The Season D all-state girls track and field teams are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.

These teams were created based upon results at the state meet.

In order to be considered for athlete of the year, they must first have made the all-state team by winning an event.

Athletes of the year were selected based upon their performance at the state meet. Coaches of the year were selected based upon the team champions.

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Class 5A

Athlete of the year: Riley Stewart, Cherry Creek

Coach of the year: Brian Kula, Valor Christian

First Team
Name	School	Year	Event(s)
Kylie Bahr	Valor Christian	Junior	300 hurdles, 4×400
Shelby Balding	Cherry Creek	Junior	4×800
Fabiola Belibi	Regis Jesuit	Junior	Long jump
Jordan Blankenship	Valor Christian	Freshman	4×400
Kajsa Borrman	Loveland	Junior	Discus
Kinsey Christianson	Cherry Creek	Junior	4×800
Saniya Craft	Grandview	Senior	4×200, sprint medley
Amber Davis	Grandview	Senior	4×200, sprint medley
Reese Dragovich	Valor Christian	Senior	4×400
McKenzie Droughns	Grandview	Sophomore	Sprint medley
Elizabeth Johnson	Denver East	Junior	4×100
Mina Khadem	Denver East	Junior	4×100
Michelle McDonald	Denver East	Senior	4×100
Brooke Naughton	Fort Collins	Junior	High jump
Lilly Nichols	Broomfield	Freshman	Pole vault
Melody Nwagwu	Grandview	Senior	Triple jump
Amanda Opp	Lakewood	Senior	Shot put
Camille Peisner	Valor Christian	Senior	100m, 200m, 4×400
Addison Price	Cherry Creek	Sophomore	4×800
Kyairra Reigh	Denver East	Senior	400m, 4×100
Ava Robinson	Grandview	Sophomore	4×200
Molly Skurcenski	Grandview	Junior	4×200, sprint medley
Riley Stewart	Cherry Creek	Junior	800m, 1,600m, 3,200m, 4×800
Zeaniah Wedgeworth	Overland	Senior	100 hurdles

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Class 4A

Athlete of the year: Lucca Fulkerson, Niwot

Coach of the year: Maurice Henriques, Niwot

First Team
Name	School	Year	Event(s)
Kathryn Carroll	Niwot	Junior	4×100, 4×200
Jahzara Davis	Sand Creek	Senior	100 hurdles
Geneva-Grace Douillard	Niwot	Senior	4×400, sprint medley
Agur Dwol	Mullen	Junior	Long jump, triple jump
Lucca Fulkerson	Niwot	Senior	3,200m, 4×800
Margaret Gillett	Niwot	Sophomore	4×100, 4×200
Annabelle Huddle	Niwot	Senior	Sprint medley
Taylor James	Niwot	Senior	200m, 400m, 4×100, 4×200
Megan Kelleghan	Silver Creek	Sophomore	Pole vault
Giavonna Meeks	Northfield	Junior	Discus
Bethany Michalak	Air Academy	Freshman	1,600m
Bahati Nabindu	Skyview	Senior	Shot put
Kimora Northrup	Niwot	Sophomore	300 hurdles, 4×100, 4×200
Shayla Padilla	Pueblo West	Senior	High jump
Mia Prok	Niwot	Freshman	4×800
Julia Rudolph	Niwot	Freshman	4×400, sprint medley
Kaleah Ruff	Mullen	Senior	100m
Madison Shults	Niwot	Sophomore	800m, 4×400, 4×800
Stella Vieth	Niwot	Junior	4×400, 4×800, sprint medley

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Class 3A

Athlete of the year: Peyton Garrison, Coal Ridge

Coach of the year: Ben Kirk, Coal Ridge

First Team
Name	School	Year	Event(s)
Catelyn Adams	Eaton	Senior	Sprint medley
Valarie Allen	Sterling	Senior	Triple jump
Allison Beasley	Peak to Peak	Senior	3,200m
Jackie Camunez	Coal Ridge	Sophomore	4×400
Mikayla Cheney	Coal Ridge	Sophomore	800m, 4×400
Paige Farnam	Berthoud	Freshman	4×800
Peyton Garrison	Coal Ridge	Junior	100m, 200m, 400m, 4×400
Sierra Haberman	Jefferson Academy	Junior	High jump
Halle Hamilton	Moffat County	Junior	4×200
Logan Haugestuen	Liberty Common	Sophomore	100 hurdles, 4×100
Skylar Hawk	Holy Family	Junior	300 hurdles
Emma Jones	Moffat County	Junior	4×200
Gigi Jurgens	Liberty Common	Junior	4×100
Olivia Krueger	Berthoud	Junior	4×800
Katelyn Maley	Basalt	Sophomore	1,600m
Lily Morrison	Liberty Common	Junior	4×100
Ally Padilla	Berthoud	Junior	4×800
Emaleigh Papierski	Moffat County	Senior	4×200
Andie Rasmussen	Eaton	Freshman	Sprint medley
Aaliyah Robinson	Jefferson Academy	Senior	Long jump
Madison Robson	Eaton	Sophomore	Sprint medley
Sadie Smilanich	Moffat County	Sophomore	4×200
Natalie Smythe	Coal Ridge	Junior	4×400
Alexandria Tice	Lamar	Junior	Shot put, discus
Allyson Weichel	Eaton	Junior	Sprint medley
Jaycee Williams	Berthoud	Freshman	4×800
Anna Willis	The Classical Academy	Freshman	Pole vault
Katie Wrona	Liberty Common	Junior	4×100

