Campo Verde Coyotes
2018 D2 State Champions
Boys' Head Coach: Josh Applebach
Last May, the Boys of Campo Verde out of Gilbert, AZ bested the Queen Creek Bulldogs with a total of 70 points to clinch their first D2 Track and Field Team Title. Though, they have graduated several of their top scorers from the State Meet such as Riley Connolly, Shane Leeper, and Ryan Clegg, Rylan Stubbs returns with the intent of not just dominating the distance events as a Senior, but leading the CV Coyotes to another State Title. Other guys who could make podium in their events this May, include Kenny Edwards (Jr.) and Zac Whaley (Jr.) in the 1600m and 3200m runs, Jake Treptow (Sr.) in the Triple Jump, and Isaac Burnett (Sr.) in the Discus throw. Can the upperclassmen rally the Coyotes to dominate for a second year in a row?
Coach Applebach Says…
Who are your top returners?
(RIght: Rylan Stubbs ran a PR of 4:15 in the D2 Boys' 1600m and then finished runner-up in the 800m at the State Championships, last May. - photo by John Hays) Jacob Samford (Sr.) is a top-10 returner among D2 Boys for the 100m, thanks to a PR of 11.06 seconds. Vincent Nguyen (Sr.) and Wil Peralta (Sr.) also returning for us this season. Nguyen is ranked 5th among the top D2 returners in the 110m Hurdles and Peralta is highly ranked as well.
Isaac Burnett (Sr.) is also a top contender to finish on the D2 Boys' Discus podium. Last year, he placed 8th in the contest with a throw of 148-8. Ryan O'Reilly (Jr.) is also ranked among the top-10 returners in the D2 Boys' Javelin thanks to his PR of 140'3".
Zac Whaley (Jr.) and Kenny Edwards (Jr.) both hold PRs of 4:26 for 1600m. Edwards also ran a 9:40 PR in the 3200m, and was a member of State Runner-Up 4x800 team that ran 7:57.55, for a new school record. Jake Treptow (Sr.) is the top D2 Boy returner in the Triple Jump. Last year, he jumped 44-11.75 at the AZ Meet of Champions to win the contest and set a school record for TJ.
Finally, Rylan Stubbs (Sr.) is the returning State Champ for the D2 Boys 1600m & 3200m, the State Runner-Up 800m. He also won the Boys' 1600m at the AZ Meet of Champions in 4:12 to set his 4th individual School-Record.
Do you have any impact freshman or incoming transfers?
The new athletes to our program that we predict will have a big impact on our team's performance are not freshmen or transfers. Two of our top distance runners this season, for example, were playing other sports last spring.
What meets are you keying in on this year?
We will be competing at this year's Chandler Rotary Invitational, and this will be our team's first appearance at the Sun Angel Classic, but we see all of our meets as preparation for the DII State Championships.
How has your preseason training been going?
Preseason training went well for our team. Our athletes made big deposits through the winter that we hope will pay dividends in May.
What's the most important thing you want young people to learn through running/track and field?
In general, sports help young student-athletes grow by giving them opportunities to make decisions in a relatively low consequence environment. People learn through trial and error and sports allow young people to make choices about how they invest their time and efforts and discover how those investments yield results in a sort of model world. The lessons learned in the sporting environment can transfer to the real-world scenarios they will likely encounter for the rest of their lives. It is my hope that athletes will grow through failures and successes in the proving-ground that our Track and Field program provides.
Have you set any goals as a track and field team?
Our boys team won the D2 State Championship in 2018, and we believe that if we win the majority of the daily challenges we face, we will have an opportunity to win the contests we will face on May 1st and 4th. There are some incredibly talented teams in Boys D2 Track, including last year's D3 Champs, Casteel, so we need to be prepared to be at our best in May.