Here's what you need to know as the prep sports calendar closes

So here we are. Almost nine months exactly since the prep soccer season began in mid-August, and kick-started the 2024-25 prep sports calendar.

We are down to these last three days, these last three sports.

Here is a road map of some of the top stories to watch in baseball, softball and track and field on Thursday, Friday and Saturday:

IS THIS THE YEAR?: It’s been 55 years … will this at last be the state meet where David Powdrell’s legendary long jump record finally goes down?

There have been a couple of decent candidates over the years, but possibly none who pose as much of a threat as La Cueva junior Tanner Montaño.

He soared 24 feet, 10 inches at metros (yes, helped by Mother Nature), and Powdrell’s record for Highland, set in 1970, is 24-3¼. This mark could definitely fall on Friday.

Montaño jumps at the University of New Mexico Track and Field Complex at 8 a.m. He already is the Class 5A record holder, can he soar past Powdrell? This has the potential to be extraordinary theater.

REDEMPTION ARC: La Cueva is the top seed in Class 5A baseball; the most compelling story, by far, is No. 4 Cleveland. The Storm are, in fact, the most interesting team left in the bracket.

A year ago, La Cueva beat Cleveland in the state final, as the Bears, down 2-1 in the bottom of the seventh, walked home the tying run and winning run with two outs, improbably winning 3-2.

If seeds hold, Cleveland and La Cueva would meet in Friday’s semifinals. The Storm are more incentivized to win this thing than anyone else.

CENT OF A CHAMPION?: The Centennial Hawks are not just 27-0, but average more than 12 runs a game and win, on average, by over 10 runs.

With this in mind, No. 1 Centennial begins Week 2 of the Class 5A state softball tournament on Thursday.

There has not been an undefeated state champion in the largest division since La Cueva in 2017.

DISTANCE GIANTS: At last this spring, we’ll have Charlie Vause of Rio Rancho and Corbin Coombs of Organ Mountain on the same track and at the same time — in New Mexico.

They’ve run against one another in New York City and Southern California this season, but Friday’s 5A 3,200-meter run at UNM will be their first head-to-head battle on New Mexico soil.

Vause is the top seed, Coombs the second seed, and frankly, these two are poised to dominate the field on Friday.

LET’S HEAR IT FOR THE BROWN AND GOLD!: Cibola baseball is into Week 2 as a 14 seed, and not necessarily your ordinary 14 seed. The Cougars have six combined victories this year against the top six seeds in the 5A bracket. They’ve beaten everyone in the top six except La Cueva.

Cibola has not been to the quarterfinal round in 15 years, since 2010, which is also the last year they even won a playoff game until last weekend when it took two out of three at No. 3 Carlsbad. This is a possible “anything can happen” type of team.

STREAKBUSTERS, THEY HOPE: No sport is more dominated by schools outside the metro area than softball. It’s been four years since a local team even reached a state final — Cleveland, which won it all in 2021 — and eight years since a team from Albuquerque hoisted a blue trophy.

With that in mind, La Cueva and Cibola are the 2 and 3 seeds, respectively, behind Centennial, and hoping to end that streak.

WATCH OUT: You never know at a state track meet where records will come; we talked about Montaño.

But another athlete that should be on everyone’s radar is Albuquerque High hurdler Kaden Andrus.

He is an exceptional 110-meter high hurdler, and posted 13.65 seconds in this event at metros a couple of weeks ago, with no wind of note. He has dominated his competition so far.

The overall state record (13.9) is 23 years old, and Andrus, who has been a blast to watch, could make some history this weekend.

BEAR MARKET?: La Cueva baseball has for many years been the gold standard in New Mexico, and the Bears are certainly favored to add another blue trophy to their collection this year. The Class 5A final is 6 p.m. Saturday at Santa Ana Star Field.

But I would be remiss not to point out that La Cueva, which is 25-3 as it prepares to face Los Lunas at 7 p.m. Thursday in the quarterfinals, has put together this terrific season with last year’s Gatorade Player of the Year, Braiden Reynolds, who won 10 games on the hill in 2024, not having pitched at all this spring. Which makes this La Cueva record even more impressive.

For what it’s worth, La Cueva has beaten every New Mexico team on its schedule, except one: Cleveland.

ANNIVERSARY YEAR: It has been 10 full years, since 2015, that the Volcano Vista boys won the state track and field meet in the largest class.

Why would this be significant?

Because Cleveland’s boys have won every single state meet since 2015, not counting 2020 when there wasn’t one. Oh, and Cleveland also won state in 2012, 2013 and 2014, too.

The Storm are going after their 12th blue trophy in 13 seasons, and this is just about the best boys dynasty going in the largest class in New Mexico. (Volcano Vista basketball fans, I imagine, would like a word.)

BEST FOR LAST: Couldn’t have a list like this one without Gianna Rahmer.

The dynamic and popular Eldorado freshman, who has yet to lose a distance race, cross country or track, inside New Mexico’s borders since she joined the Eagles as an eighth-grader, looks to complete another spotless campaign this weekend.

She is the top seed at all three distances, and is as must-see this weekend as anyone.