Hartle hopes to pull a triple as regional meets continue

The junior will try to win the 400-meter run, the 800 and the 1,600, a triple that has never been pulled off.

“Nick has worked really hard this year,” Centennial coach Roy Sessions said. “He really wanted to focus on the 800 and 1,600 this year, but he is running the 400 to help his team.

“Friday will be a tough day, but he has trained so hard for days like this.”

Silverado senior sprinter Ladale Jackson will attempt a triple of his own in the Sunrise Region in the 100, 200 and 400. He is the defending state champion in the 400.

Hartle and Jackson have qualified for the finals in each of their three events. The meet continues at 3 p.m. Friday at Del Sol. The field event finals and the finals of the 3,200 and 3,200 relays were contested last week.

Hartle is the more likely of the two to pull off his triple since he is the No. 1 seed in all three events.

Jackson is the top seed in the 200 and 400, but qualified second behind Las Vegas’ Cameron Rogers in the 100.

But Hartle’s attempt is also considered the more difficult because there is less recovery time between his three events, especially the 1,600 and 400, which are separated by only one event.

Friday’s meet will consist of 10 running event finals, with the top five athletes and teams — in the case of the three remaining relay events — qualifying for state next Friday and Saturday.

The Sunset girls meet will feature a matchup of two of the top high school hurdlers in the nation, Candice McFarland of Legacy and Karli Johonnot of Centennial.

McFarland qualified as the No. 1 seed, just ahead of Johonnot, in the 100 hurdles. Johonnot, the defending state champion, qualified as the top seed in the 300 hurdles, just ahead of the Legacy senior.

 “I think that the girls 300 hurdles with McFarland, Johonnot and (Centennial freshman Tiana) Bonds will be one of the most exciting races of the regional finals,” Centennial girls coach Jessica Scobell said.

Johonnot has already qualified for state in the high jump, and is the No. 2 seed behind teammate Tamera Williams in the 200 final.

Centennial freshman Sydney Badger, who has already won the Sunset 3,200, will be going for a triple, too.

Badger had the fastest qualifying time in the 1,600 and second fastest in the 800, behind Arbor View’s Andrea Gonzalez.

The girls Sunrise meet will feature an attempt by Green Valley senior Alyssa Rapovy to capture the distance double and win the 1,600 meter run. Rapovy won the 3,200 last Friday and had the fastest qualifying time in the 1,600.

Valley’s Anne Underwood, the defending state champion in the 800, qualified as the top seed in the Sunrise 800. The senior also is a finalist in the 1,600. 

Team titles are on the line as well. The Centennial boys and girls are the defending champions in both Sunset meets and would appear headed for repeat wins. The Bulldogs are leading after eight events in both meets and have the most finalists in both meets.

In the Sunrise, Silverado’s boys have a substantial lead over Foothill (62-40) and are positioned to win the meet. The Sunrise girls meet figures to be close.

Silverado’s girls lead over Green Valley is more precarious, with 65½ points to 58½ for the Gators. It may come down to the final event, the 1,600 relay.