Four-tenths of a second separated Ignacio’s Bryan Gram from 3A Alamosa’s Brayan Flores when times in the May 7, Terry Alley Invitational’s 200-meter dash were tabulated, and Gram’s 23.99 wasn’t enough to prevent the Mean Moose sophomore from pulling off the short-sprint sweep at the assembly, his 23.59 complementing well a 100-winning 11.65.

Still, it was fast enough to earn the Bobcat junior fifth place and almost fast enough – compared to 2A/1A San Juan Basin League familiar Jackson Pettinos (23.98) of Telluride and 3A Monte Vista’s Noel Heredia (23.86) – to crack the event’s top three, while accounting for most of IHS’ 13th-place six team points.

Flores and AHS captured first with 148, Bayfield followed with 125.5 and La Jara Centauri (76.5) completed a 3A Intermountain League sweep of the standings’ top spots. 2A Center (65) and Invitational-hosting IML’ers Pagosa Springs (57) rounded out the top five.

Sophomore John Valdez took 16th in the 200, clocking 25.68 seconds, and also recorded top-20’s in the 100 (19th, 12.60) and 400 (16th, 1:04.54). The Bobcats’ lone relay entered, the 4×100 (sophomore Mitchell Neil, sophomore Parker Smithson, junior Colten Smithson, Valdez) ran a seventh-place 53.38.

Sophomore thrower Natoni Cundiff placed 12th in the discus with a 105-foot, six-inch best, and Neil took 19th (78’4”) while 1A Sangre de Cristo senior Zach Horning won easily with his 149’9”, which only BHS junior Sam Westbrook (134’0”) and sophomore Ryan Phelps (133’6”) came remotely close to challenging.

In the shot put, Cundiff unluckily recorded no distance, while Neil’s 34’2” held up for 15th against Westbrook’s winning 45’1” and the second-place 43’5.5” of AHS senior Marco Garcia (they were the only two entrants to exceed 40 feet).

Next for Ignacio will be the Monte Vista Last Chance on Saturday, May 14 (9:00 a.m. start), out in the San Luis Valley, with all athletes either looking to achieve a qualifying mark or improve their qualified status for the May 19-21 State Championships up at Jeffco Stadium.

 

COOL STAT

Horning’s discus throw was 15 feet, eight inches farther than his second-place effort at last spring’s Class 1A State Championships at the aforementioned Lakewood location.

 

TERRY ALLEY INVITE (5/7) BOYS’ STANDINGS

1.Alamosa 148, 2.Bayfield 125.5, 3.La Jara Centauri 76.5, 4.Center 65, 5.Pagosa Springs 57, 6.Telluride 50, 7.Ouray 43, 8.Mosca Sangre de Cristo 25, 9.Dolores 24, T-10.Mancos/Monte Vista 16, 12.Moffat 11, 13.IGNACIO 6, T-14.Creede/Dove Creek/Sargent 5.

 

SJBL CHAMPIONSHIPS (5/3) BOYS’ STANDINGS

1.Mancos 184, 2.Telluride 107, 3.Dolores 82, 4.Ouray 51, 5.Nucla 28, 6.IGNACIO 25, 7.Dove Creek 20.

(For Ignacio, Colten Smithson won the pole vault title with an uncontested 8’0” best, and Cundiff was tops in the discus at 117’2”. Cundiff was fourth in the shot at 34’8”, and Valdez sixth in the 200 with a time of 26.00. He was also seventh in the 400, clocking 58.68, and ninth in the 100 with a 12.55. Parker Smithson was eighth in the long jump, soaring 14’11.5”.)