The stopwatch barely has time to settle before Maria Portela is already looking ahead to the next finish line. 

Week after week this spring, the Blue Valley junior sprinter has done more than win races — she has climbed into rare territory in Kansas track and field history. And with every blazing finish, Portela continues to cement herself as one of the fastest sprinters the state has ever seen.  

After earning three state medals as a sophomore, Portela has elevated her game to another level this season. She currently owns the fastest 100-meter dash time in Kansas this year at 11.49 seconds, which ranks as the third-fastest mark in state history. Her 23.75 in the 200-meter dash also ranks third all-time in Kansas history. 

Portela has also added another weapon to her arsenal this spring in the 400-meter dash. The junior owns the state’s second-fastest time this season in the event at 57.35 seconds, showcasing her talent that has made her one of Kansas’ most complete sprinters. 

“This season has been incredible for me,” Portela said. “I came into it with really high expectations for myself and wanting to reach my biggest goals. I have been so grateful to see my off-season work start to shine through in my performance. 

“The season has definitely exceeded my expectations, and I can't thank my coaches and family enough for supporting me.” 

One of Portela’s biggest performances came last Friday at the Shawnee Mission North Relays, where she broke the meet record in the 100 with an 11.51. She later anchored Blue Valley’s 4x400 relay team to a victory, school record and the state’s second-fastest time this season at 3:58.38. 

When Portela took the baton on the anchor leg, Blue Valley trailed by multiple seconds. Moments later, she had tracked everyone down with a blistering 55.5 split. 

Blue Valley coach Andrew Reeves said Portela’s consistency this season has been just as impressive as the historic times. 

“To have her slowest time be 11.81 on a cold day in early April, and the rest be under 11.66, I would say is the best season to-date in Kansas history in the 100 meters specifically,” Reeves said. “Running 11.64 week one, and staying consistently at or faster than that has maybe been beyond my expectations.” 

Reeves said Portela’s growth physically and mentally from the past two seasons has fueled her breakthrough. 

“She is just so much stronger and more physically developed than last year,” Reeves said. “I think her strength is what has allowed her to be so much faster consistently this year. And that strength really shows up in the 200, and now the 400 as well.”

 

Portela’s emergence in the 400 came partially from inspiration close to home. She looked up to former Blue Valley North state champion Delia Gregory, who owns the fastest 400-meter time in Kansas history. 

“Last year's competitors really influenced my performance this year and I was able to find some great role models in my competition, most of all Delia Gregory,” Portela said. “As a state champ, she guided me through my races and helped motivate me to still work hard even though she was at the top.” 

Portela said her journey to becoming one of the state’s elite sprinters was anything but immediate. 

She first started track in seventh grade and quickly learned how much work the sport required. 

“I wasn't necessarily the best,” Portela said. “I really enjoyed competition and losing to people fueled me to keep trying harder.” 

That competitive drive led her to join the Hot Feet track club before eighth grade. By her freshman year, she began realizing her potential after qualifying for the Junior Olympic Games. 

“That was truly an eye opener for how much work I still needed to put in,” Portela said. 

Now, that work is paying off on nearly every track she steps onto. 

Despite the accolades and record-setting times, Reeves said what separates Portela most is who she is away from the stopwatch. 

“She supports her teammates as much as any kid on the team,” Reeves said. “She never acts like she is any more important than any other kid on the team. She is incredibly kind, and the most humble athlete I've ever been around.” 

With the postseason approaching, Portela is chasing more than medals and records. She is chasing history. 

And at the pace she is running, Kansas sprint history may not be able to keep up much longer. 

OTHER TRACK STANDOUTS

• Portela isn’t the only Blue Valley athlete to break school records this season. Teammate Paige Faulkner has broke three records at last Friday’s Shawnee Mission North Relays. Faulkner joined Portela to break the school record and win the 4x400 relay. She now owns the school’s top time in the 800 (2:15.27) and 1,600-meter runs (5:06.41). Blue Valley pole vaulter Amelia Hansen, who is coming off an injury, broke the school record in early April, jumping a 13-5, which is the second best vault in state history. Riley Carlson also broke the school record in the shot put on April 24th with a mark of 41-8.5, which is the third-best mark in the state this year. She broke the school record by two feet, which was originally set in 1981. 