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Class 2A

Athlete of the year: Eboselulu Omofoma, Dayspring Christian

Coach of the year: Kirby Henderson, Cedaredge

First Team
Name	School	Year	Event(s)
Ellison Black	Cedaredge	Senior	4×400
Jordan Burnett	South Park	Senior	200m, 400m
Isabel Case	Colorado Springs Christian	Junior	800m
Spencer Cheek	Wray	Senior	4×800
Eowyn Dalbec	Peyton	Junior	1,600m
Mayra Diaz	Wray	Junior	4×800
Aspen Furubotten	Cedaredge	Senior	4×100, 4×400
Karley Godsey	Wray	Junior	4×800
Madison Godsey	Wray	Senior	4×800
Hannah Grover	Platte Canyon	Junior	Pole vault
Baylee Harris	Cedaredge	Senior	4×100, 4×200, sprint medley
Kammie Henderson	Cedaredge	Senior	4×200
Lauren Herman	Holyoke	Junior	Discus
Mikayla Hutchison	Banning Lewis	Senior	100m
Megan Jenkins	Cedaredge	Junior	300 hurdles, 4×400
Correy Koellner	Holyoke	Junior	Shot put
Kimmy Milholland	Cedaredge	Senior	4×100, sprint medley
Bailey Nelson	Cedaredge	Junior	4×100, 4×200, sprint medley
Eboselulu Omofoma	Dayspring Christian	Freshman	100 hurdles, high jump
Alison Rajzer	Hayden	Junior	Triple jump
Zaila Smith	Buena Vista	Sophomore	3,200m
Kylee Terry	Cedaredge	Sophomore	4×200, 4×400, sprint medley
Hannah Turpin	St. Mary’s	Sophomore	Long jump

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Class 1A

Athlete of the year: Alivia Weathers, Lone Star

Coach of the year: Joe Packard, Heritage Christian

First Team
Name	School	Year	Event(s)
Payton Arbuthnot	Springfield	Senior	4×200, sprint medley
Taysa Conger	Merino	Junior	400m, 4×400
Aliyah Engle	Haxtun	Sophomore	4×100
Tobi Erickson	Merino	Sophomore	4×400
Cassidy Goddard	Haxtun	Freshman	4×100
Maggie Haase	Eads	Sophomore	High jump
Avery Hughes	Heritage Christian	Sophomore	4×800
Olivia Lay	Elbert	Senior	Discus
Lainee Leathers	Springfield	Freshman	4×200, sprint medley
Juliana Lundy	Heritage Christian	Freshman	4×800
Alayah Meltabarger	Springfield	Junior	4×200, sprint medley
Avery Palmgren	Sangre de Cristo	Senior	100m, 200m, long jump
Lily Ryles	Merino	Junior	4×400
Taylor Schram	Haxtun	Junior	4×100
Sophia Schuemann	Heritage Christian	Senior	4×800
Ainsley Stanton	Heritage Christian	Freshman	1,600m, 3,200m, 4×800
Colby Stoker	Eads	Senior	Shot put
Allie Thompson	Haxtun	Junior	4×100
Amanda Thorpe	Merino	Junior	4×400
Alivia Weathers	Lone Star	Junior	100 hurdles, 300 hurdles, pole vault, triple jump
Brakelle Westphal	Springfield	Sophomore	800m, 4×200, sprint medley

LAKEWOOD – A steady rain forced Taylor James to rush in packing up her belongings on the infield at Jefferson County Stadium on Saturday afternoon, and it caused her to get soaked as she conducted post-race interviews.

The moisture did not, however, dampen her spirits as the Niwot senior closed one of the most remarkable track and field careers in Colorado history.

James won two more state titles on Saturday, leading Niwot to one of the most dominating team performances in state history.

