Home sweep; Knights score team titles in school's first official track meet

PALMER — Mike Boyd laughed as he recalled the last time he helped host a track meet.

It was 21 years ago.

But Friday and Saturday, the longtime Colony High athletic director watched as his track and field program made school history, hosting its first official invitational.

“It brings what we do home,” Boyd said during the meet. “We’ve always had to travel.”

Boyd says there has been an increase in track athletes, and a booster club has been formed to help support Colony track. The new track is part of tremendous athletic facilities upgrades that also includes the artificial turf football and soccer field installed prior to the 2012-13 school year.

Boyd is also happy to see his Knights runners winning on the new track. Colony celebrated its first meet on its recently installed state-of-the-art track in winning fashion, sweeping the team titles during the first Colony Invitational Saturday.

Junior Peggy Mathis helped Colony cruise to a lopsided win in the girls’ team standings. Mathis won a trio of sprint events, the 100 meters, 200 and 400. She was also second in the long jump. Chase Stephens finished first in the 100 hurdles and the triple jump. Maria Cucullu won the high jump for the Knights.

Colony athletes finished with 4 of the top 5 spots in the long jump.

Colony head coach Tom Lincoln has had the luxury of coaching a strong team with their eye on a region title.g

“It’s been difficult, but it’s been fun,” Lincoln said.

Lincoln noted the addition of Mathis, who won three individual state titles with Wasilla last year, has made it easier for the team to be successful.

“We want to see her do the best she can and become a four-time state champ,” said Lincoln.

Mathis, who made the move to Colony following the 2013 prep cross-country running season, said the new team welcomed her with open arms. Saturday, Mathis dominated the 400-meter final. Mathis started her advance during the first 100 meters and had a sizable lead by the time she started the last turn. Mathis said the 400-meter dash is her favorite to watch out of all the events.

“It’s a sprint race but it matters at the end who has the most heart and is willing to push themselves when they’re tired,” said Mathis.

The addition of the speedy Mathis to the team has brought constructive competition to Colony practices.

“It was really cool to get to train with her because she is really fast,” said Stephens. “She just pushes everyone to get the best out of them.”

Stephens is another vital part of the Colony runners, and knows what winning feels like.

“It feels really good in front of the race, like all the hard work has paid off,” said Stephens.

Stephens thinks that the Knights are prepared to make a run at a Region III team title.

Colony finished with 191 total points to win the girls’ team title, and finished 71 ahead of runner-up Grace Christian. Senior Mariah Burroughs helped lead Wasilla to a fifth-place finish in the team standings. Burroughs, a UAA recruit, won the 800 meters, and finished second in the 1,600. Palmer finished sixth in the team standings.

Colony also posted a lopsided win in the boys’ team standings. The Knights finished with 173 total points, nearly 100 ahead of runner-up Wasilla.

Senior Brandon Schafer led the Knights with a first-place finish in the 800 meters. He was also second in the 1,600. Senior Lyon Kopsack won the 3,200 meters. The Knights also won the 3,200-meter relay. Brandon Nicholson was second in both the long jump and high jump. Isaiah Tira (110 hurdles) and Lucas Jones (triple jump) also posted wins for CHS.

Cody Dedrick helped lead Wasilla to a second-place finish in the team standings, with a win in the boys’ shot put. Marshall Comer was second in the shot put for Wasilla. Frick was first in the 300 hurdles for the Warriors.

For complete results, see frontiersman.com/sports.

Colony Invitational

Friday-Saturday, Colony High

Girls team scores:

1. Colony 191; 2. Grace 120; 3. Glennallen 50; 4. Service 42; 5. Wasilla 33; 6. Palmer 25; 7. Valdez 24.

Girls individual results:

100 meters — 1. P. Mathis, Col 12.76; 2. C. Ellis, Gra 13.84; 3. N. Rodriguez, Ser 13.85; 4. S. Johnson, Pal 13.91; 5. S. Newton, Gra 13.93; 6. A. Condio, Col 14.46; 7. M. Giles, Ser 14.64; 8. K. Atkinson, Col 14.78.

200 — 1. P. Mathis, Col 25.85; 2. L. Cuddihy, Ser 27.84; 3. J. Davis, Gra 28.01; 4. N. Lautrip, Col 28.14; 5. T. Haan, Col 28.29; 6. Z. Langseth, Val 28.51; 7. S. Newton, Gra 29.26; 8. R. Burroughs, Was 29.51.

400 — 1. P. Mathis, Col 58.87; 2. Z. Langseth, Val 1:02.50; 3. H. Heinbaugh, Glen 1:02.54; 4. T. Haan, Col 1:05.26; 5. T. Spaic, Col 1:076.57; 6. A. Woods, Val 1:08.13.

