(Brock Laue/CHSAANow)
LAKEWOOD — In track, one relay leg can make a difference.
On Friday at the state track and field championships at Jefferson County Stadium, Nicole Montgomery was the difference between ninth place and a state meet record.
The Lewis-Palmer senior, a sprint dynamo, got the baton for the 400 anchor leg of the 800-meter medley relay and took the Rangers from last to first in the Class 4A championship finals. They were ninth, but ended up winning with a classification record of 1:45.06, inching past Harrison’s 1:45.38 at the state meet in 2014. Montgomery split 53 seconds.
“I’m definitely overjoyed right now,” she said. “It was just such a fun race. I’ve never had a group of girls that I’ve wanted to run for so much.”
Montgomery, the two-time defending 4A champion in the 400-meter dash and a one-time champ in the 200, has tasted plenty of individual success. But, she wanted to share it with her teammates.
“It’s definitely a lot more special,” she said, when asked how the relay title compared to her other crowns. “This group of girls deserved it. Last year I was pulled out of the medley, because my coach wanted me to focus on the 400. It was so much fun for me to be a part of that.”
Maddi Smith, Emily Roma, and Laura Still were part of the winning medley relay for Lewis-Palmer. Thompson Valley was the runner-up in 1:46.74.
On the first day of championship finals for sprint relays, records were shattered.
Springfield boys broke the 1A state meet record in the 800-meter relay with a 1:33.25. Plateau Valley girls set a new 1A best in the 800 medley relay with a 1:53.90.
In 2A, Cedaredge girls blew past the classification record in the 400 relay with a 49.71, the first 2A team to ever run sub-50 seconds. Paonia had a 2A best time of 1:45.03 in the 800 relay.
No relay records were broken in 3A on Friday, but in 5A, Denver East and Mountain Range both shattered the 800 medley state meet record. The East Angels won the crown in 1:43.31 and the Mustangs were the runner-up in 1:43.74.
Oh, and another one of those special talents, Ally Watt of Pine Creek, helped the Eagles defend their 800 relay crown in 5A with a sizzling 1:38.03, clear of Cherokee Trail’s 1:39.94.
Fountain-Fort Carson boys won the 5A 800 relay in 1:26.82, the first of what could be three relay championships over the weekend. The Trojans are favorites in the 400 relay and co-favorites with Smoky Hill in the 1,600 relay on Saturday.
Valor Christian boys cruised 1:26.31 to earn the 4A crown in the 800 relay, another standout performance, and Niwot girls posted a new 4A state meet record in the same event with a 1:41.13.
Relays didn’t exactly disappoint on the second day of the track and field state championships.
Expect more of the same Saturday as more individuals and relays will be crowned and team champions will be decided. The meet begins at 9:30 am with the 100-meter hurdle finals for every classification.
Other notable performances:
- Palmer Ridge boys won 4A in the 1,600 prelims with a blistering 3:17.36. The Bears are looking poised to defend their team championship.
- Rylee Anderson, a freshman at Silver Creek, won the 4A high jump with a mark of 5-05.
- Sangre de Cristo’s Jenna McKinley broke the 1A state record in the shot put with a 41-8.5 and earned her first state championship.
- Merino’s Jorden Jole won a thrilling 800-meter race in 2A in 1:58.64 over Evan Anderson of Resurrection Christian (1:58.85).
- Burlington’s Ellie Berry (128-03) and Miryah Jones (127-02) placed first and second in the 2A discus.
- Ben Butler of Skyview Academy, the 3A cross country champion last fall, won his first title on the track with the 3,200 crown in 9:25. Butler is a junior.
- Eaton excelled in the 3A field events in winning the boys discus (Garrett Coalson, 163-03) and the girls shot put (Tarynn Sieg, 43-05.25).
- Marcelo Laguera of Pomona won the 5A 3,200 in 9:24, his first state championship in track. He won 5A cross country last fall.
- Shayna Yon (first, 18-09.25) and Sydnee Larkin (second, 18-02.75), a Cherokee Trail tandem, dominated the 5A long jump.