“That hasn’t quite sunken in yet,” she said of knowing her high school career has come to a close. “Definitely I’m gonna miss the state meet, Jeffco Stadium, the crowd and what an amazing meet the organizers put on. It’s tough for sure, but I’ve still got things to look forward to.”

The Stanford-bound star has a bright future, but put together another memorable performance this weekend.

On Saturday, James won the 200-meter dash (24.61 seconds), the 400-meter dash (54.69) and anchored the Cougars to a win in the 400-meter relay (48.30). She helped them to a win and meet record in the 800-meter relay on Friday.

James closed her three-year career (she didn’t get a 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic) with 10 state titles in the 12 events she competed. She placed first in the last nine state events she ran, including going 4-for-4 in 2019 and this year.

James ranks not only among the greatest in Niwot history – along with Griffin Matthew, Elise Cranny and others – but in state history.

“Yeah, it’s definitely very exciting,” she said. “I do try to take time to reflect a little bit. Sometimes I can be a little hard on myself, so I try to think back to a lot of my best races and I love the feeling of coming across the line first for sure. I’m a very competitive person in nature. But my goal orientation is always about what my team wants me to do.”

With James leading the way, the Cougars scored a stunning 183 team points to beat second-place Mullen (48) by 135.

In addition to James on Saturday, the Cougars got an individual title from sophomore Kimora Northrup in the 300 hurdles (43.78 seconds) and two more championships in relays. Niwot won the 400 relay and 1,600 relay on Saturday, completing a sweep of the five girls relays.

Niwot won its second consecutive team title after finishing as runner-up in James’ freshman year, 2018.

“It means everything,” James said of the team crown. “All these girls have been working so hard, battling their own battles, but yet coming to practice every single day for their teammates. I’m so excited to stand on the podium with all of them because I’m so proud of them. I know the coaches are proud of them. As a team leader, appointed team captain, it means a lot to see them all kind of grow and mature and everybody running so well.”

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Class 5A

When this season began, Valor Christian senior Camille Peisner wasn’t sure she’d make it to the state meet. On Saturday, she was a three-time champion.

Peisner won the 100 meters with a time of 11.88 seconds and then narrowly won the 200 meters in 23.92 seconds. Denver East’s Kyairra Reigh was just .01 of a second behind Peisner.

“It’s so exciting,” said Peisner, who added a second-place finish in the 400 meters and helped the Eagles to a victory in the 1,600-meter relay (3:52.92 seconds). “This was a comeback season for me. I started in the hospital, so I was just surprised to get the (100 and 200) and I can’t complain about the 400.”

Peisner got appendicitis this spring and then had some complications that kept her in the hospital for about five days.

“At that point I was like, ‘Hopefully I can even make it to the state track meet,’” she said. “I’m just thankful to be here let alone get the win.”

Peisner, who won three relay titles with the Eagles earlier in her career, was runner-up in the 400 in 2019 and third in the 200. Her performance this weekend, however, helped Valor Christian to the team title, with 130.50 points (Grandview was second, with 83.5).

“I don’t know about other teams, but last year with the COVID season, we were still working out on our own every day, whether if it was in our garage or driveways or something like that,” she said. “Coming back and seeing all that work come to fruition is really rewarding.”

Cherry Creek junior Riley Stewart capped a remarkable weekend with a victory in the 1,600 meters. Stewart, who set the Colorado prep record with a time of 4:44.13 earlier this year, came up just short of that mark, but did establish a new 5A state meet record, crossing the line in 4:45.96.

Stewart swept her three individual races this weekend, also taking titles in the 800 meters and 3,200 meters. In addition, she helped the Bruins to a win in the 3,200-meter relay.

“It’s amazing,” Stewart said. “The whole weekend has been so fun and to finish it on this high note, I’m so excited.

While Reigh lost the 200 meter final to Peisner, the Denver East star did win the 400 meters, in a time of 53.27 seconds. She also helped the Angels win the 400-meter relay, in 47.72 seconds.

In other events Saturday, Overland senior Zeaniah Wedgeworth won the 100-meter hurdles (14.36); Valor Christian junior Kylie Bahr won the 300 hurdles (42.93); Loveland junior Kajsa Borrman won the discus (145-10); and freshman Lilly Nichols of Broomfield won the pole vault (12-0).

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Class 4A

While James and Niwot dominated the team race, Mullen had a great meet, as well. The Mustangs finished second in the team race, led by junior Agur Dwol and senior Kaleah Ruff.

Dwol, who won the long jump on Thursday, easily won the triple jump on Saturday with a leap of 40 feet, 9 inches. Ruff was beaten out by James in the 200, but won the 100 meters, in 12.03 seconds. She lost the 100 meters by .03 of a second in 2019.

“It was well deserved,” Ruff said of the first state title of her career. “I’ve been working for two years to run a good time and to win state, so it felt really nice.”

