Photo by Jaren Brooks

Might this be the year for Volcano Vista to hoist its first Blue Trophy? 

For a team that was projected to be the team to beat entering this season, Volcano Vista sure hasn't disappointed. The Hawks have run to victories this season through tight team splits and averaging out their way through the standings.  The fact that they have seemingly perfected the 1-5 split to around 50 seconds. They are led by Aiden Davis who placed 6th in the 2019 state meet while Orion Chavez and Lucas Kedge have found themselves making up a dynamic trio as they form the tightest grouping of any other team in the state. The rest of the Hawks unit includes senior Noel Abraha, juniors Jude Lucero, Stoney Cutchen, and Thomas Croshaw. Their district rivals Rio Rancho and Sue Cleveland will make it a close matchup on a relatively fast course. Both the Rams and the Storm may not have the packing ability that Volcano Vista has but they do have low scorers that will shorten the gap. Cody Toya and Caden Nunn lead the Storm off of that championship team in March that saw them hoist their fourth straight. The Rams will be led by Dawson Gunn as he will try to pull along his teammates in a battle for the podium. Organ Mountain will seek to land on the podium after they were even further behind Volcano Vista as they placed 7th in the 5A state meet. With the new name, The Knights have found themselves improved from the team they were merely eight months ago with Brett Bybee leading the charge. District 2-5A's Eldorado and Sandia will also find themselves in the mix both led by top ten contenders with Steven West and Naseem Dhaouadi. Whether this race takes a speedy or tactical approach could determine the champions of this 5A boys classification. 

Photo by Jaren Brooks

Individuals

Sandia's Steven West has been a consistent challenger to Hope Christian's Rendon Kuykendall all year long and has found himself as the true 5A favorite leading up to this championship. Dawson Gunn has been in the same range of success while southern New Mexico has seen runners like Brett Bybee and Celso Garcia at the top of the totem pole in that region. Aiden Davis would also like to give his team a huge boost in the scoring by pulling off a win on a course as fast as ABQ Academy's is. West's teammate Tucker Scott has been a top ten finisher consistently as well as Cleveland's Cody Toya. This is the top classification in the state and every single one of these athletes has the potential to steal the show with a victory on this stage. We can expect a fast finish in an afternoon race to determine the boys' 5A champion. 

State Qualifiers