State track & field championships: Monte del Sol's Meade has sights set on AA sprint titles

Pancho Morris | The New Mexican

5/8/2008 - 5/9/08

Sarah Meade is not here to chase the legend that is Jackie Kemp.

Not this year.

But she is here to add to a legacy.

That is, her own.

Meade, the gifted junior at Monte del Sol, arrives at the Class AA Girls State High School Track and Field Championships as the favorite in the 100 and 200 meters, and the long jump. She also anchors two relays, both of which are seeded first heading into the two-day meet at Great Friends of UNM Track.

Yet, the only record Meade believes can be broken does not belong to Kemp, who went on a record run in 1985 and whose marks in the 200, 400 and 100 hurdles have stood the test of time.

Instead, it is the seven-year-old mark in the 100 that could be erased as early as today.

"I'm hoping I can do as well as I have in the past," Meade says.

Meade clocked a 12.28-second 100 at the Richard Harper Memorial Invitational two weeks ago at Albuquerque Academy. It was well below the 12.52 Ruth Dmrzalski of Albuquerque Menaul put into the record book in 2001. There's just one difference. Dmrzalski's time came at state, and state records can only be set at the state meet.

"I'm kind of scared I might not be able to do that at state, for it to count," Meade says of beating the clock and besting the record. "But mostly I'm just excited, to see how it turns out."

Meade's personal scrapbook and the Monte del Sol record book are pretty much one and the same. Except, for the 400. The school record is held by freshman Kiana Glover, who enters state as the top seed with a time of 1:01.34.

"Kiana is so amazing," Meade says.

Meade would know.

About Glover.

About the 400.

Traci Lopez of Santa Fe Preparatory overtook Meade at the finish line of the state 400 a year ago, denying her a state title. Mead, though, posted the third-fastest time this year. But she opted out of the race to run a second relay.

"Actually, I was more than happy to drop it," Meade says of the 400. "It's so hard and Kiana can win it. Plus, I haven't been able to do the 200 since two years ago."

Ah, the 200. Which brings us back to Kemp.

Kemp ran 25.80 at state in 1985. That was after she ran 57.60 in the 400, and after she ran 15.00 in the 100 hurdles. The effort was legendary.

Meade, though, ran 25.72 this season. She doesn't know what to expect in today's preliminaries or Saturday's final.

"I don't know if I'll be able to do that," Meade says of chasing down Kemp. "My leg's been hurting. It's just pain in my calf muscle and I have to run through it. I'm waiting to see what happens, really. It's going to be exciting and that excitement will help me run through everything.

"And having my team around helps me a lot."

Glover is a relay mainstay. As are Jamaica Gonzales and Danielle Varela. Add eighth-grade hurdler Juliet Smith to the mix and who knows, Monte del Sol just might be in the race for a team trophy come Saturday night.

"I'm most excited about our relays," Meade says of the 400 and 800 foursomes. "I can't believe how much we've improved on them."

Meade is a better in the long jump than she was last year, when she finished second at state at 15 feet, 101/2 inches. This year, she has gone 16-61/2.

But it is the long jump that causes concern.

"I've always had a farther jump out of state than I have at state," Meade says.

Meade will know by her third jump if she's on or off.

"Usually, my first two, I kind of worry about scratching," Meade says. "My third jump is usually my best."

At state, there are three preliminary attempts. The top eight marks qualify for the finals, which includes three more jumps.

Because she is the top seed, Meade will have the advantage of jumping last on Saturday, the day of the long jump. But there is little margin for error. Kelsey Zimmerman of Questa had gone 16-51/2, while two others have landed 16-31/4 and 16-3.

"It's been unbelievable," Meade says of her season. "This year, I've gotten a lot better and I'm just amazed every time I go faster."

It's not quite Kemp-esque.

Not yet.

But there are still two days left in the season.