Ruff said the strong team showing meant a lot because the Mustangs didn’t bring a large contingent to Jeffco Stadium.

“It’s been really amazing because we only have seven girls right now at state compared to most schools,” she said. “I love all my girls and we’re doing the very best we can, putting 100 percent into our races and we’re seeing good results from it.”

Also on Saturday, Bethany Michalak of Air Academy won the 1,600 (4:55.01) by just .07 of a second over Niwot’s Lucca Fulkerson; and Sand Creek senior Jahzara Davis won the 100 hurdles (14.62).

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Class 3A

Coal Ridge won the first team title in its history, outlasting Liberty Common, 111-80. And, it was junior Peyton Garrison who was the star for the Titans.

Garrison swept the sprints, winning in the 100 meters (12.38 seconds), 200 (25.02) and 400 (56.23). She also capped her day by helping the Titans win the 1,600-meter relay in 4:01.78.

“It’s exciting. It really is,” she said after winning her three sprints. “My freshman year I didn’t win and I thought I was going to, but I came in this year a little more confident. I’m proud of where I came.”

In 2019, Garrison was third in the 200 and fourth in the 100.

“My times have been increasing ever since freshman year and I’ve been working really hard to get where I am,” she said.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Logan Haugestuen of Liberty Common won the 100 hurdles in 15.9 seconds and helped her team win the 400-meter relay (48.98); Alexandria Tice of Lamar won the discus (125-0); Basalt’s Katelyn Maley won the 1,600 meters (5:01.10); Holy Family’s Skylar Hawk won the 300 hurdles (46.05); and Sterling’s Valarie Allen won the triple jump (36-6).

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Class 2A

Despite some sore legs on Friday, South Park senior Jordan Burnett made sure the final meet of her prep career was a memorable one.

On Saturday, she won the 200 meters (25.29 seconds) and the 400 meters (56.91) for the first state titles of her career. She also finished second in the 100 meters, behind Mikayla Hutchison of Banning Lewis. Hutchison had a time of 12.53, while Burnett was 0.09 behind.

“It was so much fun,” Burnett said. “It was great. I didn’t know what to expect. My legs were a little sore yesterday even, so today I was just like it’s for fun; we’re just going to go out and give it everything we’ve got and it was so much fun.”

Cedaredge won the team title, 87-53 over second-place Banning Lewis Academy.

The Bruins dominated all weekend in relays and won two more on Saturday, taking the 400 relay (52.17) and the 1,600 relay (4:13.43). Megan Jenkins also won a title in the 300 hurdles (46.20)

Dayspring Christian freshman Eboselulu Omofoma was a two-time champion. After winning the high jump on Thursday, she came and won the 100 hurdles on Saturday (15.41 seconds).

In other Saturday finals, Peyton’s Eowyn Dalbec won the 1,600 meters (5:24.65); Holyoke’s Correy Koellner won the shot put (38-8.25); and Hannah Turpin of St. Mary’s won the long jump (16-11.75).

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Class 1A

Heritage Christian cruised to the team title – the third in program history and first since 2016 – and freshman Ainsley Stanton played a starring role.

On Saturday, Stanton easily won the 1,600 meters, her time of 5:4377 beating the field by nearly six seconds. It was the third title in three events this weekend for the freshman, who also won the 3,200 meters and helped the Eagles win the 3200 relay.

“I’m really excited,” Stanton said. “I wasn’t really expecting it. The mile was the one I was most nervous for. I’m pumped.”

Adding a team title made the weekend even sweeter.

“It’s amazing,” Stanton said. “My team is great and I think we’ve worked really hard for it.”

Individually, nobody had a better meet in Class 1A than Alivia Weathers of Lone Star. The junior went 4-for-4 on the weekend, including a pair of titles on Saturday in the 100 hurdles (16.5 seconds) and the 300 hurdles (48.15). She also won the pole vault and triple jump.

Sangre de Cristo senior Avery Palmgren had a big day, winning three individual state titles. She started her day with a leap of 17 feet, 1.75 inches to win the long jump. Then, she cruised to the win in the 100 meters (13.14 seconds) and added a title in the 200 meters (27.24)

Other champions on Saturday included Eads senior Colby Stoker in the shot put (38 feet, 2 inches); Merino junior Taysa Conger in the 400 meters (1:01.91); Haxtun won the 400-meter relay (54.04); and Merino won the 1,600 relay (4:23.96).

LAKEWOOD – Harrison Witt had already made history this year, so his primary goal on Saturday at Jefferson County Stadium was a win.

With exceptional competition by his side, however, history accompanied victory.

