Grand freshman Kylah Ricks won three individual events and a relay event for the ladies, and sophomore Eli Hazlett won the 400-meters, breaking his own school record, at the Region 15 Track and Field Championship on May 8 and 9 in Manti. Hazlett also placed second in both the 100- and 200-meters, putting the Red Devils boys team in first place overall at the Region 15 Track and Field Championship. The girls team placed second.
Ricks won the 800-meters, 1600-meters and 3200-meter races for the girls, running the 800-meters in 2:27.13, the 1600-meters in 5:32.59, and the 3200-meters in 12:29.29. She also ran the 800-meter leg of the medley relay, teaming with juniors Auburn Jackman and Annabelle Garrett, and senior Abby Mason, to take first place at 4:26.15. At state, Grand track and field coach Dennis Wells said Ricks will be head-to-head with Union senior Kennedy Powell, the girl Ricks took second to at the state cross country meet in fall 2017.
Hazlett won the 400-meter race for the boys at 48.71, shaving over a quarter-second off of his school record of 48.98. Grand track and field coach Dennis Wells said Hazlett’s time ranks fourth in the state regardless of classification 1A through 6A. Hazlett also placed second in both the 100-meter (11.17) and 200-meter (22.93) races.
The Red Devil boys scored 161.5 points, while Richfield placed second at 137. Emery took third at 116 and Manti took fourth at 103.5. For the girls, Richfield took first at 163 with Grand in second at 126.5, San Juan in third at 76, and Manti in fourth at 75.
Wells said the boys would have taken the region crown by an even greater margin, but several athletes were missing because of injuries.
Another highlight of the meet for the boys was the 1-2 finish by junior Connor Guerrero (41.64) and senior Dakota Johnson (43.13) in the 300-meter hurdles. Johnson also took second in the javelin at 156 feet, 10.5 inches. Guerrero and Johnson joined junior Stacy Randall and freshman Dante Wells to take third in the 4×100-meter race at 45.41l, while Dante Wells, Guerrero, Johnson and Hazlett ran the 4×400-meters, placing second at 3:32.53. Randall and Guerrero joined seniors Ryan Lewis and Ruben Villalpando in the medley, placing third at 3:49.18.
Individually, Randall placed fourth in the 200-meters at 23.60, and fifth in the 100-meters at 11.66. Villalpando placed fifth in the 110-meter hurdles at 16.75, and seventh in the long jump with 17 feet, 11 inches.
Lewis took second in the 1600-meters (4:32.52), and fifth in both the 800-meters (2:06.92) and the 3200-meters (10:29.19). Sophomore Evan Ellison took third in the 3200-meter race (10:05.73), fourth in the 1600-meters (4:40.42), and ninth in the 800-meters (2:08.25). In the 3200-meter race, sophomore Malachi Ricks took fourth at 10:23.75, qualifying to run at state in the event.
“Ryan took it easy a little bit in the 3200-meters, and it was actually a good thing because it allowed Malachi to finish in the top four, so he’ll get to run in it at state,” Wells said.
In the field, junior Jarom Shumway took first in the discus (119 feet, 3 inches), and third in the shot put (43 feet, 8 inches), while also placing seventh in the 110-meter hurdles (17.29). Sophomore Jayden Down took first in the high jump (6 feet), and fourth in the javelin at 142 feet, 6 inches. Sophomore Carlin Bierschied placed fifth in the shot put (40 feet, 6 inches), and sophmore Trea Meyer took fifth in the javelin (141 feet, 3.5 inches). Junior Tyson Horton tied for seventh in the high jump at 5 feet, 6 inches.
In addition to Ricks’ performance, junior Veda Gritts starred in the field, taking first place in both the shot put (34 feet, 10.5 inches) and the discus (106 feet, 6.5 inches), while taking second in the javelin (105 feet, 7.5 inches). Junior Shane Stroder took sixth in both the shot put (31 feet, 3.5 inches), and the discus (89 feet, 11 inches), while senior Reagan Paxman took fourth in the javelin at 96 feet, 10.5 inches. Freshman Morgan Lewis took fourth in the high jump at 4 feet, 9 inches, and Garrett placed fifth in the same event, at 4 feet, 7 inches.
“We don’t have a lot of sprinters, but we’ve got some good throwers and distance runners,” Wells said of the girls team. “I like how we were able to compete with Richfield.”
Garrett also ran in two individual races, placing fifth in the 200-meters at 29.24 and eighth in the 100-meters at 13.90. Jackman placed fourth in the 400-meters at 1:02.18 and sixth in the 200-meters at 29.55. Sophomore Jessica Anderson placed second in the 1600-meters (5:38.06), and eighth in both the 800-meters (2:39.18) and the 3200-meters (13:03.85). Freshman Anika Scherer took third in the 3200-meters (12:41.91), and sixth in the 1600 (5:48.12), and freshman Emree Olsen took seventh in the 800-meters (2:27.13). Jackman, Anderson, Olsen and Scherer took fourth in the 4×400-meter relay at 4:29.80.
The UHSAA Utah State Track and Field Championships concludes the season Thursday through Saturday, May 17-19, at Brigham Young University in Provo. Wells said the boys are poised to make a run at the state title, while the girls may sneak into the top five.
“Morgan’s going to be tough,” Wells said of the competition on the boys side. “They’ve got a weak region, so they were able to qualify three runners in just about every race.
“We have the toughest region in 3A,” Wells said.
Ricks wins four golds; Hazlett breaks own school record in 400
