Kelly Naumann en route to a school record at the Husky Invite. Arizona Milesplit Photo.
Events to Watch at the Red Mountain Stampede
Kelly Naumann (pictured above) vs Addi Montgomery (3200m): Addi comes into the race with a definate edge in 3200m expierence though in her first outing at the Husky Invite Kelly was able to snag her schools record. It will be interesting to see if Kelly keys off the competition or goes straight for the lead. If it comes down to a kick this races should be Kelly's due to her strength over the shorter distances. If she goes out harder than she can hold Addi is a patient runner and might be able to steal an upset.
Highland vs Hamilton (Boys 4x400m): In case you hadn't picked up from the girls 3200m, this meet is worth staying until the very end. Both teams come into the race with elite times in the state. This should be an excellent race to watch, judging by 400m times these teams are both very deep. Josh O'Callaham boats the fastest 400 PR of the 8 runners, this means Hamilton will want to be in the lead early, assuming Josh takes the anchor position. If The Hawks run Josh first Hamilton will have to play catch up the entire race. Running from behind is someties easier than running from the lead though.
Girls Shot Put: three of the four best cannon ball tossers in the state will be there (Jessica Shinkle, Mia Riccolo and Onnika Scott), while Jessica has a sizeable lead over the other two it will be interesting to see if they can break the tie for 3rd and/or close the gap on Jessica. Jessica on the other hand will be chasing the magical 40' barrier, will this week be the week she breaks it?
Boys 300H: Running sub 40 in the 300H may be something Arizona fans take for granted having watched Robert Grant and Isaiah Oliver recently, but it really is something special. This race will feature no less than three runners who are capable of such a feat. While Corona Del Sol's Tyler Stehr is the favorite, Skyline's Amarii Keyes and Hamilton's James Fusaro should make the race interesting.
Allyson Girard vs Taryn Estavillo (1600m): Allyson is one of the more underrated runners in the state having run behind Lauren Ellsworth for the past three years. Her Chandler Rotary performance roughly matched last years performance, look for her to come into this meet with something to prove in 1600m. Taryn lost to Allyson at the Chandler Rotary in the 1600 by just a few places. She will be out to reverse that result.
Runner to Watch at the Red Mountain Stampede
Sasha Jarrett (100m, 400m): while somtimes she lives in the shadow of the Chandler sprint crew expect her to excel at this meet in the 100m.
Jawhar Jordan (100m, 200m): this will be the Hamilton's harriers time to shine, look for big performances from him this week after chasing the other east valley royalty at Chandler.
Paul Lucas (400m): Paul will be taking another stab at the 400m. He currently is second in the state rankings to Isaiah Oliver. Now that he has a few more weeks of training under his belt look for him to go out there and try and take back the title of the states fastest.
Nikki Baker (Pole Vault): Nikki is the favorite by a foot according to the heat sheets, though look for her to improve on her 12-6 mark. She has been stuck there since the Aztec meet, if she gets her plant down right, 13' is possibility this week.
Connor Stevens (Pole Vault): Like Nikki, Conner is also favored by a large margin and being someone he thrives off of competition he will have to find a way to push himself if he wants to improve on her state best mark.
Sam Shoultz (High Jump): Sam has been stuck at 6'8" for the last few weeks, his seed sets him at 6'10", look for him to finally make it this week and regain the title as highest jumper in the state of Arizona.
Jalissa Smith (High Jump): while being at 5-6 might tie her for 2nd in the state it won't get here where she wants to be come state. Zarriea Willis leads the state in the HJ at 5-9, Jalissa will be aiming to close that gap by in an inch or two. The high jump is a little bit of a fickle event though so if she gets up there make sure to cheer here on.