800 — 1. M. Burroughs, Was 2:24.85; 2. K. Maslen, Glen 2:28.50; 3. H. Henbaugh, Glen 2:29.02; 4. C. Powers, Col 2:29.86; 5. C. Applegate, Gra 2:30.27; 6. R. Burroughs, Was 2:31.83; 7. E. Evans, Sou 2:32.98; 8. M. Osiensky, Pal 2:33.41.

1,600 — 1. B. Gerlach, Glen 5:06.33; 2. M. Burroughs, Was 5:13.40; 3. C. Powers, Col 5:31.54; 4. C. Applegate, Gra 5:32.77; 5. M. Bauer, Ser 5:32.99; 6. H. Bohman, Pal 5:37.49; 7. R. Burroughs, Was 5:39.49; 8. T. Spaic, Col 5:42.96.

3,200 — 1. B. Gerlach, Glen 11:44.51; 2. C. Powers, Col 12:08.70; 3. C. Geraghty, Col 12:31.39; 4. E. Bowker, Col 12:37.18; 5. S. Contraras, Pal 12:45.99; 6. A. Aist, Ser 13:14.68; 7. J. Kopsack, Col 13:16.97; 8. M. Meyerhofer, Col 13:57.03.

110 hurdles — 1. C. Stephens, Col 15.92; 2. K. Rowe, Gra 16.75; 3. J. Davis, Gra 17.12; 4. T. Venable, Ser 18.61; 5. N. Rodriguez, Ser 18.73; 6. M. McMillen, Val 19.06; 7. M. Herrera, Was 19.55.

300 hurdles — 1. K. Rowe, Gra 47.69; 2. J. Davis, Gra 47.97; 3. N. Lautrup, Col 49.59; 4. A. VanderWeide, Gra 51.78; 5. M. Cucullu, Col 54.58; 6. A. Condio, Col 55.23; 7. D. Bowen, Was 57.92.

400 relay — 1. Service 55.19; 2. Grace 55.27; 3. Palmer 56.72; 4. Colony 58.42.

800 relay — 1. Grace 1:55.97; 2. Valdez 2:04.28.

1,600 relay — 1. Colony 4:43.05; 2. Service 4:55.43.

3,200 relay — 1. Glennallen 9:56.62; 2. Colony 10:31.93.

High jump — 1. M. Cucullu, Col 4-8; 2. C. Stephens, 4-8; 3. J. Jaronik, Col 4-6; 4. A. Kausal, Pal 4-4; 5. S. Laker, Gra 4-4; 6. M. Rohrer, Val 4-2.

Long jump — 1. K. Rowe, Gra 15-11.75; 2. P. Mathis, Col 15-5; 3. C. Stephens, Col 15-3.5; 4. A. Condio, Col 14-8.75; 5. J. Jaronik, Col 14-2.5; 6. S. Johnson, Pal 14-2; 7. Z. Langseth, Val 14-1; 8. N. Rodriguez, Ser 13-11.25.

Triple jump — 1. C. Stephens, Col 35-4.75; 2. K. Rowe, Gra 33-0; 3. A. VanderWeide, Gra 32-7; 4. M. Cucullu, Col 30-8.75; 5. J. Jaronik, Col 30-4; 6. J. McKee, Ser 28-5.5; 7. A. Corral, Dim 28-5.25; 8. M. Rohrer, Val 28-0.

Shot put — 1. A. Logan, Gra 32-1; 2. C. Edwards, Was 31-4.5; 3. A. Smylie, Pal 29-5.5; 4. K. Tennesen, Col 28-8; 5. K. Foster, Col 28-4.5; 6. C. Soto, Col 25-4; 7. S. Schmidt, Was 25-3; 8. A. Flynn, Ser 25-2.

Discus — 1. K. Tennesen, Col 93-8; 2. A. Logan, Gra 86-10; 3. C. Edwards, Was 86-5; 4. E. Fickes, Val 73-9; 5. B. Erickson, Col 70-5; 6. A. Smylie, Pal 66-4; 7. K. Park, Val 66-0; 8. C. Soto, Col 62-8.

Boys team scores:

1. Colony 173; 2. Wasilla 87; 3. Service 80; 4. Grace 64; 5. Palmer 42; 6. Glennallen 30; 7. South 18; 8. Valdez 9; 9. Wasilla Lake Christian 6; 10. Bartlett 5.

Boys individual results:

100 meters — 1. E. Johnson, Gra 11.45; 2. L. Jones, Col 11.71; 3. V. Aumavae, Pal 11.84; 4. K. McIntosh, Val 11.85; 5. H. Harwood, Col 11.86; 6. J. Layton, Pal 11.87; 7. B. Adams, Ser 12.18.

200 — 1. E. Jones, Ser 23.23; 2. J. Sondergaard, Glen 23.40; 3. L. Jones, Col 23.58; 4. K. McIntosh, Val 23.81; 5. H. Harwood, Col 24.18; 6. D. VanderWeide, Gra 24.36; 7. B. Adams, Ser 24.46.

