As one of the smallest schools competing at the Mickey Dunn Invitational in Grand Junction on March 31, Dove Creek High School knew that top finishes would not be easy to come by.

The Bulldogs found a way to earn several Top 15 individual finishes at the 23-team meet, showing that they could be a force to be reckoned with at the Class 1A State Championships later this spring.

Top finishers for the boys included junior JD Dennison, who placed seventh in the shot put (44 feet, 11 inches), and senior Logan Meyers, who placed 24th in the 110-meter hurdles (19.81) and 32nd in the 300-meter hurdles (52.89). Junior Daniel Folkner rounded out the Bulldogs’ Top 30 finishers with a 28th-place finish in the 400-meter dash (57.85).

The girls were led by senior LaRissa Randolph, who placed eighth in the 100-meter hurdles (18.18) and 16th in the 300-meter hurdles (52.94). Not far behind Randolph was junior Madilyn Hankins, who finished 13th in the 100-meter hurdles (18.63) and 17th in the 300-meter hurdles (53.42).

The Lady Bulldogs also performed well in the throwing events as senior Mikayla Hankins placed 13th in the discus (89 feet, 4 inches), and sophomore Cassie Gatlin finished 23rd in the discus (79 feet, 7 inches) and 24th in the shot put (25 feet, 3½ inches).

Next up for Dove Creek will be the Abel Velasquez Invitational in Ignacio on April 7.