Paden Goucher looks to improve his performance from state last year. Photo by Margot Kelly.
Nebraska is known for its burly wrestlers and big football players. They say the people there are strong because it is farm country. I am not sure if the Litchfield Park/Buckeye area constitutes farm country, despite what east valley residents may argue, but Clay Campbell and his teammates Alex Grajeda and Blair Broady would fit right in if it were. Clay is a returning top 12 finisher from state and the nation's top hammer thrower. Alex and Blair are the top returners for the Vipers in the shot. While Verrado may be led by throwers, they have many events which can score points at big meets.
Having coached two state championship teams at Agua Fria High School before moving over to Verrado Coach Ted Campbell knows a thing or two about developing sprinters. Just ask top returners Ross Dietz and Nathan Roehl. Nathan was able to qualify for the state meet last spring, although he was not able to advance to finals. Both Nathan and Ross will be looking to get a little further this year. Joey McDermott and underclassman John Johnson both turned in solid time last year. It is possible that their best bet for securing a ticket to state is as a 4x100m team. Another possible leg on that relay is Devin Draper. Devin is the top returning hurdler for Verrado high school, and should be able to turn a strong 4x100 or even 4x400m relay leg if called upon to do so. Speaking of 4x400m relays, it is not uncommon to put distance runners on one of those legs.
As one might assume with a last name like his, senior Paden Goucher leads the way on the Viper distance crew. Classmate Chris Huffman and junior Andres Beltran join Paden at the front of the distance pack. Paden is defending district champion in the 1600m and hopes to improve on his 39th place performance at state. It would be even sweeter if he were to go out with a teammate. Dillon Ratliff was the 2nd best 800m performer for the Vipers in his first year running track. Now that he has one season under his belt, if he makes a strong second year improvement he might be that teammate to join Goucher at state.
The Vipers do not return all of their top performers. Chris Jones and Deon Conway are graduated and competing in college, while we will read about them in the Alumni Report this spring, Coach Campbell will need to find talent to fill in the gaps. Ross and Antonio Mizquez look to step up in the long jump, while Emillio Rodriguez should be the strongest triple jumper for the Vipers.
In terms of season goals, Coach Campbell want this years team to win their district championships for the 4th year in a row. With a strong core returning this certainly seems like an achievable mission for the Vipers.
Editors Note: Since I am new to Arizona Milespit, I have not had the chance to get to know a lot of coaches well. This series will be of coaches I do know and have contact information for. So coaches, if you want your team profiled, please shoot me an email and lets set up a time to chat. I am looking forward to meeting you this spring!