300 Hurdles Deliver Fireworks as Kansas State Track Meet Opens in Wichita; Sprint Stars Also Take Center Stage

The boys hurdles preliminaries highlighted Day 1 of the Kansas State Track and Field Championships, held at Wichita State University.

The meet concludes Saturday.

Hurdlers Steal the Spotlight

Especially the 300 hurdles, where the competitiveness factor was high in Class 2A, 3A, 5A and 6A.

In 5A, senior Shinji Pollard of KC Piper (Kansas City) registered the fastest qualifying time — 39.03 — for Saturday’s final, followed by senior Noah Holthusen of Bishop Carroll (Wichita) in 39.34. Third was sophomore Dominic Grabendike of Kapaun Mt. Carmel (Wichita) with a PR time of 39.45.

The 6A results were also fairly strong. Senior David Johnson of Mill Valley (Shawnee) bolted to a top qualifying time of 39.05, while senior John Thomas Loparco of Blue Valley Northwest (Overland Park) recorded the next best prelim result with a 39.38 effort. Sophomore Braylon Hayes of Wichita East ran a 39.64 PR.

The KSHSAA should combine 5A and 6A for this meet.

Colby senior Jordan Jones paced 3A, hitting the sub-40 zone in 39.18.

The 2A prelim fields impressed, too. Smith Center sophomore Carson McKelvey garnered the fastest time, running 39.63. Senior Zane Farney of Sterling nearly ran the same, recording 39.64. Will Elias of Jeff County North (Winchester) had the third best clocking, navigating the barriers in 39.95. Places 4-7 all reached the 40-point range.

Again, if Kansas held a single-classification championship meet, the entire finals heat would be sub-40 with a 0.9 variation in times.

Pollard Stands Alone in the High Hurdles

KC Piper’s Pollard also scorched a 13.88 time in the 5A 110 hurdles. However, that is slightly slower than his seeded time of 13.81. Pollard will only be challenged in the final by 10 inanimate objects, but no humans.

Sprint Finals Loaded in 3A and 4A

Now on to the boys’ 100 meters.

The top 3A seeds are all under 10.90, which doesn’t seem standard for this classification.

But it potentially makes for a memorable final. Junior sprinter Tim Ritchie of Wichita Collegiate clocks in at 10.54. He’s followed by senior Avery McVey of Holcomb at 10.58.

There is a bit of a drop-off after McVey, as Norton Community senior Tyler Backman and Bishop Ward (Kansas City) 12th-grader Davontae Davis, have run 10.76 and 10.85, respectively.

Overall, as would be expected, 4A has faster seed times than 3A, but no one is as fast as Ritchie.

Ulysses junior Gaige McGaughey leads the board with a 10.61 time. Buhler sophomore Garrett Gleason is seeded second at 10.78.

Labette County (Altamont) senior Jamaal Jackson rounds out the top three with a 10.89.

Two others are also under 11.0.

Hartman-Babb Leads Deep 6A Field

Lastly, 6A. As expected, the classification possesses the most talent. Christian Hartman-Babb of Washburn Rural (Topeka) tops the state with a 10.36, while senior Michael Cooks of Wichita Southeast has run 10.64, and Junction City’s Tyler Smith has posted 10.70.

Portela Chasing More Hardware

It’s really just one girl.

Eleventh-grader Maria Portela of Blue Valley (Stilwell) will win the 6A 100 meters. Just wanted to establish that right away.

The Spain native has already run 11.38, which is tied for seventh in the nation.

In Friday’s 200 prelims, Portela PR’d with a sizzling 23.30 half-lap, good for a top-20 national ranking.

A 200-Foot Showdown in the Javelin

The 6A boys javelin competition between Cade Zimmerman of Olathe West and Tyler Dye of Lawrence could be one of Saturday's most compelling field-event battles.

Zimmerman is seeded at 204 feet, and Dye is just a few feet behind at 200-04. Any throw beyond 200 feet deserves attention.

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