Rams get record from Riess

CLOVIS - Michael Riess was looking forward to his matchup in the boys 1,600 against Rio Rancho's Dawson Gunn in Thursday's Wildcat Relays at Leon Williams Stadium.

He didn't beat Gunn, the top miler in the state this season, but he was well-pleased with his performance.

Riess, who broke the PHS record in the event at 4 minutes, 35.36 seconds in Monday's Marilyn Sepulveda Meet of Champions in Albuquerque, was disappointed he didn't see Gunn in that meet. On Thursday, though, he shattered his three-day-old mark with a time of 4:31.51, finishing second to Gunn (4:24.49).

It was enough to get him qualified for Class 4A state competition in May.

"I was excited to have him pull me so I could qualify," Riess said. "I kind of tried to stay with him for the first lap or two."

Gunn's showing helped Rio Rancho run away with team honors, finishing with 121 1/3 points to 98 for runnerup Hobbs in the 10-team competition. Clovis High was a distant third with 47, while PHS finished eighth with 29 1/3.

Rio Rancho also cruised on the girls' side, tallying 90 points to 72 for defending Class 5A state champion Alamogordo. Clovis was sixth with 42 points, and Portales finished seventh at 28.

Riess, who didn't run his usual 800 after competing for the third time within a week, said the push from Gunn in the 1,600 was just what he needed.

"I don't get many races where I have somebody (running) with me," he said. "I didn't beat him, but I still feel happy."

PHS coach Quintin Wilson was excited by Riess' accomplishment, noting that he also ran a leg on the Rams' first-place 3,200 relay squad to help get it qualified for state.

"Michael's just a phenomenal young man," he said. "He just works hard every day. He wanted to run against the kid from Rio Rancho. He knew he'd have a good shot at qualifying (for state)."

Meantime, Lady Rams senior Kylyie Paden, who also competed on Monday in Albuquerque, didn't quite get to her usual standards in high jump (second at 4-10) and pole vault (first at 10-6), but she still delivered a productive day. She ran the 300 hurdles for the first time this season and won the event in 49.88 seconds.

Paden finished in a three-way tie for first at 11 feet on Monday which also included Clovis High's Madison Parkin, but settled for third based on misses while Parkin was the winner. They tied three days earlier in Portales' George/Love Invitational at 10-6, with Paden winning on fewer misses.

Parkin on Thursday finished third in the event for the Lady Wildcats, clearing 9-6.

Wilson thought Paden's performance with such a heavy recent load was remarkable.

"She hadn't run on a hurdle all year long," he said. "She's just an athlete, and that's all there is to it."

For Clovis, junior R.J. Nora backed off his normal workload a bit, but still won the 110 hurdles in 14.75 seconds and took third in his first crack at the 200 this year in an even 23 seconds.

"We had a good day from kids that normally perform well," CHS boys coach Mark Sena said. "And we had a couple of good surprises.

"Nora had another good day. He ran well in the two events (100 and 200) that he hasn't run before. We wanted to see what he could do in some of these events to plan for district."

On Monday in Albuquerque, Nora won the 110 hurdles in 16.77 seconds while finishing third in triple jump at 45-0 1/4 and fifth in long jump at 21-2 1/2.

The Lady Cats were second on Thursday in the 800 and 1,600 relays. Their top individual performance came from freshman Gabrielle Foggie, who placed second in a personal-best 59.79 seconds in the 400, just behind Alamo's Yvonne Stinson (59.68).

"I knew she was good in the 100 and 200," Foggie said of Stinson. "I was a little slow in the first 100, but I wasn't expecting her to be that fast. She definitely pushed me in the last 50 meters or so."

Facing a lot of older runners, Foggie said she thinks she's coming into her own at the varsity level.

"My very first track meet I was really nervous," she said. "I wasn't sure I could beat them, but this was one of my best efforts."

Despite losing to Rio Rancho, CHS coach Darrel Ray thinks Alamo will have a good chance to repeat next month.

"They're the defending state champions, and they're probably going to win it this year and next year," he said. "I don't know if we ran that well today, but we had a lot of good competition."

Clovis and Portales squads return to action on Friday in the Artesia Invitational.