The Pagosa Springs High School Pirate track and field team competed in the Abel Velasquez Invitational last weekend.
“Our athletes are competing very well which means that our training programs for all of our different events are effective,” wrote coach Connie O’Donnell in an email to the SUN. “It means that our athletes have bought into our program and are working hard to represent Pagosa Springs well.”
The Pirates headed to Ignacio for their fourth meet of the season on Saturday, April 4.
O’Donnell emphasizes that the weather on Saturday was very ideal for a track meet. The temperature was hovering right around 60 degrees and there was very little wind at the time of the meet.
There were a number of personal records (PRs) at the meet and a majority of the team was able to compete in Ignacio.
O’Donnell notes that there are some athletes dealing with some injuries who were not able to compete in Ignacio.
On the girls’ side, Abigail Foss took third in the girls’ 100-meter dash with a personal best time of 13.73 seconds. Amber Snarr placed fifth with a time of 14.44 seconds. Bentley Briscoe placed ninth with a time of 14.78 seconds. Nevaeh Evans placed 15th with a time of 15.39 seconds. Quinn Howard placed 20th with a time of 16.04 seconds.
Nina Wood placed second in the girls’ 200-meter dash with a personal best time of 28.06 seconds — the fastest time on the team so far this year. Foss placed fourth with another personal best time of 29.06 seconds, Snarr placed eighth with a time of 30.77 seconds, and Clara Kurz placed 12th with a time of 33.02 seconds.
Corinna Galabota placed fourth in the girls’ 400-meter dash with a personal best time of 1:07.26, Avery Book placed fifth with a personal best time of 1:08.44, and Kurz placed seventh with a time of 1:11.41.
“Corinna Galabota and Avery Book ran PRs in the 400 by taking off a couple of seconds each,” wrote O’Donnell. “The 400 is possibly the hardest race in track. People don’t always understand that it is still a sprint, but it’s a long sprint. If you run it correctly, it doesn’t feel very good and it is painful. I’m really proud of our 400 runners this weekend for really putting themselves out there and pushing themselves.”
Mila Miller placed seventh in the girls’ 800-meter run with a time of 3:17.21.
Madi Stretton won the girls’ 1,600-meter run with a personal best time of 6:02.58. Lily DeClark placed fourth with a time of 6:16.28, Lucia Rivera placed sixth with a time of 6:49.80, and Miller placed seventh with a time of 7:02.70.
Stretton also won the girls’ 3,200-meter run with another personal best time of 12:54.80. DeClark placed second with a time of 13:31.12, and Rivera placed third with a time of 13:37.85.
“Madi Stretton had a big day,” wrote O’Donnell. “She ran PRs in the 1600 and 3200 and placed 1st in both races.”
Annaliese Hinger placed seventh in the girls’ 100-meter hurdles with a time of 21.08 seconds.
Hinger also placed sixth in the girls’ 300-meter hurdles with a time of 1:01.29.
The girls’ 4x100-meter relay team placed second with a time of 54.63 seconds.
The girls’ 4x200-meter team won with a time of 1:58.54.
Veda Deitemeyer placed third in the girls’ high jump with a jump of 4 feet, 8 inches.
Wood won the girls’ long jump with a jump of 14-10, Book placed second with a jump of 14-8, Galabota placed sixth with a jump of 13 feet, Howard placed ninth with a jump of 12-3, and Evans placed 10th with a jump of 11-4.
Lexi Campbell placed second in the girls’ triple jump with a total distance of 32-1, Stretton placed fourth with a total distance of 28-8, and Galabota placed fifth with a total distance of 28 feet.
Malorie Morton won the girls’ discus with a personal best throw of 109-10. Liana Vega placed second with a throw of 93-7, Paisley Lister placed eighth with a throw of 63-4, Raleigh Iverson placed 13th with a throw of 60-5, and Charlie Barraza-Haymaker placed 21st with a throw of 46-9.
