State’s top cross-country runners prepare for Desert Twilight Festival

It’s Desert Twilight Week, and that means the state’s top athletes, as well as out-of-state competitors, will be flocking to Mesa to compete in one of the largest cross-country meets of the season in Arizona.

Friday’s event features a new location at Toka Sticks Golf Course in the southeast Valley, after taking place on the Coyote Run Golf Course at Leisure World last year.

“It’s the original course of Desert Twilight,” co-meet director Jeff Guy said. “We were there for seven years, and when they built a hotel, with all the construction, that’s really why we moved.”

Since then, the Gila River Indian Reservation has taken control over management at Toka Sticks. At last year’s meet at Leisure World, the tribe and the head meet directors, Ellie and Shaun Hardt, were able to come to an agreement to bring the race back to where it all started, Guy said.

The race has become known over the years for producing fast times due to its relatively flat nature.

The state records for 5,000-meters for both boys and girls were set at Desert

Twilight: Gilbert Highland’s Leo Daschbach (14:14.26, 2020) and Phoenix Desert Vista’s Lauren Ping (16:40.40, 2021).

About 6,000 athletes will be featured in the race this year. A total of 248 schools from five states are scheduled to attend.

While all eyes will be on nationally ranked Niwot from Colorado, which is No. 1 in the nation, there are plenty of instate competitors to watch for.

Highland boasts the top boys and girls teams in the state, and it will be a good test for the Hawks to see how deep its squads are.

Here are the top Arizona individual athletes so far in the season heading into

Twilight Week and names to keep an eye on at the meet:

Girls: Taylor Drewry, sophomore, Chandler Basha; Landen LeBlond, senior, Goodyear Millennium; Kimi Cahoon, senior, Phoenix Country Day; Brooklyn Hanania, senior, Phoenix Desert Vista; Camryn Delancey, sophomore, Gilbert Highland.

Boys: Ryan Denhof, senior, Peoria Liberty; Donovan Bitticks, senior, Scottsdale Horizon; Matthew Hamilton, senior, Mesa Red Mountain; Glenn Thomas, senior, Phoenix Northwest Christian; Myles Floyd, senior, Tucson Pusch Ridge Christian Academy.