Preps: Local track and field athletes shine at Eagle Valley Invitational
Track Notes
Saturday was a perfect day for track and field, and local athletes capitalized at the Eagle Valley Invitational in Gypsum, claiming multiple event wins.
Ian Pennington earned points in the field for the Devils, winning the pole vault (12 feet, ) inches) over Lake County’s Jace Peters (11’6″), who placed in the top three in the 1600 meters, 800, and pole vault for an unconventional triple. Patrick Friery vaulted 11 feet to place third in the event for Battle Mountain. Eagle Valley’s vault crew swept its home meet, with Freshman Kenzie Cosper scoring 10 points for the host team with her win (9’0″).
Jake Drever was a workhorse on the track, cruising to an impressive finishing time of 4 minutes, 35.96 seconds to defeat Peters by 13 seconds in the 1600-meter run before coming back to run a solo effort 10:11 3200-meter run, winning by over 80 seconds.
Eagle Valley freshman sensation Zakia Shreeve lived up to the hype in the 100-meter dash, running 13.20 to place second, with Battle Mountain’s Tabi Schroeder coming in third in 13.78.
Shreeve was busy in the field as well, placing fourth (15’2.5″) in the long jump, an event that saw three local athletes place in the top four, led by Battle Mountain’s Tyler Heimerl’s second place (15’11”) and Yanitza Carbajal’s third place (15’8″). Carbajal was also second in the triple jump (34’4″).
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On the track, the Devils went 1-2 in the 1600-meter run, with Samantha Blair running 5:30.19 for the win and Jordan Neifert coming through in 5:40.34. Neifert came back to place second in the 800-meter run (2:33.18) while Blair returned for the 300-meter hurdles to place fourth. Kira Hower ran to a second-place finish in the 3200-meter run for the Huskies.
Baseball notes
Battle Mountain swept a doubleheader against Glenwood Springs Saturday, winning 13-4 and 7-5, respectively, to move to 6-4.
Tanner Roberts pitched a six-inning shutout in the first game, striking out 12 to earn the win. “Tanner threw another great game,” coach Harrison Stevens stated.
The game was tied 3-3 entering the first extra inning of play when Elijah Morales took over. Morales hit two home runs — including a grand slam — as the Huskies scored 10 runs. A combined pitching effort from Henry Regrut and Sutton Dodds closed things out in the bottom of the eighth inning.
Morales and Vincent Nowicki led the way in game two. Both went 2-for-4 from the plate, with Morales driving in three runs and Nowicki finishing with two RBIs.
“Game two was a back and forth, tough-fought battle,” Stevens said.
The scoring didn’t open up until the final inning, when Battle Mountain scored four runs to go up 7-2. The Demons’ three-run rally ultimately fell short as Franco Moreno finished the game on the mound.
“Overall, great team wins with many players contributing in many different capacities,” stated Stevens.
“I am proud of this group and their ability to overcome adversity. They are committed to our family, truly pull for each other’s success and don’t give up!”
Other prep notes
- Vail Christian girls soccer fell to Front Range Christian 3-0 on Saturday. The Lady Saints (0-3) will continue to search for their first win on Tuesday at home against Grand Valley (4-1).
- Vail Mountain School defeated Denver Christian 5-1 on Saturday to move to 8-1 on the season. The Gore Rangers host Coal Ridge (2-5) at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday before a two-week break. “We just have to manage that,” Bob Bandoni said about the school’s spring vacation.
Bandoni said his team’s leadership group works to hold individual players accountable in terms of maintaining fitness and sharpness over the break.
“There’s a sense of a collective responsibility that not only the team has to itself but to the program and the program’s history,” Bandoni continued in speaking to the program’s rich culture.
“When our players play, they understand that they are playing for athletes who played years and decades before them.”
- Vail Christian’s boys volleyball team earned its program’s first win on Saturday, taking down DSST: Conservatory Green 3-0. Each set went down to the wire, with the Saints winning 27-25, 26-24, and 25-23, respectively, to earn the victory.
- Despite a balanced scoring effort which saw five different Devils score goals, Eagle Valley (4-3) fell 11-6 to Roaring Fork (4-1) on Saturday in girls lacrosse. Sidney Collett scored two goals, with Sienna Rinn, Chloe Turner, Grace Symanski and Reese McCormick also finding the back of the net. Danielle Mandeville had an assist in the loss.
