Denver East star runs 22.89 and 51.92 in 200 and 400 in 5A qualifying; Sloan and Hall shine with 40.60 and 40.76 efforts in separate heats for top two all-time state performances

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

In a span of 10 minutes Friday, friends and FK Elite club teammates Emily Sloan and Anna Hall took turns holding the Colorado state record in the girls 300-meter hurdles.

And those weren’t the first records to fall during the prelims at the Colorado High School Activities Association State Championships at Jefferson County Stadium in Lakewood.

Hall, a Valor Christian junior, clocked 40.76 seconds in the 4A prelims, lowering the mark of 40.77 produced May 10 by Sloan, a Rock Canyon senior, at the Continental League championship meet, which eclipsed the 2014 standard of 41.18 set by Rocky Mountain’s Carly Lester.

Sloan responded two races later by running 40.60 seconds to not only reclaim the record, but return to the No. 2 performer in the country behind Bullis MD junior Masai Russell (40.16).

Sloan elevated to the No. 14 all-time prep performer and Hall ascended to 18th entering Saturday’s finals. They would need to run faster than 40.42 in their respective finals to move into the top 10 in U.S. high school history.

Hall also won the 4A long jump title with a first-round leap of 18-9.75 into a headwind, in addition to posting the top qualifying time in the 200 prelims with a wind-aided 23.78.

Sloan also led all qualifiers by clocking 13.48 in the 5A 100 hurdles prelims, moving closer to a fourth straight title, in addition to running 23.93 in her 200 qualifying heat.

Denver East junior Arria Minor not only led all 5A qualifiers in the 200 and 400, but she improved on her state records in both prelims in the process.

Minor ran a national-leading 51.92 in the 400 prelims, elevating to the No. 14 all-time prep performer, lowering her own state mark of 52.05 from last season.

She followed with a wind-legal 22.89 in the 200 prelims, ascending to 13th in U.S. high school history, improving on her own state standard of 23.18 from May 5 at the Cherry Creek Invitational. In addition, Minor ran a wind-legal 11.51 in the 100 prelims to lead all qualifiers.