Fast start for Niwot at state
Cougars net three state titles on first day of competition
LAKEWOOD >> There are those days when the Niwot track team seemingly does everything right.
“We call it, ‘sparkle days,’ when we have a day where it seems like everyone’s just performing at their best,” senior Lexy Bullen said. “So, today is definitely a sparkle day.”
On Thursday, the first day of the state track and field meet at Jefferson County Stadium, the Cougars got off to a great start to what should be a banner weekend.
Bullen and her teammates helped the Cougars win the Class 4A girls 3,200-meter relay, less than two hours after freshman Addison Ritzenhein cruised in the open 3,200-meter run.
Moments before the girls’ relay won, the Niwot boys won the 3,200-meter relay.
“It’s awesome,” said sophomore Kye Toothaker, who anchored the boys’ relay. “You have to set the tone. We are kind of coming into this knowing that to really compete in the team title (for the boys) we have to win, so it’s super nice to be able to set the tone for the rest of the team, just to try and compete for the team title.”
The Niwot girls are aiming for a fourth consecutive team title and kicked it off with Ritzenhein posting a time of 10 minutes, 30.05 seconds to win the 3,200 by more than two seconds over Summit’s Ella Hagen (10:32.23).
Ritzenhein is the third different Niwot runner to win the 3,200 in the past three years.
“There aren’t even like enough words to just express the joy that I see watching my all my teammates win, especially Addy because she’s such a gifted individual — not only on the track, but also just in everything she does,” Bullen said. “She’s an incredibly kind person.
“Everyone on this team is so incredibly close that it feels like her victories are our own.”
Teammates Olivia Alessandrini (third) and Avalon Beltran (fourth) teamed with Ritzenhein to give Niwot 23 team points in that race alone.
Bullen then teamed with Cayden Justice, Kendall Madine and Anna Prok to win the 3,200-meter relay in 9:22.60 — more than 12 seconds ahead of second-place Battle Mountain (9:34.73). Niwot has won that event in the past five state meets.
“It doesn’t even matter if we were seeded first or if we’re seeded last, the nerves are always the same,” Bullen said. “At the end of the day, you just have so many people that are behind you that you just don’t want to let down, especially because we have that expectation of greatness that it’s like you have to fulfill that expectation and uphold that legacy.”
So far, the Cougars off to a good start, including Chloe Mitchell adding a ninth-place finish in the discus to score a point.
The boys are in a good position, too, as they go for a third team title in the past four state meets.
Freshmen Rocco Culpepper and Ryder Keeton and sophomore Carlos Kipkorir helped Toothaker in winning the 3,200 relay in 7:53.36. In the open 3,200, Jeremy Gillett was seventh and Keeton ninth to give Niwot four team points.
“I feel like Niwot is not really a girls’ team and a guys’ team; it’s just a program,” Toothaker said. “Seeing the girls go out and win, we’re kind of used to it because they’re so good, but that also sets the tone for us to kind of strive for how dominant they are.”
Record for Underwood
Mead’s Tavon Underwood is aiming for a huge week, coming in as a toptwo seed in the 4A boys 100, 200, 400 and 800. All of his finals are scheduled for either Friday or Saturday, but he set the tone on Thursday.
In the 200-meter preliminaries, Underwood set a Class 4A state meet record with a time of 20.99 seconds, beating a 10-year record of 21.05. He also had the top prelim times in the 100 and 400.
Also for Mead, senior Marlee Morris placed second in the girls discus with a throw of 130 feet, 2 inches. Geneva Gigi of Palmer Ridge won the event, at 135-9.
The Mavericks placed fifth in the girls 3,200 relay (9:47.31), while Frances Hudson placed eighth in the open 3,200 (11:06.18), beating her personal best by 25.5 seconds. In the boys 3,200, Nolan Hoffman was sixth, in 9:31.32.
Freshman Rylee Klatt also had a good day. She came in seeded 13th and 12th, respectively, in the girls 100 and 200, but qualified for the finals in both events.
Kosanovich fourth
Fairview senior Olivia Kosanovich wasn’t projected to medal in the 5A girls high jump, but a season-best performance got her on the podium.
Kosanovich cleared 5 feet, 3 inches to placed fourth. She came in with a previous season-best of 5-1.
Local teams shine in 5A relay
In the Class 5A boys 3,200-meter relay, three area teams landed on the podium (top nine).
Centaurus led the way with a fourth-place finish, posting a time of 7:55.59 to go below the 8-minute mark for the first time this season. Boulder (8:00.11) was sixth, while Fairview (8:03.83) was ninth. All three teams had their best times of the year.
In the girls 3,200 relay, Boulder was ninth, in 9:36.91.
Raptors pick up medals
Silver Creek senior Megan Kelleghan led her team with a victory in the Class 4A girls pole vault, but she wasn’t the only Raptor to excel Thursday.
Sophomore Michael Fertitta tied for third in the boys pole vault with a season-best vault of 13 feet, 10 inches. Another sophomore, Cloe Ruth, finished seventh in the 4A girls 3,200 meters with a time of 11:03.73 — topping her previous best by 22.2 seconds.
Notable
Erie’s Jackson and Mason Cowgill both finished on the podium for the 5A boys shot put. Jackson was fifth with a throw of 48-11, while Mason was ninth (457). … Longmont’s Ella Pears kick-started a busy weekend with a fourth-place finish in the 4A girls long jump (17 feet, 3.5 inches). The Trojans picked up two other medals, from Ella Augustaitus in the girls discus (sixth) and from Liadan Graham in the girls pole vault (seventh). … Legacy’s Colin Shea was ninth in the 5A boys high jump, at 6-1. … The Niwot girls came in seeded third in the 4A 800-meter relay, but the team was disqualified in the prelims for a zone violation.