Depth on display for Niwot track and field

Niwot High track and field had a strong showing at the Centaurus Twilight meet on Thursday, April 17. Despite the cancellation of the Dakota Ridge Invitational due to weather on Saturday, April 19, the Cougars made sure they got their racing in.

For the boys at Centaurus, it was clear that depth is one of Niwot's biggest strengths. In the 400-meter dash, senior Weston Domich placed third with a time of 50.93, just ahead of junior Townes Bernstein in fourth and sophomore Quinn Sullivan in fifth. All three broke 52 seconds.

Juniors Kingston Staton and Rocco Culpepper were not far behind either, finishing in 52.14 and 52.39, respectively. The same trend continued in the 800-meter run, with seniors Kye Toothaker (4th, 2:00.20), Lincoln Brewer (5th, 2:00.38), Gavin Engtrakul (9th, 2:02.73), Evan Kear (10th, 2:03.46), and James Anthony (11th, 2:03.46). Freshmen Summit Hofmeister and Brooks Lee also competed in the 800, with Summit finishing in 2:10.00 and Brooks in 2:11.30, continuing to gain experience in the varsity field.

Senior Keegan Geldean grabbed a win in the 1600-meter with a time of 4:32.37, followed by sophomore Garrett Sherrard in second and senior Evan Kear in fifth. In the 3200-meter, freshman Noah Barrios placed seventh, clocking in at 10:12.88, while senior William Lennert and freshman Zachary King followed in ninth and 11th, respectively.

The Cougars also had solid performances in the hurdles, where sophomore Jaydan Martinez nearly claimed a win in the 300 hurdles, finishing second by just four-hundredths of a second in 40.89. Staton placed seventh in the 110 hurdles, and freshman Corven Peterson also showed promise in both hurdle events.

Niwot's boys relay teams continue to find success, especially in the 4x100 and 4x400, where both teams took third. The 4x100 team ran 44.17, and the 4x400 posted a time of 3:36.39. Domich also delivered in the field, winning the long jump with a mark of 22 feet 11.5 inches and taking second in the triple jump.

On the girls' side, senior Eliana Henriques had a standout meet, finishing second in the 200-meter with a time of 26.15 and fourth in the 400-meter with a time of 58.68. She also won the long jump with a leap of 17 feet, 6 inches.

Senior Kate Schmidthuber took third in the 200-meter and second in the 100-meter, and sophomore Stella Priest was not far behind, finishing 12th in the 100-meter and seventh in the triple jump.

Niwot's girls relay teams were strong as well. The 4x100 and 4x200 teams both took second, while the 4x400 team came out on top with a first-place finish in 4:09.92. The 4x800 squad grabbed sixth.

In the longer distances, senior Hayden Flynn placed fifth in the 1600 (5:24.36), followed by sophomore Eloise Boyd in seventh and senior Eleanor Ottem in 12th. Sophomores Sammie Holliday and Charlotte Stauch both ran the 800-meter, finishing 11th, and 16th, respectively.

In the field events, freshman Sienna Wood placed second in the triple jump with a mark of 32 feet, 3.25 inches. Holliday placed second in the long jump behind Henriques.

Senior Jade West was once again dominant in the throws, winning the shot put by nearly 10 feet with a throw of 47 feet 4 inches and finishing third in discus. Sophomore Mahlya Blanks and senior Jiselle Sales added to Niwot's throwing depth.

While most of the team stayed local, senior hurdler Reese Kasper, a Kansas State University commit, traveled to Lawrence, Kansas, for the Kansas Relays. There, she placed second in the 100-meter hurdles in 14.28 and won the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 42.00, over a second faster than second place.

Coming up, the Cougars will continue to build momentum as the regular season winds down. The team is scheduled to compete at the JV Championships on Wednesday, April 23, at Longmont High School, and at the Stutler Twilight hosted by Cherry Creek High School on Friday, April 25.

Junior Addison Ritzenhein will be traveling to the University of Pennsylvania for the renowned Penn Relays from April 24 to April 26, where she will look to defend her title in the 3000-meter.