Mountain Vista’s outstanding senior won the Class 5A boys 1,600-meter title at the state meet with a Colorado prep record time of 4 minutes, 4.36 seconds. He topped his own record of 4:05.18 set earlier this year.

Rather than a record, Witt’s main focus was to beat Cherry Creek’s Parker Wolfe, who is also one of the best distance runners in state history. Wolfe finished in 4:10.09, which would have been a 5A state meet record had it not been for Witt’s performance.

“I just set out to go for the win,” Witt said. “I think (the record) comes with it when we both race as hard as we can. Parker is obviously an insane competitor and he took a lot of that race, but the records just come with it when we push ourselves to run hard.”

Wolfe set the pace for the first two laps, with Witt just a few feet behind him. With about 500 meters to go, however, Witt began to sprint and he didn’t stop until he cross the finish line.

“I just wanted to try to hang (with Wolfe) and make it a sprint race, which I think I can handle,” he said. “The last 100 I was like, ‘Just get me to the finish,’ but the first three laps felt very, very strong.”

Witt also set a 5A meet record in the 800 meters (1:48.75) on Friday, putting a cap on his career before going to Princeton.

“It was just a great feeling. It’s very exciting,” he said of his final prep meet. “It’s incredible. A great way to end the season for sure.”

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Class 5A

When this season began, Grandview didn’t view itself as the type of team to win a state title. The Wolves showed championship potential throughout the year, however, and on Saturday claimed the first boys team title in program history, 78.5 to 57 over second-place Cherry Creek.

“We’re just a whole bunch of football players that had nothing to do,” said junior Malique Singleton. “We have a whole bunch of kids that just came out for fun and we just started going to meets, started winning and we’re like, ‘Oh we could actually win it.’”

The Wolves did it on the strength of their relays. Singleton helped the Wolves win the 800-meter relay on Friday and finish seventh in the 1,600 relay on Saturday. Grandview added a first-place finish in the 400-meter relay on Saturday (41.96 seconds).

“I think the relays mean more to us because we’re just friends and we’re a team and we can rely on each other and we’re really good at doing that,” Singleton said.

The junior added that the Wolves were inspired by their head coach, John Reyes.

“The other part of it is it just means so much to our head coach, John Reyes,” he said. “He puts all of his time and dedication in it, so for us to see him realize that he’s finally brought a state title here to Grandview, at least for me personally that meant the most.”

With  many of the Wolves being underclassmen, they are already looking ahead to 2022.

“We have the depth to go do it again; we just have to work at it and go for it,” Singleton said.

In the sprints, there wasn’t any one runner who was dominant. In fact, the wealth was spread among many on Saturday.

Sterling Brassfield of Eaglecrest won the 100 meters (10.63); D’Andre Barnes of Regis Jesuit won the 200 meters (21.69); and Ky Oday of Cherry Creek won the 400 meters (48.00).

In other 5A finals on Saturday, Gregory Anderson of Far Northeast won the 110 hurdles (14.14); Michael Bennett of Lakewood won the 300 hurdles (37.35); Garrett Searls of Horizon won the pole vault (14-9); Rangeview won the 1,600-meter relay (3:21.51); and Braiden Dishman of Fossil Ridge won the discus (167 feet, 2 inches) to sweep the throws.

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Class 4A

Thomas Jefferson senior Avery Shunneson closed his career by sweeping the throws. On Saturday, he won the shot put (54-8) to go with the discus title he won Thursday.

“It’s very exciting. The perfect finish for sure,” he said.

The Princeton-bound Shunneson didn’t get a meet record in the shot, as he did Thursday in the discus, but that didn’t bother him. From the time he finished third in the discus in 2019, he had been aiming to win – and he did it twice this week.

“It means everything,” he said. “It’s been a goal for a long time. Obviously everyone struggled with not being able to compete last year, so to finish both (events) on top feels really good.”

For the second state meet in a row, Niwot came away with the team title, 90-59 over cross-town rival Longmont.

The Cougars were led Saturday by Zane Bergen claiming his third individual title of the weekend, posting a 4A meet record in the 1,600 meters (4:09.51). He won the 800 and 3,200 earlier in the meet.

Frederick’s Ryan Chacon, fully cleared within the last two weeks after a knee injury during basketball season, capped a remarkable comeback by winning the 200 meters (21.96) and leading the Warriors to a win in the 1,600 relay (3:23.78). Both were school records and gave Frederick its first event championships, regardless of gender, since 2006. Chacon was also second in the 400 and fourth in the 100.

Longmont’s Eddie Kurjak capped his weekend with another win, this time in the triple jump (45-5.75). He set a meet record in the high jump on Friday and was also second in the long jump this weekend.

