The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Cody Pleak sets new school record
By Than Acuff
Following a two week training block between track meets, the Crested Butte Titans returned to action at the North Fork Invitational in Hotchkiss on Saturday, March 21 and continue to make massive gains as the athletes set 16 personal records (PR) and 11 season best (SB) times at the meet highlighted by the work of Cody Pleak who set a new school record in the high jump clearing 6’1”.
“We got in lots of strength workouts and slowly increasing volume,” says coach Shari Sullivan-Marshall. “It was definitely a successful two weeks, and our PRs and SBs showed it.”
Twenty-two teams made it to the North Fork Invitational, and they got their first test of competing in the heat with temperatures reaching 86 degrees during the day.
“It was a sauna,” says Sullivan-Marshall. “But the kids did a good job of managing it.”
The heat didn’t slow the Titans down though as the 17 athletes that competed all stepped up their games posting a handful of top 10 results amongst the bigger schools amongst all of their PRs and SBs.
On the girl’s side, Eva Loflin, Barbara Siqueira, Haley Erikson and Ilo Hawley combined to take eighth in the 4×200-meter relay and Hawley then went on to place eighth in the 400 meters.
“It was Ilo’s first meet of the season, and she just looked great,” says Sullivan-Marshall.
Dari Spedden set a new PR in the 1600 meters and joined Loflin, Hawley and Erikson as the anchor to finish seventh in the 4×400-meter relay with a season best time.
“Haley knocked it out of the park,” says Sullivan-Marshall. “They just made it happen and did well.”
Pleak led the boys’ team setting a new PR in the 1600-meters to place third during the hottest part of the day and then broke the school record in the high jump later that day to finish in second.
“He’s just running with ease,” says Sullivan-Marshall. “He’s so confident in the work he’s put in and just gets in there and competes.”
Flint Hoyt joined Pleak in the 1600 meters to place 10th and then Pleak, Hoyt, Max Sullivan and Cole Wimett teamed up to place seventh in the 4×400-meter relay. Meanwhile freshmen teammates Eero Stai, Max Bostick and Noah Lockman needed one more teammate to round out their 4×400 team. Sullivan-Marshall looked to senior Oskar Camp, who was relaxing in his slippers thinking his day was done, and he answered the call, put his running shoes back on and joined the freshmen to take 10th place.
“The 4×4 is at the end of the day and everyone is so fried,” says Sullivan-Marshall. “But it’s fun to watch them dig deep.”
The Titans head to Cedaredge on Saturday, March 28, and with winter sports officially done, they look to be near full strength for the upcoming meet.
“We’re still nursing some back to health, but we will have nearly a full roster competing so we will be able to expand our events,” says Sullivan-Marshall. “We will also debut our boys 4×800 which is our bread and butter.”