Vega placed second in the girls’ shot put with a throw of 28-11, Morton placed third with a throw of 27-1, Lister placed fifth with a throw of 24-9, Iverson placed eighth with a throw of 22-6, and Barraza-Haymaker placed 15th with a throw of 18-7.
Three runners turned in personal best times in the boys’ 100.
Jonathan Baker placed eighth with a personal best time of 11.88 seconds, Hudson Mazur placed ninth with a personal best time of 11.92 seconds, and Alex Pacheco placed 10th with a personal best time of 11.96 seconds. Garrett Mote placed 15th with a time of 12.57 seconds, and Cash O’Neal placed 19th with a time of 12.64 seconds.
O’Donnell emphasizes that the three personal best times in the 100 bode really well for the boys’ 4x100 team this season.
Baker placed fourth in the boys’ 200 with another personal best time of 23.77 seconds, and Mazur placed fifth with another personal best time of 24.18 seconds. Mote placed 12th with a time of 26.62 seconds. O’Neal placed 14th with a time of 27.88 seconds.
Jacob Castaneda placed fifth in the boys’ 400 with a personal best time of 55.64 seconds.
Rylan Ash won the boys’ 800 with a personal best time of 2:08.58. Weston Sweet placed seventh with a time of 2:23.08, Kieran Kurz placed ninth with a time of 2:38.16, and Eli Nehring placed 10th with a time of 2:39.20.
Ash also won the boys’ 3,200 with personal best time of 10:19.12. Sweet placed second with a personal best time of 11:13.43, Kieran Kurz placed sixth with a time of 11:59.62, and Nehring placed seventh with a time of 12:43.63.
“Rylan Ash had a great meet,” wrote O’Donnell. “He continues to better his times each week and ran PRs in the 800 and 3200. Weston Sweet is really coming on strong at this point in the season. He ran a PR in the 3200 and you could just see the potential that he carries in racing.”
Jeremiah Jones placed third in the boys’ 110-meter hurdles with a personal best time of 16.17 seconds. Jaycub Carter placed seventh with a time of 19.43 seconds. Jaiden Jones placed eighth with a time of 20.37 seconds.
Jeremiah Jones placed third in the boys’ 300-meter hurdles with a time of 45.35 seconds, Jaiden Jones placed seventh with a time of 51.95 seconds, and Eathon Dang placed ninth with a time of 54.56 seconds.
The boys’ 4x100 relay team won with a time of 45.45 seconds, and the 4x200 team placed fifth with a time of 1:46.10.
Koen Pitcher placed second in the boys’ high jump with a jump of 5-8.
Mazur won the boys’ long jump with a jump of 19-8, Baker placed second with a jump of 17-8, Pacheco placed fourth with a jump of 17 feet, and Carter placed 11th with a jump of 15-6.
Jeremiah Jones won the boys’ triple jump with a total distance of 39-10, Castaneda placed third with a total distance of 35-10, and Pitcher placed 10th with a total distance of 29-11.
Aidan Vega placed fourth in the boys’ discus with a throw of 116-5, Lincoln Butler placed ninth with a throw of 83 feet, South Dozier placed 16th with a throw of 62-7, and James Beaudry placed 18th with a throw of 62 feet.
Emile Schneider won the boys’ shot put with a throw of 39-8, Aidan Vega placed third with a throw of 34-10, Butler placed fourth with a throw of 34-1, Dozier placed 18th with a throw of 24-2, and Beaudry placed 26th with a throw of 18-10.
This weekend, the team will be headed off to Pueblo for the Thunder-Storm Invitational on Saturday, April 11, beginning at 9 a.m.
“We are hoping to have a full team by the end of this week,” wrote O’Donnell. “The Thunder Storm track meet in Pueblo this coming Saturday is a highly competitive meet and we hope that all of our top performers get a chance to compete.”
jsellner@orourkemediagroup.
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