placed with this team.”
But the girls weren’t the only ones celebrating. For a second straight season, The Classical Academy boys won with 91 points, three points ahead of Faith Christian.
“We’re so excited. We’ve worked so hard,” Hanenburg said of TCA’s team victories.
Even when The Classical Academy doesn’t win an individual event, it still piles up points. Case in point was in the girls 400, where freshman Nicole Sassaman and senior Shannon Harrell finished third and fourth, respectively. The 13 points weren’t needed in the long run, but it showed just how deep the Titans are.
That said, the third-place finish was beyond anything Sassaman could have expected in her first varsity season.
“It felt amazing. It’s been such a privilege to run with such a great team here,” Sassaman said.
But it’s not all about The Classical Academy. Samantha Berggren, one of Sassaman’s opponents in the 400, is proof of that. The Middle Park junior won her third straight 400 championship, running a time of 55.97 — just three-hundreds of a second off the state meet record she set two years ago.
“I just think everybody has a special event that’s made for them, and I just happen to be in the 400,” Berggren said.
But, in the end, as recent history has proven, The Classical Academy’s special event is the Class 3A state track and field championship.