• Bonner Springs senior distance runner Cora Dow broke the school record in a pair of events on May 1 at De Soto. She broke the 1,600-meter record and also improved on her 3,200-meter record that she set as a sophomore.  
  
   

  

• Free State’s Sadie Reynolds continued her domination of the discus as she won the event last Friday at the Shawnee Mission North relays. Reynolds, a junior, threw 151-1 earlier in the year, which is tops in the state. Her teammate, Parker Jones, has the best long jump in Class 6A this season.  
  
   

  

• Blue Valley West senior Jason McNicoll recorded one of the state’s best javelin throws during the Seaman Relays on May 1. McNicoll won the event with a 220-6, which is the seventh-best throw in Kansas history. 

• Eudora had four school records fall during the May 1 meet at De Soto. Brenika Rader cleared 5-7 in the high jump, breaking her own record from a year ago and is the fifth best jump in the state this year. Cameren Tice bettered his record in the 100 dash in 10.79 and tied the 200 dash record that was set in 1974. Grayson Masterson had a 21-second personal best in the 3,200-meter run with a new school record time of 9:47.31. 

• Shawnee Mission South sophomore Ben Alexander recorded a toss of 207-3 in the javelin on May 1 at the Seaman Relays. He moved into second all-time in school history behind the state's record holder Johannes Swanepoel from 2010.  

• The Olathe Northwest boys won the Gardner Trailblazer Invitational. Junior Noah Harrell broke the school record in the long jump with a mark of 23-6.25, which is the second-best mark in the state this season, while his teammate, Jaelen Douglas, also has one of the top marks in the state this season at 22-5. Tyler Palangi (1:56.25) and Benjamin Herbst (1:56.81) have two of the top times in the state in the 800-meter run. Porter Thomas (167-10) is also one of 6A’s best discus throwers.  
  
   

  

• The Labette County boys team put together a record-breaking performance at the Girard Optimist Invitational on May 1. Nolan Nash, Deontae Fields, Kane Nash and Jamaal Jackson broke a school and meet record in the 4x100 relay in 42.86 and is the second fastest time in 4A this season. Jackson, who is coming back from an injury during football season, won the 100 dash in a season-best 10.94. He is the defending state champion in the 100 and holds the state meet record. Keegan Stritzke broke his own school record in the discus with a throw of 169-6. He also broke the shot put record with a toss of 55-5. He broke the old mark of 53-6.5 that was set in 1963. Kane Nash cleared 6-4 to take second and is tied for second place in 4A. 

• Blue Valley North’s Queen Mbatchi broke the school record in the 300-meter hurdles last Friday at the Shawnee Mission North relays in 46.29 seconds. The old record of 46.42 was set in 46.42. 
  
   

  

• The De Soto boys 4x800 relay of Bridger Reimche, Aaron Vogt, Collin Champlain and Luke Vogt won the Shawnee Mission North relays in 7:53.91, which is the second fastest time in the state this season.  
  
   

  

• The Bishop Miege track and field team is making marks on both the boys and girls side. Jayla McClinton won the shot put at the Shawnee Mission North relays with a personal best of 41-1.50 as the defending state champion. Earlier this season, she broke the school record in the discus at 126-7. Liam Tesmer currently leads Class 4A in the long jump with a best of 22-8.5. Dante Combs leads 4A in the 400-meter dash with a time of 49.53, while the Stags’ 4x400 relay also has the best time in 4A in 3:22.14. The 4x100 relay also leads 4A in 42.43. 
   

  

• Basehor-Linwood’s track and field teams have produced a historic spring filled with school records and standout performances. Junior Cole Hubbard has repeatedly lowered the school records in the 1,600 and 3,200-meter runs throughout the season, most recently running 4:20 and 9:27 at the Shawnee Mission North Relays, while also breaking the 2,000-meter steeplechase record in 6:32 at the Baldwin Invite. Fellow junior Ben Karleskint has also continued to improve in the 3,200, posting a 9:34 at Shawnee Mission North and pushing Hubbard throughout the season as one of the area’s top distance duos. Senior Kimberlee Scott, the defending Class 5A triple jump state champion, added another school record in the long jump this spring with a leap of 17-10 in her first meet while also breaking the school shot put record at 41 feet, continuing to excel in the triple jump and serving as a key member of the Bobcats’ record-setting girls 4x400 relay team alongside Katelyn Shockey, Alaina Schwisow and Henley Erickson, which recently ran 4:00.72 to break the school record after placing seventh at state last year. Scott also won the triple jump at the Emporia State Relays and medaled second in triple jump and third in both shot put and long jump at the Shawnee Mission North Relays. Senior Cooper Ingram has also had a strong season after placing fourth at state in discus last year, breaking the school record with a throw of 170-11 at the Emporia State Relays in April. 
  
