It wouldn’t be a league event for Moffat County High School track and field athletes without bringing home some hardware, and the Bulldogs earned some metal last weekend.

MCHS teams both finished as Class 3A runners-up during the Multi-League Championship Friday and Saturday in Rifle, collecting the gold in four events, as well as an individual victory.

Big day for boys

Moffat County junior Evan Atkin ended the meet as the Men’s Athlete of the Year among 3A Western Slope League schools. His performance across the event included repeating wins from last year in the high jump and long jump, as well as a first-place finish in the 200-meter dash.

Fighting a strong wind both days, he clocked a time of 23.91 in the finals of the 200. The wind was also against him in the long jump, though his leap of 20 feet, 5.5 inches got him the win, while 6-0 got the job done in the high jump. He also finished second in the 110 hurdles at 16.61.

“He had a really good meet,” Coach Todd Trapp said. “The boys did a good job, we had people scoring in places we didn’t expect — a lot of them outdid themselves. It was exciting.”

Andrew Duran set a personal record in the 100 dash finals, taking second place at 11.62, plus finishing fifth in the 400. Boden Reidhead cut nearly 10 seconds off his best time in the 800 run, taking third at 2:04.56, with Owen Gifford also earning the bronze in the 1,600 at 5:17.62. Reidhead also took sixth in the 3,200 (11:46.1), with Noah Beason in eighth (11:54.62).

The boys had their best relay finish in the 4×400 with third for Jimi Jimenez, Zeka Alcantar, Ian Trevenen and Duran, plus fifth in the 4×200 — Duran, Alcantar, Hudson Jones, Jimenez — and sixth in the 4×800 — Reidhead, Trace Frederickson, Trevenen, Gifford.

In the field, Trevenen was right behind Atkin in the high jump, placing second at a season-best 5-11, while Hudson Jones placed fourth at 5-7.

Hudson also placed second in the triple jump at 39-11, with Alex Musgrave sixth, each a personal record. Kenny Frederickson hit his best mark in the long jump at 17 feet for eighth place.

For throwers, Isaac Vallem placed sixth in the discus at 109-7 and also returned to his best of 35-3 in the shot put. Tanner Zimmerman missed the podium but gained personal records in the disc (99-2) and shot (32-11.5).

Bulldog baton battle

For the Moffat County girls, the biggest result was in the 4×200 relay with a win that was also their fastest time yet this spring. Emma Jones, Mikah Vasquez, Caitlyn Adams and Halle Hamilton were a full second faster than their last meet with a time of 1:46.31.

Jones and Hamilton have twice won state championships in the 4×200, as well as earning a school record in the half-mile relay last season, and coaches have been looking for the right configuration to get back to that standard.

“They’re close,” Trapp said.

The league event was tricky in all, considering most of the Bulldogs missed a week of competition with April 29’s home event canceled due to weather.

“It would’ve been better to have a meet that week, but it is what it is,” Trapp said.

Emma Jones, Mikah Vasquez, Alexis Jones and Hamilton also placed second in the 4×400, and MCHS girls earned points in every relay with sixth in the 4×800 — Teya Miller, Bree Meats, Brook Wheeler, Lizzy LeWarne — as well as third in the 800 sprint medley — Quincy Lowe, Antonia Vasquez, Mikah Vasquez, LeWarne — and fourth in the 4×100 — Lowe, Alexis Jones, Sadie Dunckley, Antonia Vasquez.

In the 400, Hamilton had her best time of the year in the prelims (59.16) and placed second in the finals ahead of Mikah Vasquez in third.

Hamilton also placed second, Jones third, and Adams seventh in the girls 200. Antonia Vasquez had the wind in her favor for the 100 dash with a personal record at 13.71 for fifth, with Lowe also reaching her best at 13.95 for eighth.

In the first attempt for any of the girls distance runners in the 3,200 run, Josefina Kuberry took ninth at 14:13.12.

In the girls field events, Emma Jones and Alexis Jones took second and third in the high jump, each hitting 4-11. Hitting a personal record in the long jump with a leap of 15-3.5 for fourth place was Teya Miller, with Adams seventh at 14-9, while on the other end Ruby Short took eighth in triple jump at 29-3.25.

Though she missed placement points, Taylen Hume earned a PR of 27-8.5 in the shot put.

MCHS track and field athletes will be back at Stocker Stadium this weekend for Grand Junction’s Tiger Invitational, their final chance to post their best results and qualify for the state championships.