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Summit High secures podium finishes at Colorado state track and field meet during first day of competition

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Cody Jones

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Summit senior Ella Hagen beams on the awards podium after taking fourth in the 4A girls 3200-meter run on Thursday, May 15, 2025. Hagen has never finished lower than fourth overall in the event at the state meet.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

It is hard to predict what the weather is going to be like at the annual Colorado state track and field championships in Lakewood. 

While the Centennial state is known for variable weather throughout the spring, the state track meet in May is usually hot and dry. This year, however, teams from five different classifications were gifted with cool temperatures, ideal for fast times, big marks and fierce competition.

Boys 3200-meter final

The Summit High School track and field team was one of the very first teams to step onto the deep-red track at Jefferson County Stadium on Thursday, May 15.

Dressed in a bright white singlet emblazoned with forest green lettering, senior Josh Shriver lined up for the 4A boys 3200-meter final. 

After hearing the pop of the starter’s gun, Shriver wisely recognized it was a long race and tucked himself in the middle of the pack. With Cheyenne Mountain’s Aiden Le Roux driving the pace at the front, Shriver split a time of 1 minute, 8.37 seconds through the first 400-meters of the eight-lap race.

Shriver naturally slowed on the second lap, settling into a good rhythm. Following several consistent laps, Shriver made a move, passing several runners to jump to eighth place.

Knowing only the top nine athletes make the illustrious state awards podium, Shriver opened his stride for the final lap of the race. Shriver completely emptied his tank, crossing the finish line in 12th with a time of 9:35.88. 

Although he fell a few spots over the last lap, Shriver matched his finish from last year.

The race was won by junior Ryder Keeton of Niwot High School who finished in a time of 9:02.44.

Cody Jones/Summit Daily News
Summit senior Josh Shriver competes in the 4A boys 3200-meter final at the state meet on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

Girls 3200-meter final 

A few minutes after the boys had cleared the area, senior Ella Hagen stepped onto the track for her final 4A state 3200-meter final.

After doing a power pose prior to the start of the race, Hagen confidently put herself at the front of the field, helping dictate the pace.

“I definitely just wanted to put myself in it, be confident on the line, tell myself that I can do it,” Hagen said. “I knew it would be really hard if I put myself in the front pack and it would definitely start to hurt.”

Following Air Academy’s Tessa Walter and Niwot’s Addison Ritzenhein through the first 400-meters, Hagen stayed tucked along the rail on the inside of the track. After splitting 5:21.65 through the halfway point of the race, Hagen began to lean into the pain and fight for a spot high on the podium. 

With lactic acid flowing through her arms and legs, Hagen pushed all the way to the finish line for fourth place in a time of 10:51.52. The performance means that Hagen has finished no lower than fourth in the state 3200 over her high school career.

“I was just telling myself to keep my eyes up ahead,” Hagen said of the last few laps. “Keep your eyes on Addy and Tessa. Don’t let the gap grow. You’re stronger when it hurts. … I kept the mindset as good as I could and just gave everything in my last 3200.”

Hagen was preceded by Ritzenhein in first (10:27.79), Air Academy’s Chamorra Cooper in second (10:37.20) and Walter in third (10:40.79).

With three more races before the conclusion of the meet on Saturday, Hagen will focus on recovery and enjoying her final state meet before returning to Jefferson County Stadium on Friday. 

“I am just going to try to be really present and soak in this last state meet,” Hagen said. “Stay positive, keep looking ahead. Get some good recovery in, keep the legs strong and relaxed. Same with the mind.”

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Girls 4×200 prelims

After two distance events to begin the morning, Summit turned its focus to its first relay, the girls 4×200.

Ranked ninth out of 18 teams, a Tigers team made up of junior Teagan Barth, junior Saige Heflin, freshman Avery Russer and junior Hailey Russer tried to qualify for the final tomorrow.

Barth exploded from the starting blocks to begin the relay, handing the baton off to Heflin for the Tiger’s second leg. Showing her promise in the sport, freshman Avery Russer ran a quick third leg for Summit before her sister, Hailey, brought the relay home.

Summit crossed the finish line in 1:48.22 to take ninth in the second heat and 17th overall. With only the top nine teams advancing to the final, Summit failed to secure a qualifying spot. 

Cody Jones/Summit Daily News
Ruby Snyder eyes the finish line during the 4A girls 100-meter hurdles on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

Girls 100-meter hurdles prelims

Summit junior Faith Fox, freshman Avery Russer and freshman Ruby Snyder were the next group of Summit athletes to get their chance to qualify for a final.