   

  

• The Blue Valley West girls 4x800-meter relay of Arianna Mobil, Bentley Blanca, Callie Kren and Brooke Carter broke the school record at Friday’s Shawnee Mission North relays as they won in 9:26.10, which is currently the state’s fastest time.  
   

  

• Mill Valley saw some record fall at the SMN Relays on Friday. Miley Strathman tied her school record in the high jump at 5-7 to win the event. David Johnson broke the Jaguar record in the 110 hurdles in 14.08, which is the fourth fastest time in the state. Audrey Howard broke the school’s 3,200-meter record in 10:43.79, which is the second fastest time in Class 6A this season. Kaidence Alston also won both the triple and the long jumps for the Jaguars and has the seventh-best mark in the triple jump in Kansas history. 

• Turner’s Ti’Rell Clark broke his own school record in the triple jump at last Friday’s SMN Relays. Clark had a mark 46-3 and took second overall. He also has the second-best mark in 5A this season.  
   

  

• Lawrence’s Tyler Dye broke the school javelin record with a throw of 206-8 earlier this season at the K-State Relays. Dye, who has one of the best marks in the state this season, is headed to compete at Creighton next year.  

• Tonganoxie junior Addy Schooler has the top throw in Class 4A this season in the discus as she broke the 20-year-old school record with a throw of 144-9.75 at the Pitt State Relays. Freshman Roman Holthaus is currently third in Class 4A in the high jump at 6-4. Senior Keagan Murry broke the 10-year old school record in the pole vault after clearing 10-6. 
   

  

• Piper seniors Nora Turney and Shinji Pollard continue to rewrite the record books this season as two of the top hurdlers in Kansas. Turney, the defending Class 5A state champion in the 100-meter hurdles, currently leads 5A with a time of 14.31 seconds and also ranks second in the 300 hurdles. Pollard, the 2025 Class 5A state runner-up in the 110 hurdles, has climbed to No. 3 all-time in Kansas history with a 13.81 and leads all classes this season, while also ranking No. 11 all-time in the 300 hurdles with a state-leading 37.51 after earning a state medal last year. In the field events, Max Clark has repeatedly broken his own school record in the javelin after finishing as the 2025 state runner-up, now leading 5A with a throw of 213-7. Distance runner Elizabeth Arenas is also putting together a breakout season following a strong cross country campaign, setting school records in the 800 meters (2:15.37), 1,600 meters (5:00.73) and 3,200 meters (10:52.25). All of those are among the top marks in Class 5A this season.  
   

  

• Baldwin’s girls track team made school history Friday at the Shawnee Mission North Relays, breaking program records in both the 4x400 and 4x800 relays while competing against some of the top teams in Kansas. The Bulldogs’ 4x400 team of Shea Griffith, Cheyenne Brunker, Rachel Watkins and Kami Moore finished second to Blue Valley in a loaded field with a school-record time of 3:58.48, which currently ranks No. 3 in Kansas across all classifications this season. Baldwin’s 4x800 relay team of Griffith, Irelyn Kennedy, Watkins and Moore also delivered a standout performance, taking second in a school-record 9:28.70, the second-fastest time in the state regardless of class. 

• The St. James Academy 4x400-meter relay team of Jameson Fitzgerald, Max Brown, Brock Wondra and Noah Schowengerdt did more than just win the event Friday at the SMN Relays, they broke the meet record with a time of 3:18.44. They currently have the top time in the state this season in 3:17.94. Wondra also set a new personal best in the 800-meter run as he won in 1:52.71, which is the top time in the state this season.  
   

  

• Olathe North’s girls 4x100 relay continued its impressive spring Friday night at the Shawnee Mission North Relays, where the Eagles broke the meet record. The quartet of Jasmine Simons, Kate Figgins, Kayden Maney and Sienna Wesley lowered their own season-best time from 47.74 to 47.42, which now ranks as the fastest time in Kansas this season.