The state championship season for high school track and field is here, and Ignacio High School and Bayfield High School’s top athletes are ready to take their talents north to JeffCo Stadium in Lakewood.
Colorado High School Activities Association State Track Championships begin Thursday morning and run through Saturday afternoon at JeffCo Stadium in Lakewood. The Bobcats are represented in four different events, while the Wolverines have athletes in 13. Three of those athletes are seeded within the top two of the 18 qualifiers in each event, with real podium and state title hopes. To earn a podium finish at state, an athlete must finish inside the top nine in their event.
For Ignacio, the spotlight will be on senior hurdler Lincoln DeKay. DeKay is seeded No. 2 in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 15.68 seconds. He also has a shot at a top three finish in the 300 hurdles, seeded fourth with a 41.20. DeKay will look to improve on his third-place finish last year in the 110 hurdles and seventh-place finish in the 300 hurdles (he ran 15.83 in the 110 and 41.34 in the 300 last year).
Ignacio will have two other competitors, both first-time state qualifiers. Junior Thunder Windy Boy is seeded 14th in the 3200 with a time of 10:25.41. Senior Evan Perkins is seeded at No. 17 in the shot put with a throw of 126 feet, four inches.
Bayfield’s state crew has not one but two athletes who are seeded to bring home a state title. Senior Ayden Casillas is No. 1 in the boys 100 with a time of 10.74. He finished 14th in the event last year with an 11.10. Casillas is also a real competitor in the 200, seeded fourth with a time of 21.88. He finished 12th last year in the 200 with a time of 22.72.
The other Wolverine at No. 1 is junior jumper Tanner Vyborny, who will look to avenge his second-place finish last year in the high jump. Vyborny has the same mark entering state this year that he did last year, with a jump of 6-7.
However, last year, there was an athlete that had cleared 6-8 and an athlete that had cleared 6-11. This year Vyborny is the lone athlete who has cleared 6-7, making him the clear favorite. He will also compete in the long jump, where he is seeded at No. 12 with a mark of 21-00.
“ (Vyborny) has cleared 6-7 this year, our school record is 6-8,” said Bayfield track head coach Josh Walton. “So we’d love to see him bring home a state title and maybe that school record as well.”
Fellow Wolverine Harrison Williams will also compete in the high jump. The sophomore is tied for 14th with a mark of 6-2.
Along with Casillas and Vyborny, Bayfield has one more state star athlete in senior Vivien Clance. Clance will be competing in four events, which is the maximum an athlete is allowed to do at state. She is seeded seventh in the 100 with a time of 12.63, 13th in the 200 with a 26.68, 10th in the 400 with a 59.96 and tied for 11th in the high jump, having cleared 5-1.
“It’s been a few years since we’ve had a four-event girls state qualifier … so we’d love to see her get on the podium in as many as she can,” Walton said.
Clance competed in three of the four events last year at state and is in good position to better all of her finishes. Last year, she was 17th in the 100 with a 12.95, 17th in the 200 with a 26.65 and tied for 16th in the high jump by clearing 4-9.
Bayfield’s other competitors are in relays and field events. The Wolverines have a 4x100 and 4x200 team, with the 4x100 seeded at 16th with a 43.90 and the 4x200 seeded 12th with a 1:30.97.
The 4x100 squad is composed of Casillas, junior James Sandoval, freshman Silas Morrison and sophomore Colton Casillas. Bayfield’s 4x100 team finished 16th last year with a time of 44.89. BHS’ 4x200 team is made up of both Casillas brothers, Vyborny and Morrison. The 4x200 did not qualify for state last year.
BHS has a field event trio to round out their state squad. Senior Delilah Zink is seeded at No. 7 in the shot put with a throw of 34-6. She finished 17th last year with a throw of 31-2 1/2.
Bayfield’s senior duo of Kyle Russell and Zachary Hufnagel are seeded at 12th and 13th in the pole vault with marks of 12-8 and 12-5, respectively. Hufnagel finished 13th last year by clearing 11-6, while Russell did not qualify last year.
The state meet begins Thursday at 8 a.m. and can be streamed via https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/associations/chsaa/track-and-field
ajbonanno@durangoherald.com
