State track meet preview: Devils and Huskies will send 11 individuals and eight relays to Colorado state meet

The CHSAA state track and field meet begins at 8 a.m. on Thursday at Jeffco Stadium in Lakewood. Eagle Valley will send three individuals and two relay squads and Battle Mountain has qualified eight individuals and six relays.

Eagle Valley

4×400 (Kaden Kraft, Jonathan Boyer, Jake Drever, Kevin Hasley)

Prelim, Friday, 3:35 p.m. (3:28.35, eighth)

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4×800 (Armando Fuentes, Cooper Filmore, Tyler Blair, Daniel Valesco; 8:13.46, ninth)

Final, Thursday, 10:25 a.m.

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The deep Eagle Valley sprint crew just missed the cut in the 4×100 and 4×200, so all the chips are in for the 4×400. The top three in each of Friday’s two heats, plus the next three best times will advance to Saturday’s final. The Devils distance squad is only six seconds away from the third-best seed time; Niwot (7:59.19) is favored to win the 4×800.

Zakia Shreeve, sophomore, Eagle Valley

100-meter hurdles, prelims — Thursday, 10:05 a.m. (16.59, 13th)

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300-meter hurdles, prelims — Friday, 11:20 a.m. (47.36, 8th)

After posting season-best marks at the league championships, head coach Jeff Shroll said of Zakia, “I think it’s really starting to click for her.”

Kenzie Cosper, sophomore, Eagle Valley

Pole vault, Thursday 11:30 a.m. (10-4, seventh)

Cosper was only two inches from the winning boys pole vault at the league championships. Silver Creek’s Megan Kelleghan (13-03) is more than a foot above the field.

Jake Drever, senior, Eagle Valley

800-meter run, Friday, 12:40 p.m. (1:56.58, sixth)

1600-meter run, Saturday, 12:50 p.m. (4:21.12, 10th)

3200-meter run, Thursday, 8:45 p.m. (9:29.02, seventh)

“He will be a force at state,” Eagle Valley distance coach Myriah Blair said after the league meet. “On any given day he can stick his neck out there and vie for one of those top podium spots.”

Battle Mountain

4×100 prelim, Friday, 9:23 a.m., (51.03, 17th) – Angelina Damici, Tabi Schroeder, Kiki Hancock, Marlee Geisler

4×200 prelim, Thursday 9:25 a.m. (1:47.26, seventh) – Angelina Damici, Tabi Schroeder, Kiki Hancock, Marlee Geisler

4×400 prelim, Friday 3:48 p.m. (4:04.92, fifth) – Presley Smith, Kiki , Milaina Almonte, Lindsey Kiehl

4×800 final, Thursday, 10:40 a.m. (9:55.15, sixth) – Milaina Almonte, Addie Beuche, Lindsey Whitton, Lindsey Kiehl

4×800 final, Thursday, 10:25 a.m. (8:23.47, 18th) – Jorge Sinaloa, John McAbee, Adam Labenski, Quinn Thuon

Sprint medley, prelim, Thursday, 8 a.m. (1:49.72, fourth) – Marlee Geisler, Tabi Schroeder, Kiki Hancock, Presley Smith

The Lady Huskies biggest challenge might just be roster and energy management throughout Thursday, Friday and Saturday. At 9:07.27, Niwot is a virtual lock in the 4×800, and the Boulder-running magnet’s 4×400 (3:54.79) will be very tough on the final day as well. The Huskies are the fourth-best in their 4×200 heat and may need the lucky-loser qualification spot to advance to the final. At one point, Battle Mountain had the top sprint medley time in all qualifications, and that event might have the most upset potential, with Windsor (1:47.14) and Niwot (1:49.56) providing the stiffest competition.

Presley Smith, junior Battle Mountain

400-meter dash, prelims — Thursday, 1:08 p.m., (58.59, fourth)

Smith has been chasing the 25-year-old school-record (58.41) all season.

Lindsey Kiehl, junior Battle Mountain

800-meter run, Friday, 12:45 p.m. (2:15.95, fifth)

1600-meter run, Saturday, 1 p.m. (5:11.96, 14th)

Kiehl will be up against nine Niwot athletes, led by Madison Shults top-seeded 2:11.02 in the 800.

Milaina Almonte, senior Battle Mountain

1600-meter run, Saturday, 1 p.m. (5:06.01, seventh)

3200-meter run, Thursday, 9 a.m. (11:12.48, sixth)

Almonte, whom Rob Parish lauded as one of the most consistent elite runners in program history after tripling (800, 1600, 3200) at the league championships, will compete in one of the deeper 1600 and 3200 fields in 4A history. Niwot freshman Addison Ritzenhein — the daughter of Olympian and former American-record holder Dathan Ritzenhein — tops the eight-lap field with a 10:39.25, with Summit’s Ella Hagen close behind at 10:44.17.

Lindsey Whitton, junior, Battle Mountain

3200-meter run, Thursday, 9 a.m. (11:34.13, 16th)

The skiemeister state champion and Vail Christian all-league soccer player will wrap up a busy four-sport — five if you count Alpine and Nordic separately — with eight laps around Jeffco Stadium.

Stella Jackson, senior, Battle Mountain

Pole vault, Thursday 11:30 a.m. (9-09, ninth)

Can Jackson slide into the top eight in her final meet? She currently sits fifth on Battle Mountain’s school record list, with Izze Calabrese’s 11-01.25 from 2015 firmly at the top.

Tyler Heimerl, sophomore, Battle Mountain

Long Jump, Thursday, 8:30 a.m. (17-00.75, 14th)

High Jump, Friday, 10:30 a.m. (5-04, fourth)

Triple Jump, Saturday, 11 a.m. (35-03, ninth)

Heimerl is only three inches from the top-seeded high jumper, Eva Bellot of Green Mountain (5-07). Her triple jump is third-best in Husky history and exactly a foot behind Val Constien’s 2012 school-record.

Will Brunner, junior, Battle Mountain

800-meter run, Friday, 12:40 p.m. (1:55.94, third)

1600-meter run, Saturday, 12:50 p.m. (4:16.96, first)

3200-meter run, Thursday, 8:45 p.m. (9:18.27, third)

Brunner is the school-record holder in the 800, 1600, 3200 and 5000-meter cross-country distances at Battle Mountain. He won two individual events and anchored a winning 4×400-relay at the league championships, proving he has the strength and range to cover multiple events over the course of a weekend, and — most importantly — the finishing speed required to win championship races. After finishing third at state cross-country, could this be the spring he wins his first state title?

Porter Middaugh, junior, Battle Mountain

1600-meter run, Saturday, 12:50 p.m. (4:18.01, fourth)

3200-meter run, Thursday, 8:45 p.m. (9:18.11, second)

Middaugh trails Brunner on the school-record board by hundredths of a second in the 1600, 3200, and 5000, and he was second overall at state cross-country. He has a knack for showing up at the big races, but will have to keep his eye on Nolan Hoffman. The Mead senior had the race of his life to win the 4A state cross-country title and is entered in all three distance events at state.