In other 4A finals on Saturday, Brian Rose of Discovery Canyon won the 110 hurdles (14.75); Braylon Fenderson of Riverdale Ridge won the 100 meters (10.96); Justin Blaton of Grand Junction Central won the 400 (47.84); Derek Allen of Widefield won the 300 hurdles (38.73); and Cheyenne Mountain won the 400-meter relay (43.14).

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Class 3A

There were times this season that Peak to Peak senior Aidan Graziano didn’t think he could win a state title. He kept chugging along, however, and on Saturday closed his career as the champion in the 110-meter hurdles (15.05 seconds).

“After a season of putting in the work and times where I didn’t feel motivated, you’ve just got to keep putting in that work,” he said. “When it all pays off with a state title, it’s such a great feeling.

“I’ve been wanting a state title for as long as I can remember and here we are.”

The team title came down to the wire, with Resurrection Christian outlasting The Classical Academy, 73-71. The Cougars trailed going into the final event of the day, the 1,600-meter relay, but won that race with a time of 3:24.91, while The Classical Academy was sixth.

Alamosa’s Joshua Medina finished as a three-time champ, winning a thriller in the 1,600 meters and posting a time of 4:20.47. He also won the 800 and 3,200 this weekend.

Other champions on Saturday included Logan Hafey of Moffat County in the 300 hurdles (39.26); Brayden Savage of Frontier Academy in the 100 meters (10.81); Drew Morton of The Classical Academy in the 400 meters (50.01); Devyn Lauer of Platte Valley in the 200 (21.94); Woodland Park’s Sonny Ciccarelli in the high jump (6-8); and Lutheran in the 400-meter relay (42.90).

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Class 2A

Earlier this season, Yuma junior Clay Robinson posted a time of 22.16 seconds in the 200 meters that would have been good enough to beat the 2A state meet record – except it wasn’t in the state meet.

On Saturday, he thought he finally got the mark, winning the state title in 22.17. The record is 22.23 by Mike Carl in 2009.

“It’s awesome,” Robinson said. “I broke it earlier in the season, but they told me I had to wait for the state event, so I waited and I got it and I’m pretty pleased with that.”

Unfortunately for Robinson, it was later determined his time was wind-aided, so Carl will keep the record, but Robinson is still a champion, in many ways. He also won the 100 meters (11.87) and helped Yuma to the team title, 76 to 48.5 over second-place Lake County.

“It was awesome,” he said of his individual titles. “I came out and I just wanted the win and did whatever it took to win. I’m happy.”

Robinson was also third in long jump and was pleased to see Yuma win for the first time since its only other team title in 1996.

“We haven’t won a team title in like 25 years,” he said. “That would be something special for Yuma. Our boys team is pretty legit and we’re fast and we kept it and we want this title.”

Crested Butte’s Connor Williams is going home a two-time champ, as well. On Saturday, he won the 1,600 meters in 4:19.99. He won the 800 on Friday.

Centauri’s Mason Claunch won the 400 meters (49.70) and helped his team to a win in the 400 relay (44.62). He also helped them win the 800 relay on Friday.

In other Saturday finals: Lake County’s Anthony Martinez won the 110 hurdles (15.44); Blaine Pebbles of Hotchkiss won the 300 hurdles (40.04); Nathan Freeman of Dayspring Christian won the long jump (20-11.5); Nate Early of Banning Lewis won the high  jump (6-1); and Ouray won the 1,600-meter relay (3:30.88).

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Class 1A

Sophomore Jacob Jefferson of Arrickaree/Woodlin had a sensational first career state meet, claiming a pair of state titles on Saturday. He won the 110 hurdles in 16.24 seconds and the 400 meters in 52.49 seconds.

In his first high school track season, Jefferson said his main goals were to get a couple school records and, “That’s what I did today.”

One of them had particularly special meaning.

“I got the 400 and the 110s, which is a really big deal to my family because my family has run the 110s since, I think, my mom,” he said.

In fact, his older brother, Joseph, held the school record before Jacob broke it on Saturday.

Heritage Christian cruised to the team title, 141 to 79.5 over DeBeque, and the Eagles did so on the strength of its depth, as they did not win any event titles on Saturday.

DeBeque, meanwhile, won several titles on the final day of the meet. The Dragons were led by senior Wesley Ryan, who won the 100 meters in 11.52 seconds and the high jump with a leap of 6 feet, 6 inches. Junior Trevor Lewis also won a title for the Dragons, taking the 1,600 meters in 4:36.14.

Lone Star senior Brady Kuntz closed his career with a 1A meet record in the pole vault with a leap of 13 feet, 6.5 inches.

Other champions on Saturday included Josh Duran of Antonito in the 300 hurdles (41.29); Haxtun in the 400 relay (46.20); and Cade Mitchek of Cheyenne Wells in the 200 meters (23.10), and helping the Tigers to a win in the 1,600-meter relay (3:40.25).

