LAKEWOOD — In preparing for the state track and field championships, Lewis-Palmer senior sprinter Nicole Montgomery thought she had a chance at winning two individual Class 4A races Saturday.
It did not work out quite the way she had planned. Montgomery took three.
With her long red hair seemingly chasing her down the track, Montgomery jetted to victories in the 100, 400 and 200 meters, in that order, at Jefferson County Stadium. The University of Kansas signee successfully defended her 2014 titles in the 400 and 200. Winning the 100 was a surprise. Make that, a shock.
“I’m not really a 100 runner,” Montgomery said. “It’s pretty cool. I don’t really know how I did it. But near the end, I looked around and said to myself, ‘You can do this.’ “
Montgomery had been seeded third for Saturday’s 100-meter final with a qualifying time of 12.47 — well behind the 12.00 recorded in prelims by Vista PEAK freshman Maya Evans. Montgomery clocked 12.16 in the final, a stride ahead of runner-up Jordan Edwards (12.21) of Widefield. Evans settled for fourth with 12.40.
Montgomery breezed to victory in the 400 by a margin of at least 20 meters with a time of 53.86. In the 200, she crossed the finish line in 24.61 but had to hold off Evans (25.25).
“I’m unbelievably excited to finish my senior season with a sweep in the sprints,” Montgomery said. “I guess it was like, ‘When in doubt, stride it out.’ “
Sprinters in three other classes also pulled off dandy doubles in claiming the 100 and 200 titles: senior Shayna Yon of Cherokee Trail in Class 5A with times of 11.79 in the 100 and 24.17 in the 200; junior Kayla Pinnt of Moffatt County in 3A with 12.01 and 24.52; and freshman Zariah Mason of Kim in 1A with 12.72 and 25.59.
Mason’s time in the 100 set a meet record for Class 1A sprinters. Her 200 clocking also would have established a meet record but will not count as such because of excessive wind. That’s quite a start for a ninth-grader.
“I don’t have words to describe how excited I am,” Mason said.
Pinnt repeated her 100 and 200 sprint victories of 2014. “I didn’t feel the pressure until I got here and everyone expects you to win,” Pinnt said.
Yon, who has signed with Louisiana State, said she was taken aback while warming up when Class 5A defending 100 and 200 champion Alleandra Watt of Pine Creek was nowhere to be found. Watt did not run Saturday (also scratching from a relay) because of a left hamstring issue.
“I thought, ‘Alleandra is not going to run her last races as a senior,’ ” Yon recalled. “I decided even if she didn’t run, I wasn’t going to let my guard down no matter what. I ran just as hard as I do for every other race. It’s a bummer that she didn’t run. I love to be pushed by her.”
Watt is a member of the U.S. under-20 national soccer team and signed with Texas A&M for soccer.
“I tested out the hamstring this morning,” Watt said. “It’s at the point where if I kept pushing on it I could have caused a more serious injury. It was a hard decision to make but I can’t push myself to where I can’t play soccer.”
Tom Kensler: tkensler@denverpost.com or
Girls highlights
• The winning time of 53.64 seconds in the Class 5A 400 meters by Becca Schulte of Fort Collins High School did not set a meet record Saturday. But it was announced as Colorado’s fourth-fastest 400 of all time.
• Class 2A freshman sprinter Brittany Fuchs of Calhan appears to have a bright future. Fuchs won the 200 meters in 25.70 to edge 2A 100-meter champion Kayla Zink of Caliche.
• Versatile Class 1A runner Ginger Hutton of Shining Mountain Waldorf capped a remarkable high school career by winning the 400 meters (57.89 for a 1A meet record) and 1,600 (5:26.40). Hutton, who has signed with Vanderbilt, won the 3,200 (11:53.90) on Thursday and 800 (2:12.81, meet record) on Friday.
• Class 4A shot putter Haley Showalter of Valor Christian turned in one of the most dominant performances of Saturday’s competition. Showalter’s winning toss of 47 feet, ½ inch went almost 7 feet farther than her closest competitor.
• Among the team winners, Niwot (Class 4A) and Paonia (2A) were repeat champions. Eaton (3A) and Heritage Christian (1A) improved from their runner-up finishes in 2014. Class 5A champ Cherokee Trail improved dramatically after placing eighth a year ago.
