Drevon Colbert thought to himself, higher than ever.

The Stuart High School junior high jumper stared down the bar, set at 6-foot-4-inches. It had already denied him twice. Six-foot-2 inches had eliminated all but Colbert and a Mountain View-Gotebo jumper at the Class A state track & field championships.

“I had not been jumping well all season long,” Colbert admitted, “and of course I had a bunch of pressure on me from winning the previous year.”

The 2022 state champion needed to clear the bar if he had any chance at repeating.

“My third and final jump, my head is spinning. So I take a few deep breaths and say a little prayer,” Colbert said.

He took his first step towards the bar and then a second. There was no turning back now as Colbert trotted to a spring. He planted his penultimate step, gathered all his strength and leapt Fosbury-style over the bar.

The bar held in place as Colbert landed on the mat. Clean. No scratch.

“At that moment, I knew all I needed was for the other kid to fall short,” Colbert said, “and when he did, it just felt like a huge weight lifted off my shoulders,” Colbert said.

“[Colbert] is an amazing athlete,” former Stuart head track & field coach Nadenna Lavarnway said. “I told his grandma he is a once-in-a-lifetime athlete to coach.”

Colbert, with his senior year still ahead of him, is Stuart’s first-ever back-to-back state champion.

“His natural ability is amazing, but he takes the coaching and critiques and uses them to enhance what he does naturally, said Lavarnway.

Stuart girls grow through 2023 season

For the Stuart girls, 2023 was a productive year.

“My girls were all new to the sport, so they were just finding their way. They loved trying new things and were finally settling into their events,” said Lavarnway.

Sophomore hurdler and sprinter Kinslee Corley had an exceptional year.

“About midseason, she found her steps and it began to click for her,” Lavarnway said.

Lavarnway had Corley work on the low hurdles first; then once she got the form down, they worked up to the varsity height. She also allowed the sophomore to land on a mat as she built her confidence up.

“Apart from working on my hurdling technique, I also had to work on feeling comfortable,” Corley said. “Once I became comfortable with my abilities as an athlete, I was able to solely focus on achieving my best.”

“I try to make sure my athletes are confident in what they do and give them opportunities to improve,” Lavarnway said. “It’s worth all the time and effort when you see their faces light up when they win an event or win the big title of state champion.”