Nic Olney is up for his latest challenge as a football coach. He led St. Mary’s to the playoffs in 2014 then served on staff at Liberty in 2015 before taking the head job at Widefield.

He coached the Gladiators for three years before stepping away. But now he’s found his new home as he’s been hired as the first football coach at Banning Lewis. His new challenge is building a program from the ground up, something he has always wanted to take on.

This challenge, however, is unique. In an uncertain time, he has to navigate his way through a spring and offseason clamped down with limitations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

But he won’t be deterred. He’s using the avenues he can to keep his kids in shape and get them education on how he expects them to play.

The off-field stuff that comes with building a new program?

That’s the part he’s looking most forward to.

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Question: What was the main appeal in taking on a program coming into its infancy?

Olney: Just that. Starting out, I consulted with a lot of my coaching mentors and buddies and them what would it be like to do this? A lot of them just kept saying the same thing. Go do it. You’re going to do a good job at it. And it’s one of those things where you get to do everything. You get to pick the jerseys, you get to pick the helmets you get to go through and help, everything from, we don’t really have a home stadium, so help make the home stadium work and really just start everything from scratch. So that was definitely the biggest thing for me.

Q: How much motivation do you have to have from beyond just an X’s and O’s football standpoint to really embrace that kind of challenge?

Olney: I have a strong, strong passion for coaching and seeing kids succeed. So I think that the motivation is just naturally there. Anybody that can do what they love and have a passion to do. Seeing kids succeed and coaching high school football, there was no need for the motivation. It was already there.

Q: What did you miss the most about coaching since you had stepped down at Widefield?

Olney: The kids. I stepped out of teaching this year too and it’s hands down the kids. Scoring touchdowns and winning football games are great, but, I missed working with the kids and the relationships that you build with the kids, the parents, the administrators, the other coaches.

Q: You’ve coached both small school football and medium to big sized school football. What challenges that you’ve learned from, from each aspect of that is going to help you not just get this program off the ground, but grow the program into one that you were hoping is going to be successful?

Olney: I think with being a smaller school, it causes for a lot less kids, which usually causes a lot less problems on and off the field. But the biggest thing is if you’re at a Widefield, you know, anytime you face a Pine Creek, you’re going to see 15 different formations and three different types of defenses. Whereas at the 1A level where we’re starting out, I don’t plan on seeing that. I’m thinking that things are going to be a lot less complex. A Cover-3 teams is going to run a Cover-3 most of the game. They might trick us up here a little bit and run some Cover-2. But for the most part, you know, what you see is what you get.

Q: This isn’t an ideal time to take a new job as a football coach…

Olney: Yeah, definitely.

Q: What are the challenges you’re seeing given the current global situation and how are you navigating yourself through all that?

Olney: Well, you’re exactly right. I didn’t really think of it until now, but the biggest issue is hands down, not being able to work with the kids. Football is truly a year-round sport, no matter what level that you’re at. And not being able to work with the kids and see the kids right now is definitely a killer. Not being able to get in the weight room, but the main thing is not being able to install our culture, which we want to build there, and all the offseason stuff just as well as introducing the offense and introducing the defense and what kind of special teams we’re going to run.

Up until CHSAA sent out that email recently, I was really just sitting around twiddling my thumbs when it comes to it because it couldn’t have contact with the kids. We couldn’t be in the building or anything. So I haven’t been able to do a whole lot to be honest with you. So that kind of puts us way behind the 8-ball for sure.

Q: Are you able to get on and video conference with the kids and give them some general workout ideas, film to study, anything that can potentially keep them as much up to date as you can with the limitations?

Olney: I was able to get with the kids for about two and a half weeks after I got hired on, before we got put on hold. I left them with a couple of things. We need to make sure that we’re staying active and working out as best we can because at that point we didn’t know that we couldn’t get into weight rooms either. The kids that have been working out with us that weren’t engaging in spring sports, and even those that were, we gave them their offseason workouts. I’m lucky to have a great strength coach on staff and we left them with that. As far as the Zoom meetings, we’re going to start the Zoom meetings next week, the week of May 11th, to start, introducing what we’re going to run on offense and defense and so on.

Q: How much of this Banning Lewis football team is going to have the Nic Olney stamp or are you approaching this build as identifying things program on establishing an identity for Banning Lewis?

Olney: This is definitely going to be an us thing. I’m definitely a transformational coach, I like to get a lot of players involved in this stuff. That’s what’s cool about this. What’s been cool about starting a brand new program is nothing’s in place. There’s are traditions. There’s no specific way that we warm up or anything like that. So being able to start everything from scratch and establish traditions and how we do things is definitely going to be a big thing. Letting the kids decide what we do. It’s my job to guide and be the role model and be the leader. But at the same time, I let the kids decide what we’re going to do.

