THORNTON — Cheyenne Mountain athletes beamed as they walked toward the podium to collect their trophy. 

The Red-Tailed Hawks scored 264 points and finished as runners-up Friday at Veterans Memorial Aquatic Center a year after winning the 4A championship.

While the swimmers and divers were uncertain of how the two-day event would conclude, coach Kate Doane bore a grin that implied the state meet finished how she knew it would. 

“These girls came in with the attitude of ‘do your job’ and they stepped up and had a really good first day,” Doane said. “They put together everything we’ve been working on all season and put their heart in the pool (Thursday). They got second in the (200 yard) medley relay. Everyone had their best times and it was so good to see that success for them.” 

Hailey Birkby scored 41 of Cheyenne Mountain’s points and: earned a pair of individual second-place finishes, placed second on the 200 yard freestyle relay and fourth for the 400 freestyle relay. 

Birkby, who was a freshman on last year’s title team, said the loss of seniors hurt with more than just team depth. The camaraderie was also a factor, but Birkby’s spirit galvanized the team and helped fill the void left from last year’s departures.

“I try to have my energy rub off on everyone and make sure that everyone felt like they were included and made sure everyone did their best,” Birkby said. “I’m really proud of all of us. There was a lot of hard work in practice and coach Kate always pushes us to be our best. Our relays got really hyped and pushed each other throughout the season.”

The Red-Tailed Hawks finished top 10 in nine of the 12 events to earn their trophy and eight of their 15 athletes scored to secure Cheyenne Mountain’s fourth runner-up title in team history. 

“I’m so happy and I did not think we were going to do that,” Birkby said. “I’m very proud of our team and what we accomplished. We lost a lot of seniors from last year, but we still placed really high. I’m proud of all of us.” 

Grace Perry sets 4A 100-yard butterfly mark, helps Rangers finish fourth with 216 points 

As Perry touched the wall to finish the 100 butterfly, she adjusted her swim goggles, turned to her right and looked at the board to see her time. 

Lane 5: 53.89 seconds. 

Perry’s eyes returned to her wall and carried on as though she hadn’t broken an eight-year-old record. 

The Rangers sophomore clocked in seven seconds faster than her nearest competitor and broke Fort Collins’ Audrey Reimer’s record of 54.21 that stood since Feb. 10, 2018. 

“I thought it was possible, but it was in the back of my mind,” Perry said. “I just fight through the whole thing and hope for the best.” 

Rangers coach Molly Switzer commended Perry on her “amazing day” and said Perry deserved to break the 4A record because of her consistency and effort. 

“She works hard every day and always looks for ways to improve,” Switzer said. “She’s so kind to her teammates and she’s a quiet and humble kid who is awesome to have on the team and to be around.” 

Perry had a team-high 48 points and finished first in the 200 free with a time of 1:48.18. Perry’s third and final first-place finish came in the 200 freestyle relay. The Rangers finished second in prelims and fell .02 seconds shy of beating Broomfield, but Lewis-Palmer got its revenge Friday with a first-place 1:38.93 finish in the event. 

Teammate Bryn Baker scored 34 points for the Rangers and helped Lewis-Palmer in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays, which both placed second. Riley Vick, who entered the 100 fly seeded fourth, placed second with a time of 1:00.20. 

“I’m thrilled and I cannot wait for the upcoming years,” Switzer said. “I was thinking we’d place similar to last year, which was sixth, so I’m tickled pink about the result.”  

Rampart scores 161, finishes ninth behind strong performance from trio of competitors 

Mya Bland scored 40 points for the Rams and finished third in the 200 free at 1:53.46 and third in the 500 free at 5:09.62.

Freshman Basil Murphy scored 23 for the Rams and finished ninth in the 200 IM at 2:17.44 and Lily Wederquist earned 20 points with her top individual placement coming in the 500 freestyle. Wederquist finished 10th with a time of 5:27.22.