LAKEWOOD — As if 18 of the state’s best 5A high jumpers weren’t competition enough, Legacy’s Camren McWee went to the 2012 track and field state championships with a distinct disadvantage against the others.But despite breaking his foot and missing most of his senior season, McWee jumped 6 feet, 6 inches on Thursday to take second place.
“It’s not what I wanted, but I’m just thankful that I’m here because I was supposed to be out because of my broken foot,” McWee said.McWee broke his foot during football season and didn’t notice anything significant was wrong until his first track meet. Competing in the high jump, he injured the foot.
He jumped 6-8 in the first meet of the season and entered the state meet seeded first. But McWee missed nearly all of 2012 as a result.
“Really, I’ve only competed four or five times this year,” McWee said. “It was bothering me a little today but there wasn’t much I could do about it but just jump and enjoy it. I’m just thankful to try and compete.”Despite his aggravated foot, McWee will compete in the long jump Friday.
Legacy junior Kara Walling placed ninth in the girls 5A discus with a 119-foot, 4-inch throw.
Lightning freshman Emma Gee took 11th in the 5A girls 3,200-meter run and junior teammate Melanie Nun took 12th.
For Broomfield, senior Sarah Hughes finished fourth in the girls triple jump finals with a personal-best 36-1 1/2 jump.
“It was phenomenal,” Hughes said. “I didn’t expect this season to go as well as it did because it was such a rough start. Ending it with a bang was such a phenomenal end to my senior year and my high school career.”Hughes, who was disappointed with 14th place last year, has been bothered by a sprained ankle since the first scrimmage of the season. Thursday, Hughes said she sucked it up and went in with an, “I-don’t-care-if-it-hurts-attitude.”The Eagles boys 3,200-meter relay took seventh place.
Eagles sophomore Alexi Cox qualified for the girls 4A 200-meter dash finals with a third-place preliminary time of 25.63 seconds. She also ran a 12.68 in the 4A girls 100-meter dash preliminaries to qualify in ninth. Eagles junior Katie Croell took 11th in the 100-meter hurdles preliminaries with a 16.14. Eagles senior Harrison Einspahr ran the fastest 4A boys 100-meter preliminary time, finishing in 10.68 seconds. He ran a 21.85 in the 200, also the top preliminary time. Junior Sean Robnett qualified for the 100-meter finals in seventh, finishing in 10.96 seconds.
Einspahr also helped the Eagles boys 800-meter relay team run a 1:28.29 to qualify for the finals in third. Fellow senior Scott Dickinson ran a 15.20 in the 110-meter hurdles preliminaries to finish 10th.