This fall, three schools will join CHSAA for their initial seasons: Addenbrooke Classical Academy, Banning Lewis Prep, and DSST: Conservatory Green.

With their addition, which was approved by the Legislative Council in April 2019, the CHSAA membership will grow to 363 schools.

Below is a quick introduction to each of the three new schools.

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Addenbrooke Classical Academy

Location: Lakewood

Enrollment: 142

Mascot: Mustangs

Initial sports: Cross country, boys soccer, volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls soccer.

School info: A public K-12 charter school operating under Jeffco Public Schools. It opened in 2013.

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Banning Lewis Prep

Location: Colorado Springs

Enrollment: 337

Mascot: Stallions

Initial Sports: Cross country, football, track, spirit, volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls soccer.

School info: A charter school for grades K-12. It originally opened in 2006, but only opened its high school in 2017. The first graduating class will be the class of 2021.

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DSST: Conservatory Green

Location: Denver

Enrollment: 303

Mascot: Hornets

Initial Sports: Cross country, boys soccer, spirit, volleyball, boys basketball, girls basketball, girls soccer.

School info: A public STEM charter school, which was opened in 2014.

DENVER — Girls lacrosse will add a second classification, following a vote of CHSAA’s Legislative Council on Wednesday.

A proposal, jointly submitted by the Western Slope and Pikes Peak leagues, passed by a majority vote to split the sport’s 58 teams into 5A and 4A classifications.

The move mirrors a split of classes by boys lacrosse ahead of the 2013 season.

Now, the decision on how to split the teams, notably the cut line for enrollment, will need to be decided.

Additionally, the lacrosse committee will need to figure out how to handle its semifinals and championships. Currently, with one class, girls lacrosse holds both rounds at the University of Denver.

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New seeding criteria for football

The football committee will use a new approach towards seeding the 5A-1A playoffs starting with the 2019 season.

A complete breakdown of how it will work is available here, but here are the basics:

• Four data points (the RPI, MaxPreps rankings, Packard rankings, and the CHSAANow coaches poll) will be equally weighted.
• Teams will be ranked according to that data, and seeded accordingly.
• They may be moved one spot based upon head-to-head, and seeds may also be adjusted (Nos. 9-16 in 4A-1A, and Nos. 17-24 in 5A) for geography and to avoid league matchups.

Additionally, with the approval of the football committee report, the 6-man football title game will be Nov. 23 this year, moving it up one week and returning it to a date it had been.

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Board of Directors

• Troy Baker will be CHSAA’s new president.
• Rick Macias, an at large member, is moving off the board. His replacement has not yet been named.
• Rick Mondt (representing District 3) will be replaced by Steve Longwell, Eaton athletic director.
• Angie Sanders (representing District 4) will be replaced by Nate Smith, Englewood athletic director.
• Jim Lucas (representing CASE) will be replaced by Ryan West, Englewood principal.

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Notables:

• Three schools were officially approved for new membership: Addenbrooke Classical Academy (Lakewood), Banning Lewis Preparatory Academy (Colorado Springs), and DSST: Conservatory Green (Denver).
• A proposal that would have created a 6A classification in football was voted down.
• Soccer will have a game minimum requirement in order to make the 2A playoffs: 12 games, 10 of which must be against NFHS schools.
• Soccer is changing its officiating system to a diagonal system of control (one center ref, and two assistants), which is pretty much standard across the board in the sport at all levels.
• Softball will use a double bag at first base. The sport has also changed its mercy rule, and games will now end if a team is up by: 15 runs after 3 innings, 12 after 4, or 10 after 5.
• Swimmers will now be required to compete in a minimum of six high school meets to qualify for the state competition.
• Volleyball’s default regional day will be a Saturday, if the schools can’t agree. Also, the new tri-color volleyball (red, white and blue) was approved to be used during the postseason.
• A school’s prior year out-of-building student percentage on rosters can be used as part of the criteria to classify schools going forward.
• Co-op sports programs between schools will now be on a two-year basis, changing from the current one-year period.
• Sunday competition, out of season, will be allowed for teams and participants at national events, if sponsored by the NFHS and/or approved by the CHSAA office.
• The 2019 state cross country championship will be Oct. 26.
• Field hockey created a mercy rule for regular season play: A five-goal differential would create a running clock; a six-goal differential causes the winning team to remove a player; a seven-goal differential caused the same team to remove a second play; an eight-goal differential causes the removal of a third player. If the losing team cuts into the margin after a player has been removed, a team may substitute a player back in.