Chandler's Jai Gruenwald won 3 events last year helping  Wolves win the D-I state title. (Photo by Mike Martinez)

 

Spring has frequently been a busy and prosperous time for Chandler High track and field -- boys and girls. The 2018 Division I state meet should be no exception in one case and a battle again in the other.

State is upon us this week with Division I and contesting prelims and some finals on Wednesday May 2 and the remaining finals on Saturday May 5, also at MCC.

Team titles have been dominated this decade by Chandler High. The girls have won two in a row, seven of eight this decade and 11 of the last 12. The boys have won two straight and four of eight this decade. Last year Chandler's girls bested runner-up Desert Vista by 106 points and Chandler's boys went down to the wire to edge Desert Vista by two points. 

Expect Chandler's girls to win handily again, but Desert Vista is likely to push Chandler for the top spot and may have what it takes to win this time.

As for the individual events, here's some of the top athletes to keep an eye on this week, staring with returning event champions:

BOYS

DEFENDING CHAMPION: There's only one male athlete who won an individual event that's back to go for a repeat. Cibola distance runner Thomas Cain, who won the 3,200 meters last year. 

ATHLETES TO WATCH: The  110 high hurdles and 300 intermediate hurdles feature two guys from the same region -- Red Mountain senior Johnie Talamantes and Westwood senior James Smith. Smith was third in his best event last year -- the 300. Talamantes has the best time to date in the 110 (13.88) while Smith has run 36.58 in the 300. Talamantes isn't just a hurdler. He's posted the best qualifying mark in the long jump and is a contender for the top spot in the triple jump. A name that is omnipresent near the top in the distances is this year's state cross country champ from Highland, sophomore Leo Daschbach. Daschbach owns the top qualifying time in the 800 and 1,600. The top qualifer in the 3,200 is Brophy Prep's Drew Burns. In the sprints the top 100 times have been turned in by Cesar Chavez's Chris Russell, Corona del Sol's Adam Knuff and Pinnacle's Quinton Powell. Though lacking the top times, Chandler's Ta'Mir Waters and Jaheim Brown-Taylor and Red Mountain's David Eppinger could make some noise in the 100 and 200. The throws are likely owned by Desert Vista. Senior Deshon Toney placed last year in the shot and discus and has plans for medalist honors this time. He has the best throw of the season in D-I by far and is surrounded by teammates for the top spot in the discus. Thunder senior Marcus Figueroa has three to five feet on three of his brethern. The top qualifer in the high jump is Hamilton's Malik Wihtaker (6-6)  andPinnacle's Jaylen Coleman in the triple jump (46-11). New to scoring this year is the javelin and the top mark belongs to Desert Vista's Kevin Fairchild.

GIRLS
 

DEFENDING CHAMPIONS: There are several. Leading the way is Chandler senior Jai Gruenwald, who won the 100 high hurdles, 300 low hurdles and long jump last year. Gruenwald is a three-time state long jump champ. Junior teammate Morgan Foster, who has returned to competition after a horrific car accident on New Year's Day, won the 800 and 1,600 in 2017. Foster has a new teammate who claimed the top spot last year in the 3,200 -- senior Haley Wolf. Wolf, the reigning D-I state cross countrt champ, transferred from Desert Vista after the cross country season. Hamilton senior Morgan Parzych took top honors in the 400 last year. Millennium junior Alaina Diggs won shot put and Highland junior Cierra Tidwell ruled the high jump.

ATHLETES TO WATCH: Certainly Gruenwald, Wolf and Foster top the list, but there are others. In the sprints, Tucson senior Neysia Howard, Valley Vista senior Dorian Nesby and Chandler' sophomore Armani Harris and Chandler senior Zaire Chest are contenders with Parzych also in that mix. Desert Vista junior Sevanna Hanson was runner-up last year in the pole vault and is the top qualifier this year. The top four qualifiers in the long jump are from Chandler and Desert Vista. Leading the mix is Chandler senior Diamond Black along with Gruenwald, who was third in the long jump last year to go along with her three golds. Desert Vista seniors Jillian Lombardi and Jenna Figueroa are among that group. Chandler's Samantha Pond owns the top marks entering state in the shot and discus. Again the javelin is a scoring event and the top two marks belong to Kofa's Keily Sharp and Dobson's Brooke Stratman.