A week after competing in the Division III championships at Deer Valley High School in Glendale, nine individual Flagstaff High School track and field athletes and one relay team were back down the mountain once again over the weekend for the state's open track and field meet.
Bringing together the top performers from across the state, regardless of classification, the two-day state meet began on Friday, May 16, at Mesa Community College.
For the boys meet, senior Parker Clifford competed in the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash following his fourth-place finishes in the events at the D-III meet. Clifford ran a 10.87 in the 100m to finish 12th overall and a 22.14 in the 200m for an 11th-place finish.
Junior Alex Bland took on three events at the meet, with a fifth-place finish in the 3200m his best result of the weekend. Running a 9:11.28 in the state championships, Bland dropped more than eight seconds off of his gold medal winning time at the D-III meet. He also finished sixth in the 1600m with a time of 4:16.24 and 18th in the 800m in 2:00.43.
Junior Elijah Talkalai joined Bland in the 800m, finishing 14th with a 1:56.26, and sophomore Yohanes聽Van Meerten competed in both the 1600m, finishing 14th with a 4:23.59, and the 3200, finishing eighth in 9:14.07. All three times for the two runners were recorded as season bests.
In the 4x800-meter relay, Talkalai, sophomore Jacob Medina, senior Cole Troxler and freshman Uuts Masayumptewa combined for a time of 8:24.99 to finish 18th.
For the girls, senior Olivia Baker and junior Taylor Biggambler both ran the 1600m and 3200m, improving on their times from the previous week. Biggambler finished 11th in the 1600m with a 5:07.81 and 12th in the 3200m in 11:07.83. Baker finished 14th in the 1600m, finishing in 5:09.92, and 16th in the 3200m with an 11:17.25.
On the field, senior Audrey Ketter cleared 11 feet, 9 inches to match her result in the D-III meet and finish fifth after earning a silver medal the week prior. Seniors Rachel Hagerman and Teagan Martin both cleared 5 feet, 2 inches in high jump along with nine other athletes. Officially, Hagerman finished fifth while Martin was placed 15th.