The Bluejays entered the league meet with a clear ambition – to walk out of the San Juan Basin League Championships with two trophies.
Mission accomplished.
Both the girls and boys programs used balanced team efforts in the throws, jumps and running events to dominate the field May 5 in Ignacio. For the Mancos boys, the victory marks back-to-back titles, while the girls program established itself as the program to beat in the SJBL for years to come.
After a narrow defeat in last year’s league meet, the Mancos girls compiled points in nearly all the 19 events on the Ignacio High School track, proving that depth would be the difference.
Junior Madilynn Ritter enjoyed one of two Bluejays individual titles, winning the 3,200 (14:43) as part of a one-two finish for Mancos in the event. Freshman Teagan Archer collected a second-place finish, four seconds behind. Archer added a second-place run in the 1,600 (6:01), as the Bluejays did a bulk of their damage in the distance events.
The Jays won the 4x800 meter relay (11:29), and scored a third-place finish in the 800 meters from sophomore Clara Most (2:46).
Sophomore Teya Yeomans picked up the Bluejays’ other individual title in the high jump (4 feet, 11 inches) and was runner-up in the shot put (32 feet, 3¾ inches) and third-place runner in the 200 meters (29.33).
Two additional Bluejays scored in the 200 meters – freshman Adaline Kearns (fourth, 30.23) and junior Shelby Jabour (fifth, 31.34). Senior Desi Dainty-Guilfoyle picked up fourth in the 100 meters (14.00), as well, just in front of Jabour (14.57). The Bluejays utilized their sprinting strength to take second in the 4x100 meter relay (57.10).
The Bluejays’ depth in the throws, with points coming from sophomores Mandi Peacock and Akima Kane in the shot put and discus, helped the Jays put up 126 team points, good for a 28-point victory over runner-up Ignacio.
Much like the girls squad, the Mancos boys left no doubt about their status as the preeminent team in the league, courtesy of their versatility to score in almost every event.
As they have all season, Mancos dominated the throws and jumps, as the Jays went 1-2-4 in the shot put and discus. Senior Connor Showalter led the way, winning both events (128 feet, 7 inches in the discus and 49 feet, 10¼ inches in the shot put). Classmate William Small took silver in the discus (112 feet, 1 inch) while sophomore Cole Dainty-Guilfoyle wrapped up second in the shot put (42 feet, 6½ inches).
Senior Mike Velasque added a fourth place in the shot put (34 feet, 1½ inches) to help the Bluejays on their way to a huge haul in the field events.
Mancos took the top three spots in the high jump, led by senior Josh Lindner's league title jump of 6 feet, while sophomores Chris Medina (5 feet, 3 inches) and Ronin Wise (5 feet, 1 inch) followed suit.
In the horizontal jumps, the Jays took second and third in the triple jump, with senior Edgar Hernandez (second, 35 feet 3½ inches) and Medina (third, 34 feet, 7 inches).
Hernandez added a win in the 1,600 meters (4:58), while classmate Connor Sehnert won both the 3,200 (13:13) and 800 (2:19). Sophomore Braxton Dennison took third in the 1,600 (5:30) and fourth in the 800 (2:37).
Senior Jesse Henry posted a sixth-place run in the 100-meter dash (12.58), sophomore Levi Manning took second in the 110 hurdles, and the Jays swept the 4x400 (4:44) and 4x800 meter relays (10:49).
When the dust settled, Mancos nearly doubled up their nearest competitor, Ignacio, with a total of 165 points. The Bobcats took home second place (88 points) while Dove Creek finished third (85 points).
Now, the Bluejay boys and girls focus their attention on some “last chance” opportunities to either improve state qualifying marks or try to earn one of the top 18 spots in each event for the 2A state championships, to be competed at Jefferson County Stadium in Lakewood from May 19-21.
