STATE TRACK AND FIELD
Cleveland freight train continues; Rio Rancho girls also win state, and Academy sweeps in Class 4A
Storm win state for 10th straight full season
Make it a decade straight of dominance for the Cleveland Storm boys track and field program.
The Storm have won the Class 5A state championship every full season since 2016, and they won it again Saturday at the University of New Mexico Track and Field Complex. That鈥檚 10 straight.
For context: These current Cleveland seniors 鈥� and juniors and sophomores 鈥� were in elementary school the last time someone other than the Storm won a blue trophy in the largest division.
鈥淲hen you say it like that, it鈥檚 kind of mind-boggling. We take it year by year and every team is a little different,鈥� Cleveland coach Kenny Henry said.
Cleveland scored 90 points, 21 ahead of La Cueva which has been the Storm鈥檚 most formidable challenger all season. But as was the case at the Harper meet, and again at metros, Cleveland鈥檚 firepower was too much.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e about doing things a certain way,鈥� Henry said. 鈥淭hey work hard for it and they teach the next group and we keep doing it.鈥�
Rio Rancho鈥檚 girls, for the third year in a row, also won state, as the Rams鈥� 81 points were better than second-place Cleveland (56) and third-place Eldorado (50).
鈥淚 really love our team, everyone was willing to give it their all,鈥� said Rio Rancho sophomore Mariah Galbraith, who had a pair of runner-up finishes, in the 3,200-meter and 1,600-meter finals, both to Eldorado sophomore Gianna Rahmer. 鈥淚 think everyone knew there was that really good chance (that we could win state), and we were, like, we might as well push our hardest and try to get it.鈥�
Albuquerque Academy swept the team titles in 4A. The boys scored 91 points, with Artesia 鈥� which enjoyed a strong meet across the board 鈥� second with 74陆 points. Silver (60) was third.
The Academy girls, led by their two alphas, junior sprinter/jumper Grace Erinle and senior distance specialist Anna Hastings, piled up 127 points. Los Alamos (90) and Artesia (36) also earned trophies.
Erinle, with 30陆 points, was 4A鈥檚 high-point athlete. She and Hastings combined for 51陆 points on their own.
In her final prep meet before she leaves for the East Coast and Brown of the Ivy League, Hastings edged Grants鈥� Laila Martinez and Hope Christian鈥檚 Claire DeFoy in the 800-meter final (2:14.64), and Hastings completed the distance sweep a bit later with a victory in the 1,600 (5:02.57).
Erinle, New Mexico鈥檚 most polished girls鈥� track and field athlete, added the triple jump title (38-11录) to her win Friday in the long jump, and she also was the 100-meter champion (12.04 seconds). She broke state records Friday in the long jump and the 100, in prelims.
On Saturday, Erinle also won the 200 (24.98) ahead of Belen鈥檚 Sophia Cox, who would become the state champion in the 400 (55.92).
鈥淪printing and jumping, they have my heart,鈥� Erinle said, smiling. She then giggled as she added, 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a good couple of days.鈥�
Rahmer did a double three-peat this weekend, adding the 1,600-meter title in 5:07.33 to her victory Friday in the 3,200.
The boys鈥� 100-meter final went as expected, with Sandia鈥檚 Chigekwu 鈥淐hewy鈥� Nwagbo (10.67, slightly off his state record time of 10.47 on Friday in prelims) winning the 5A division.
St. Pius junior Hershul Olloway (10.81) won the 4A 100 in impressive fashion. The Sartans, in fact, went 1-2-3 in the 100 with Curtis Flakes III and Zachary Katz.
Olloway (21.80) and Flakes also went 1-2 in the 200-meter final.
鈥淎 true testament to the hard work we do,鈥� said Olloway, who was 4A鈥檚 high-point boys athlete (16陆). Of Flakes, also his running mate in football, he added, 鈥淚 do my best to push him, and he does his best to push me.鈥�
The Class 5A girls meet saw an exciting sprint star emerge in Clovis freshman Syrianna Raphiel, who was the 100-meter champion (12.04 seconds) and later the winner in the 400 (55.56). She nearly added the 200, but was edged at the line by Albuquerque High鈥檚 Anayjah Garza (24.99-25.01).
Garza and the Bulldogs had a nice afternoon at UNM.
Amin Cooper (48.00) won the boys 400, and Adelyn Harper (2:15.98), for the second straight year, won the girls 800 as she ran down Eldorado鈥檚 Sylvie Hadley.
