Los Alamos track teams win four state titles, set relay record

Los Alamos High School’s girls 3,200-meter relay set the tone for the weekend at the UNM Track-Soccer Complex, running a state-record 9:40.86 and launching a four-title haul that again showed how deep the Hilltoppers are from relays to field events.

The state meet, held May 15-16 in Albuquerque, finished with Los Alamos winning the Class 4A girls 800-meter relay, the 1,600-meter relay and Sarah Martis taking first in the discus. The girls’ four wins made the team one of the meet’s dominant programs, even as Albuquerque Academy edged Los Alamos for the team title, 127-90.

That second-place finish ended a remarkable run of five straight Class 4A girls championships for Los Alamos dating to 2019. The 2020 meet was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the Hilltoppers still put together a streak that stretched across multiple classes of athletes and multiple seasons of pressure.

The boys nearly added another trophy to the case. Los Alamos finished third with 59 points, just one point behind Silver’s 60. Patrick Montoya delivered one of the top individual performances for the Hilltoppers, winning the boys high jump at 6 feet 2 inches. Sophomore Jens Wald-Hopkins added a school record in the 400 meters at 47.84 seconds, then placed fourth in the 100 and third in the 200.

The results matched what Los Alamos had already shown at the District 4A-2 meet at Sullivan Field on May 8. The boys rolled to the district title with 186 points to Moriarty’s 124, while the girls won with 195.5 points over Moriarty’s 108.5. At district, the girls swept all five relay events and the boys swept every individual track event, a clear sign that the state success came from more than one standout performance.

That combination of relay speed, individual range and scoring depth made Los Alamos difficult to catch all season. In Albuquerque, the Hilltoppers turned that breadth into a state-record relay, four girls titles and a near-double trophy finish that reinforced why Los Alamos remains one of New Mexico’s most complete track and field programs.