HS track and field: These Arizona athletes could have impact at major California event

The 2023 Arizona high school track and field season was one of the most special in recent memory. It was a historic spring with seven state records broken over the year. Four of those records came in one night at the Arcadia Invitational in Southern California, one of the most prestigious meets in the nation.

Here’s what to watch for among Arizona athletes at this year’s meet, which begins Friday night and continues Saturday, with the Invitational beginning at 3 p.m., in Arcadia, California. The event will be live-streamed for free on runnerspace.com.

Hamilton's Kori Martin chases history

Last year, Gilbert Williams Field senior Saira Prince pulled off the remarkable act of breaking both the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles state record in less than one hour. Now, Chandler Hamilton senior Kori Martin will try to do the same. She already has the 100-meter hurdle record at 13.32 seconds, which she set two weeks ago at the Nike Chandler Rotary and is the No. 3-fastest time in the nation. The Kentucky commit will try to lower that time again and will have a field of athletes to push her, including in-state competitor Annaleise Taylor. The senior from Waddell Canyon View has been performing at an extremely high level and has run 13.94 this season and will be in the same race as Martin. Also joining Martin and Taylor in the race is Phoenix North Canyon sophomore Rebekah-Jhade Garrett.

Martin said she is now going after the 300-meter hurdle record, which Prince set at 40.90. Martin has a lifetime best of 42.76, so there’s some work to be done. Taylor is in that race as well as she is ranked No. 4 in the country for the event at 41.79.

Can Gilbert's Vance Nilsson set record?

Gilbert senior Vance Nilsson has been one of the top hurdlers in the country this season, evident in his No. 1 ranking in the 300-meter hurdles at 36.43. He’s notched wins at every meet this spring. Now Nilsson has his sights on the Arizona state record in the event, set in 2014 by Phoenix Brophy Prep’s Robert Grant at 36.24. This meet should be far more competitive than the Chandler Rotary for Nilsson, who won with relative ease.

Nilsson said he feels confident that he can get the record this weekend.

He’s not as confident that he’ll be able to take down the 110-meter hurdle record, held by Phoenix Brophy Prep’s Devon Allen. In 2013, Allen ran 13.50. So far this season, Nilsson has run a wind-aided 13.78. Another Arizona competitor, Brophy Prep junior William De Spong, will be in the 110-meter hurdle race.

Cesar Chavez's Mayen Usoro's next step

For the first time in a Cesar Chavez uniform, super sophomore Mayen Usoro is leaving the state of Arizona for a race. Usoro is No. 2 all-time in the state history for the 200 meters (23.48) and is No. 4 all-time for the 100 meters (11.50).

Usoro has dominated in-state competition since arriving on the scene and now finally gets to test herself against out-of-state athletes. With Oregon Lake Oswego senior and USC commit Mia Brahe-Pedersen — who is one of the fastest sprinters in high school history — in both races, there’s a very real chance that state records in each event could fall on Saturday night with the way Usoro has been running this season.

Peoria’s Jessica Onyepunuka owns the 100-meter record at 11.31 and Chandler’s Ky Westbrook has the 200-meter record at 23.37. Jessica Onyepunuka little sister Stacey, a senior at Avondale Agua Fria, will also be in the 100 and 200-meter races on Saturday night.

Can ALA QC's Taylor Searle reach new heights?

He’s only been here for less than a year, but American Leadership Academy Queen Creek senior Taylor Searle has already made an imprint on state history. Searle, who is a transfer from Montana and is committed to BYU, has gone 17 feet, 3 inches in the pole vault this season. That mark is No. 3 all-time in Arizona and is currently No. 3 in the country.

After breaking the meet record at the Chandler Rotary, Searle made his first attempt at the state record when he tried to clear 17-8 (Surprise Valley Vista’s Cole Riddle went 17-7 in 2017). Searle was unsuccessful on multiple attempts, but it was also his first time seeking the height in live competition. Paradise Valley Phoenix Country Day School junior Sam Novak and Queen Creek sophomore Dash Wasson will also be competing in the pole vault.

Red Mountain's Tyler Mathews steps out

After an extended indoor track and field season, which saw him compete at Nike Indoor Nationals and the 116th Millrose Games, Mesa Red Mountain senior and 800-meter state record holder Tyler Mathews makes his long-awaited 2024 outdoor debut in the event. It was at this meet last year where Mathews first set the 800-meter record when he ran 1:49.32 to come in second. Mathews, a BYU commit, later broke his record at the Open State Championships.

Mathews has had a different ramp-up to this season as compared to last season, and that’s for a specific reason: He plans to run into the summer at Nike Outdoor Nationals and the Brooks PR Invitational in June. Mathews has run in a 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter race, but this will be his first 800-meter race of the season. He came into the year as the No. 1 returning athlete in the nation for the 800.

Can Campo Verde's Brooklyn Montgomery move up?

Gilbert Campo Verde senior Brooklyn Montgomery launched herself into history last season when she threw 154-6 in the discus. That throw put her at No. 5 on the all-time list in state history. But Montgomery hasn’t been able to throw further than that since then, which came in the season-opening meet back in March 2023. The BYU signee just had her best throw last week though. At the Ron Smith Classic held at Phoenix Shadow Mountain High School, Montgomery went 149-1. It’s the furthest she has thrown in nearly a year.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona high school track and field heads to the Arcadia Invitational