鈥淚 caught her at the 100 and she tried to stay with me, so I just gave it my all,鈥� Harper said. 鈥淚 feel like my kick is one of my strongest aspects. The last 200, I try to think of it as a whole new race.鈥�
Cooper also was runner-up in the 100, a race in which Atrisco Heritage鈥檚 Isreal Nickols fancied his chances, but he false-started and was DQ鈥檇. His consolation was coming back hours later, near the end of the program, to take the 200-meter final (21.51), just in front of Nwagbo.
鈥淚t was a hard day. I had to pick my head up,鈥� Nickols said of his DQ. But he clearly was looking at the bright side.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a hundred meters extra!鈥� he said, smiling. 鈥淪o that鈥檚 better, I feel like.鈥�
The most thrilling finish of the weekend occurred in the boys 800-meter final.
Junior Alejandro Casaus of Rio Rancho weaved his way through the pack in the middle of the race, and he and sophomore Daxton Coombs of Organ Mountain were running stride for stride over the final 50 meters.
Both leaned so hard that they each fell down and hit the track hard as they crossed the finish line. Both were sprawled out, face down. On the scoreboard, the results were posted.
Casaus: 1 minute, 54.65 seconds.
Coombs: 1 minute, 54.66 seconds.
鈥淭hat was my first ever time diving at the line,鈥� a bruised but pleased Casaus said. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 really planning it, it just happened.鈥�
Later, he got some medical treatment for a strawberry on his right elbow.
鈥淚t was amazing racing,鈥� Casaus said in the medical tent. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 wait to see the finish on video later.鈥�
The field events were largely uneventful, with one notable exception. That was Mayfield senior Miles Odom, who broke the Class 5A state record 鈥� but not the overall New Mexico state record 鈥� in the pole vault, soaring 16 feet, 7 inches.
His was the only individual state record established on Saturday. The same could not be said for the relays, where records fell throughout the day.
La Cueva鈥檚 boys came out early and set the 400-meter relay mark, in 41.03 seconds. The Sandia boys, led by Nwagbo, broke the state record in the 800-meter relay final (1:27.01).
Academy鈥檚 girls (47.62) and Sandia鈥檚 girls (47.39) both set state records in the 400-meter relay. Los Alamos鈥� girls set a record in the 4A 800-meter relay (1:41.44), and Academy鈥檚 girls added a record in the 1,600 medley (4:11.98).
The hurdles were dominated in 5A by Cleveland, with future Boise State Bronco Morgan James sweeping the 100 high (14.36; she broke the state record Friday in prelims at 14.27) and 300 intermediate (42.31; she ran 42.30 on Friday to break another state mark), and her Storm compatriot Collin Joyner, who raced to triumphs at 110 meters (14.68) and later at 300 (37.96).
Bloomfield鈥檚 Ryli Heckman also won twice, taking the 100 in 14.97 and the 300 in 46.67.
The 5A boys javelin has been a sneaky competitive event over the last few weeks. Cleveland鈥檚 Giovanni Mollica was the champion on Saturday, with a mark of 176 feet, 5 inches. La Cueva鈥檚 Troy Dixon (175-4) was right behind him. Only an inch separated these two at the recent metro championships.
Academy鈥檚 Nicholas Ponte (4:17.96) and 近距离内射合集 Vista鈥檚 Talen Riley (4:18.96) were the 1,600-meter winners. Riley outraced Coombs to the line in another tight finish.
La Cueva鈥檚 Jhett Kinghorn (18) was the boys 5A high-point athlete, a point ahead of Cleveland鈥檚 Joyner, Bears teammate Tanner Monta帽o and Coombs.
James, with 23 points, was tops among 5A girls. Clovis鈥� Raphael scored 21 points.
NOTES: Ja鈥橪lyn Johnson of Portales won the boys 4A triple jump Saturday to go with his long jump title on Friday. 鈥� Keyara Haywood of Rio Rancho (5-2) was the 5A girls high jump winner. 鈥� Sophomore Raymundo Lujan of Eldorado (46-戮), one of the top-performing boys in the metro area this season, took the 5A triple jump. 鈥� Next year鈥檚 big-school state meet will not be held on this same weekend, due to the Lobos hosting the Mountain West Track and Field Championships. One option is moving it to the Wednesday and Thursday BEFORE the small-schools state meet next year. The New Mexico Activities Association will finalize the dates in the coming weeks.
James Yodice covers prep sports for the Journal. You can reach him at jyodice@abqjournal.com or via X at .