400 — 1. J. Martensen, Ser 52.89; 2. A. Miller, Glen 53.17; 3. B. Nicholson, Col 54.36; 4. J. Gentz, Was 54.94; 5. C. Wells, Pal 55.49; 6. J. Wolfe, Was 55.76; 7. K. Spatz, Pal 57.39.

800 ¬— 1. B. Schafer, Col 2:03.80; 2. S. Mitton, Sou 2:06.45; 3. G. Sorensen, Gra 2:08.94; 4. D. Peterson-Thompson, Col 2:09.71; 5. C. Pulver, Was 2:09.94; 6. J. Gentz, Was 2:13.46; 7. M. Alverts, Pal 2:14.81.

1,600 — 1. S. Mitton, Sou 4:36.22; 2. B. Schafer, Col 4:36.57; 3. C. Pulver, Was 4:40.66; 4. R. Howard, Ser 4:44.31; 5. G. Sorenson, 4:45.94; 6. D. Peterson-Thompson, 4:48.03; 7. M. Alverts, Pal 4:48.93; 8. L. Kopsack, Col 4:49.48.

3,200 — 1. L. Kopsack, Col 10:12.74; 2. C. Pulver, Was 10:14.81; 3. T. Marshall, Was 10:29.53; 4. I. Isaacs, Gra 10:37; 5. D. Peterson-Thompson, Col 10:41.88; 6. Z. Young, Gra 11:05.36; 7. D. Wright, Ser 11:37.78; 8. V. Sanderson, Col 12:06.73.

110 hurdles — 1. I. Tira, Col 18.42; 2. K. Frick, Was 19.24; 3. M. Charles- White, Col 19.65; 4. A. Nelson, Col 21.00; 5. J. Jensen, Pal 22.78.

300 hurdles — 1. K. Frick, Was 44.38; 2. H. Foster, Pal 45.40; 3. I. Tira, Col 45.87; 4. J. Neptune, Ser 48.84; . A. Nelson, Col 49.94.

400 relay — 1. Service 46.06; 2. Palmer 46.34; 3. Colony 47.81; 4. Glennallen 47.82; 5. Grace 47.98; 6. Wasilla 48.03.

800 relay — 1. Service 1:35.28; 2. Colony 1:37.49; 3. Grace 1:41.28; 4. Palmer 1:45.51.

1,600 relay — 1. Glennallen 3:44.38; 2. Palmer 3:44.65; 3. Grace 3:46.31; 4. Service 3:48.15; 5. Colony 4:08.74.

3,200 relay — 1. Colony 9:17.29; 2. Service 8:36.30; 3. Grace 9:48.47.

High jump — 1. B. Neider, Gra 5-6; 2. K. Horton, Was 5-4; 3. J. Laker, Gra 5-2; 4. I. Fife, Was 5-2; 4. I. Tira, Col 5-2; 6. D. Bauman, Val 5-0; 7. B. Nieder, Gra 5-0.

Long jump — 1. A. Pearce, Ser 18-10.75; 2. B. Nicholson, Col 18-10.5; 3. L. Jones, Col 18-6; 4. B. Nieder, Gra 18-1.75; 5. C. Wolfe, Was 17-9.25; 6. N. Daniels, Pal 17-6.5; 7. K. Frick, Was 17-3.25; 8. A. Feville, Dim 16-9.25.

Triple jump — 1. L. Jones, Col 40-2.25; 2. B. Nicholson, Col 40-0.5; 3. W. Cook WL 35-10; 4. J. Sindorf, Col 34-5; 5. M. Shepard, Col 33-11; 6. M. Lacy, Col 33-4.75; 7. T. Burkett, Pal 33-2.5; 8. B. Caraft, Col 33-2.5.

Shot put — 1. C. Dedrick, Was 43-8; 2. M. Comer, Was 41-10.75; 3. F. Summers, Col 41-9.75; 4. B. McDonald, Bar 40.4.5; 5. B. Aumavae, Pal 40-0.25; 6. D. Belgarde, Bar 39-.6.25; 7. K. Busness, Was 37-9.75; 8. R. Vasai, Dim 36-3.75.

Discus — 1. J. Stephens, Ser 1234-2; 2. F. Summers, Col 117-2; 3. M. Comer, Was 112-10; 4. J. Floyd, Col 110-8; 5. R. Kingcannon, Was 100-2; 6. C. Dedrick, Was 98-8; 7. N. Palacios, Glen 97-6; 8. N. Uti, Was 92-7.

Mixed unified 100 — 1. S. Washington, Ser 14.96; 2. D. Dunn, Col 16.81; 3. J. Hepler, Ser 19.11.

Mixed unified long jump — 1. S. Washington, Ser 10.5.5; 2. J. Hepler, Ser 8-5.

Mixed unified shot put — 1. S. Washington, Ser 32-11; 2. J. Hepler, Ser 22-5.5.