Bergen defends title with new Class 4A record

Niwot's Zane Bergen put an exclamation point on the end of his high school cross country career with another title-winning performance at the Class 4A state championships. All alone when he crossed the finish line at the Norris Penrose Events Center in Colorado Springs, the Stanford-bound Bergen posted a time of 15 minutes, 17.70 seconds, breaking the Class 4A meet record he set in 2020 (15:29). It was the second straight individual cross country championship for Bergen, and extends Niwot's streak of titles to four, going back to Cruz Culpepper in 2018.

"It's always awesome to win individual stuff," the senior said afterwards. "But it's a bittersweet moment. It's the last Colorado cross country race of my high school career, and being able to end it on a high note was awesome. But the team title is what I came here for, and I am extremely disappointed we didn't get it."

Bergen's hopes for a third straight state championship for Niwot were thwarted by a record-setting performance from the Cheyenne Mountain boys, last year's runners-up, and currently ranked ssecond in the nation by MileSplit. The Red Hawks placed four of its seven runners in the top ten, including the second, third, and fourth-place finishers, to end with just 26 points, the lowest ever for a Colorado state boys race. That proved too much for Bergen and his teammates to overcome, even with three top-10 finishers of their own.

"It's always going to be challenging at these meets because we have such high caliber athletes in Colorado," Bergen said. "Cheyenne Mountain is the number two team in the nation, and they showed that today."

Which is not to say that the Niwot boys underperformed. Following Bergen was junior Carlos Kipkorir Cheruiyot, who took ninth place overall with a time of 15:57.80, more than a minute faster than in 2020 when he finished in 47th. Right behind him was senior Joey Hendershot (15:58.10) in 10th, his best finish in three state appearances. Like Bergen, he was disappointed to miss out on another championship in his final high school race, but had trouble finding fault with the Cougars' performance.

"I think this is the best team Niwot's ever had before, by far," he said. "I think the team culture is great this year, and everyone did exactly what they were supposed to. It was just that Cheyenne Mountain really put it together today."

Rounding out Niwot's top five were two first-time state runners: junior Frederick Ambrose (16:35), who finished 22nd, and junior Jeremy Gillett (16:55.30), who was 34th. Also making their first state appearances were senior Isaac Robinson (17:05.70) and junior Stefan Haug (17:32.40), who finished 37th and 60th respectively. The Cougars ended with 63 team points, which is good enough to win most years.

Echoing the sentiment of his seniors, Niwot head coach Kelly Christensen said the coach said he was "proud" of his team's performance overall in the championship race, and that everything went according to plan. Except for the stubborn persistence of Cheyenne Mountain's runners.

"We talk about winning all the time, and we expect to win all the time, but it's tough for anyone to win all the time. You've got to get knocked off of your pedestal every now and then, because other teams prepare and work hard, too."

The Class 4A state meet was the last official event of the Colorado high school season, but the Niwot boys aren't done competing in 2021. In November, Niwot runners will travel to Arizona for the Nike Cross Regionals or the Eastbay Midwest Regional in Wisconsin. Then, on Dec. 4, the Cougars will head to Alabama for the RunningLane Cross Country Championships, where they have a chance for redemption against Cheyenne Mountain.

For full results and reaction videos from the Class 4A state cross country championships, visit MileSplit.com. See additional photos from the race here.