A freak accident overshadowed much of the Class 4A girls shot put Friday at the Colorado High School Activities Association State Track and Field Championships.
Northfield’s Giavonna Meeks, the No. 1 seed going into the shot put and the discus state champion crowned only a day earlier, would dislocate an ankle during warmups for Friday’s shot put. After the scary situation and with severe weather closing in on Jeffco Stadium in Lakewood, throwers returned to the circle for a difficult competition.
Durango junior Sydney Flores would finish fourth in the event with a best throw of 34-feet, 1.75 inches. Skyview’s Bahati Nabindu would win with a best throw of 36-05.50. Air Academy’s Kylyn Ollivierre was second at 35-01.
The fourth-place backed up Flores’ third in Thursday’s discus throw.
In the Class 4A boys 800-meter run, Durango’s Damian Frausto finished in seventh in 1:56.21. Zane Bergen of Niwot, who won Thursday’s 3,200, once again stood on the top step of the podium. He claimed the 800 in 1:51.26. That was two seconds ahead of Longmont’s Connor McCormick.
Durango’s Angela McManus contested the 4A girls 800. She finished 17th in 2:24.88. Madison Shults of Niwot would win in a time of 2:12.27. Eagle Valley’s Samantha Blair was second in 2:13.17.
Going into Saturday’s final day of the state meet, the DHS girls are in fifth place with 21 points. Niwot has a commanding lead with 78 points, while Battle Mountain is second with 30 points.
The DHS boys are in sixth place with 19 points. Niwot also leads the boys competition with 53 points, while Longmont is second with 37.
Class 3A
Bayfield High School senior Zeb Shields opened his state meet in the Class 3A boys 3,200-meter run Friday. He would finish 10th in 10:08.79. Alamosa star Joshua Medina would win the race in 9:28.27, nearly eight full seconds in front of Gunnison’s Alex Baca.
Medina also would win the boys 800 in 1:54.78, one second ahead of Resurrection Christian’s Preston Fagerlin.
Montezuma-Cortez’s Sawyer Smith would place fifth in the 3A boys triple jump at 41-9.75. The win went to Sterling’s Tucker Myers at 45-02.75.
Bayfield’s Elissa Mars and Shayden French finished in a three-way tie for 11th place in the girls pole vault. They both cleared 8-00. Anna Willis of The Classical Academy would win with a height of 12-06, three inches higher that Koutney Rathke of Peak to Peak.
Bayfield’s Emily Nelson placed 16th in the girls shot put with a best throw of 28-11 in her final throw of the day. Alexnadra Tice of Lamar won with a throw of 40-05.25.
The Classical Academy leads the boys team standings with 38 points, three ahead of Resurrection Christian while Alamosa and Sterling are tied for third with 33 points each.
Coal Ridge leads the girls 3A standings with 48 points, while Basalt has 42.5 for second place. The Bayfield girls are 16th with seven points.
Class 2A
Mancos’ Connor Showalter made it two fourth-place finishes in as many days. A day after he took fourth in the Class 2A boys discus throw, he was fourth in the shot put with a throw of 44-05.25. Wiggins’ Mohamed Ibrahim won with a throw of 56-04.
Showalter threw the discus 142-01 on Thursday. Bryant Schoenthal of Wray won the event with a throw of 173-08 to beat Ibrahim, who threw it 167-06.
Showalter also placed 11th in the boys triple jump at 38-09.50. Jeremiah Leeper of Limon won with a distance of 42-06.75.
Mancos’ Edgar Hernandez placed sixth in the boys 800 on Friday in 2:02:12 to land on the poidum. Crested Butte’s Connor Williams won in 1:54.21.
In the girls 800, Mancos’ Grace Manning scored a point for the Bluejays with a ninth-place finish. She ran in 2:30.09. Isabel Case of Colorado Springs Christian won in 2:23.41, two seconds in front of Peyton’s Eowyn Dalbec.
Ignacio’s Alexis Pontine placed 11th in the girls discus throw. Her second of three attempts went 92-11 for her best of the day. The win went to Holyoke’s Lauren Herman with a throw of 126-01, which was 1-02 further than her teammate Correy Koellner.
Pontine was the lone IHS Bobcats athlete to qualify for state this year.
Wiggins leads the 2A boys team standings with 32 points, two ahead of Yuma. Mancos is fifth with 19 points. Cedaredge leads the girls competition with 34 points, while Wiggins is second with 26.50.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
