PREP TRACK & FIELD: State championships begin Friday
LAS CRUCES - The Class 6A and 5A state track and field championships begin Friday at the Great Friends of University of New Mexico Track Stadium in Albuquerque.
Most of Friday's events are preliminary heat races to qualify for Saturday's finals, but there will be some state championships awarded Friday in some field events.
In Class 6A, the Oñate boys have 12 individuals and three relay teams qualified in 12 events, including Adam Zemek being the No. 2 seed in the 800-meter run, Monroe Young the No. 1 seed in long jump, Ian Beard the No. 2 seed i triple jump and Evert Garibay the No. 2 seed in shot put. Thomas Salas will also look to defend his state title from last year in the 3,200. The Mayfield boys have eight individuals and three relay teams qualified in 11 events. Trojans Corey Skipper (pole vault) and Torry Locklin (triple jump) are the No. 1 seed in their respective events.
The Las Cruces High boys have one individual and one relay team qualified in three events and Gadsden has one individual qualified in two events.
On the girls side, Oñate has 11 individuals and three relay teams qualified in 13 events for the state meet. Knight Jennifer Ramirez is the two-time defending state champion in the 100 hurdles and won the state title in the 300 hurdles in 2014. She's the No. 2 seed for the 100 hurdles. Oñate's Naomi Montes is the No. 2 seed in javelin while Meghan Aguilera (1,600) and Teresa Paradis (triple jump) are No. 3 seeds.
The Mayfield girls have six individuals and two relay teams qualified in nine events. Kianna Castillo is the No. 1 seed in long jump while Kyleigh Cox is the No. 3 seed in high jump. Las Cruces High has three individuals and three relay teams qualified in nine events while Gadsden has one individual qualified in one event.
In Class 5A, the Centennial boys have 13 individuals and three relay teams qualified in 13 events. Drizzt Garcia-Washburn (high jump) and Isaiah Galindes (pole vault) are No. 1 seeds while Cortlin Smalls (high jump) and Brenden Padilla (triple jump) are No. 2 seeds for the Hawks.
The Santa Teresa boys have one individual qualified in one event while the Chaparral boys have two relay teams qualified.
The Centennial girls have eight individuals and four relay teams in 10 events qualified. Jasmine Hendrix is the No. 2 seed in shot put while Lanie Whipley is the No. 3 seed in the 400. The Hawks' 1,600 sprint medley relay team is the No. 3 seed.
Santa Teresa has three individuals and one relay team qualified in six events while Chaparral has one individual qualified in one event.