Competing at her third state meet of her career, Fox lined up for the 4A girls 100-meter hurdles.

After barely missing out on the final last spring, Fox charged out of the blocks, gliding over the first set of hurdles. Needing to place within top three in her heat in order to automatically advance to the final, Fox quickly ate up ground in between hurdles and powered her way to the finish line.

Fox took third in heat two (15.24) to advance to the final. The time marked a new school record for the junior, further solidifying the work she has put in since her freshman year. 

“This is my third state, and it shows that over all that time I can finally get my 100 hurdles down,” Fox said. “I can finally get a good time down and it shows that I have been working hard. I am really happy that I have my teammates to run with me and that I am here with my coaches too.”

Prior to Fox, Russer and Snyder tried to secure their own spot in the final. In her state meet debut, Snyder raced spectacularly, finishing fifth in heat one (15.71) and successfully advancing to the final on time. 

Russer unfortunately hit the second to last hurdle, resulting in a late fall. Russer took ninth in the first heat (18.74) and 18th overall.

Fox and Snyder will compete in the final on Saturday morning.

Cody Jones/Summit Daily News
Lukas Remeikis, left, Carter Niemkiewicz, Jay McDonald and Josh Shriver pose for a photo after taking ninth in the 4A boys 4×800-meter relay on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

Boys 4×800 final 

The Tigers’ last track final of the day was the 4A boys 4×800-meter final.

Coming in ranked 10th overall, the team had a fair chance of making the podium, but needed four, well executed legs.

Summit junior Carter Niemkiewicz gave the team the start it was looking for, running a fast split before handing the baton to sophomore Lukas Remeikis.

Remeikis spun his wheels over the second leg before fighting through traffic and handing the baton to sophomore Jay McDonald for the team’s penultimate leg.Wanting to make the podium, McDonald ran hard eventually handing the baton off to Shriver for the final leg.

With eight laps already in his legs, Shriver hung tough, making sure he didn’t give an inch to his trailing competitors. Summit crossed the finish line in 8:06.01 to take ninth overall in the race, earning the final spot on the podium. 

The relay team set a new school record for the program, going under its qualifying time from last week of 8:09.64.

“I think it’s a good step in the right direction,” Remeikis said. “”…It’s a really cool experience to be here. I’ve been coming here since Dom’s sophomore year, and it’s just like nice to experience it.”

Cody Jones/Summit Daily News
Faith Fox soars through the air during the 4A girls long jump competition on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

Girls long jump

Fresh off qualifying in the 100-meter hurdles, Fox quickly transitioned to her one and only field event of the meet — the 4A girls long jump. 

With the third best mark in the field, Fox came into the competition eager to secure a finish on the podium. 

On her first jump of qualifiers, Fox soared through the air, recording a mark of 16 feet. Knowing she needed to add at least a couple inches to her jump, Fox cleaned up her technique and approach. The extra focus resulted in an additional two inches, bumping Fox up in the rankings.

Seeing no improvement on her final jump, Fox successfully advanced to the 10-woman final by placing ninth overall (16 feet, 2 inches).

Getting three more jumps in the final, Fox made the most of each attempt. After hovering around 16 feet in qualifiers, Fox quickly approached the 17-foot barrier on her first attempt of the final. With a mark of 16 feet, 11 inches, Fox sat in seventh place heading into her second jump.

Fox tried to improve her placing on her next two jumps, but was not able to surpass 16 feet, 11 inches. With her first jump of finals being her best, Fox managed to take seventh, marking her first state long jump podium finish.

Niwot’s Eliana Henriques won the event with a mark of 18 feet, 3 inches. 

Cody Jones/Summit Daily News
Jamison Lee smiles after competing in the 100-meter dash at the state track and field meet on Thursday, May 15, 2025.
Cody Jones/Summit Daily News

Paralympic and Special Olympics 100 and 200-meter

The morning of 4A events concluded with the boys and girls Paralympic and Special Olympics 100- and 200-meter dash.

Among the competition were several Summit locals, including Summit sophomore Jamison Lee. At his first state meet, Lee came within fractions of a second of going under 25 seconds in the 100-meter dash. Lee finished the 100-meter dash in 25.01 seconds, taking first in his race.

Lee returned to the track less than an hour later for the 200-meter dash where he split a time of 1:08.35.

Summit was also represented by junior Summit Clark (17.47,41.55) freshman Sonja Waldes (18.43 39.19), senior Samantha Trevino (28.17, 1:05.86) and freshman Kimberly Sorto Lopez (1:28.16).

The state meet will resume on Friday morning with Summit’s first event scheduled for 11:30 a.m.

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