COLORADO SPRINGS | Colton White crossed the finish line at the Norris Penrose Event Center and drifted to the right.
That’s where the 94 percent of the 154 qualifiers in the race would end up, but an official insistently ushered him to the left, where the rest of the top 10 finishers in the Class 5A boys cross country state race congregated.
Sitting with the other elite runners in the cordoned off box after he finished 10th in a time of 15 minutes, 46.2 seconds, the Grandview senior let joy and realization wash over him.
“I just could not be happier; I’ve been dreaming about this since freshman year,” White said. “The field has been getting so much more competitive every year. …My time would have won this race three years ago. It’s just been getting crazy fast, so I couldn’t be happier to make it in the top 10 this year.”
Indeed this was a top 10 finish unlike those in years past with a powerhouse field.
Nationally ranked Niwot ran in the 5A race for the first time since moving up in classification and the race already featured a tandem of stars from Mountain Vista and assorted other outstanding individuals.
White had been to the state meet twice before — he finished 100th last season while he fought to overcome injury and was 85th as a sophomore in 2022 — but came into his final state meet ready to take a run at the medal podium. In his final two races before state, White finished as the Centennial League runner-up and placed third in the 5A Region 1 race.
He turned it up a notch at the state meet, adjusted perfectly to the flow of the race dictated by Mountain Vista’s Benjamin Anderson — who won the race with a course record time — and got past who he needed to get into the top 10.
“I started off more aggressive; I like being in that front group even though that’s probably not where I’m supposed to be,” White said. “That first steep hill is where Benji (Anderson) started to go for it and when the pack started to split.
“I was towards the back end and I thought ‘you know this pack is going to split, so now is when you do a stride and make it hurt a little bit so you’re up with that front group. Then make them pull you along, stay with that front group and kick and then you get what you get.”
White’s finish — celebrated from the stands by jubilant teammates, coaches and family members — was the second-best all-time for the Grandview boys program. It was bested only by the fourth-place finish of Nathan Graham in 2014.
“A finish line this in recent years is unheard of for the program,” White said. “It’s what we wanted, especially since the team didn’t qualify. They were here to support.”
Grandview head coach Brian Manley relished White’s result.
“That infused all of us with a lot of happiness for sure,” Manley said. “I thought top 10 was a possibility just knowing him, but oh my gosh, 5A is just incredible. …It’s exciting stuff and couldn’t happen to a nicer, more humble kid. He’s a great teammate and terrific leader and it showed in all his brothers who showed up and were every bit as excited for him as he was.”
Next-highest in the standings among Aurora qualifiers was Regis Jesuit senior Braeden Focht, who finished in 32nd place in his third career state trip. Focht — who finished 95th as a sophomore in 2022 and 13th last season — ran 15:16.2. Teammate Caleb Aex, also a three-year state qualifier, finished in 101st place in 17:15.0.
Cherokee Trail junior Dylan Smith ran time of 15:16.6 to finish 33rd, which helped him improve 22 spots from his 55th place result in 2023.
Coach Chris Faust’s Cougars — the only Aurora area team to qualify — finished 13th out of scoring teams with help from junior Josh Chadeayne in 64th, junior Carter Getty in 72nd and senior Andrew Crippen in 97th. Senior Andrew Kittel placed 140th, senior Everett Hammond 148th and sophomore Kenneth English 150th to round out Cherokee Trail’s results.
Rangeview had its first state competitors since 2016 and senior Kimi Bulto ran 17:04.2 for 89th in his one and only state appearances, while freshman Abdinasir Hassan was 103rd in 17:15.6.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
