AUBURN — Ridiculous regular-season winning streak? Check.

Unquestioned dominion over a conference since the day it moved into the neighborhood? Check.

State championship? Empty box.

The Edward Little High School boys’ track and field team has reaped every record and bagged every banner available in the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference.

What the Red Eddies haven’t done in nine years is hoist a Class A trophy at the state meet. Three second-place finishes in the last five years only tantalized and rubbed it in.

Therefore, this year’s consensus: If EL should give one of its rivals a short-term warm fuzzy with the long-term reward in mind, so be it.

“We have the undefeated streak right now,” senior sprinter and co-captain Taka Ranucci said. “If we have a chance to win states and it means sacrificing the streak, I think that’s probably worth it. We haven’t won a title in a while.”

EL hasn’t lost a regular-season meet since 2001. Coach Ryan LaRoche estimates the number of consecutive victories at 120. Nobody knows for sure off the top of their head.

Since switching from the Greater Portland-based SMAA to the KVAC, seven outdoor conference championship meets have produced seven titles. This past winter, EL even added its initial indoor league crown to the trophy case.

“The seniors all unanimously said, ‘We want to win the state meet. We don’t care about the KVAC meet. We don’t care about the regular season record, the streak.’ We’d love to win one, one of these years,” LaRoche said. “It seems like every time we have a team good enough to win it, there’s that one team that’s just a little bit stronger than us with that one superstar athlete. This is as good a shot as we’ve had in about six years.”

Sheer numbers and depth determine the winner of most April and May meets. To reach the mountaintop in June usually requires an athlete, preferably two or three, capable of conquering multiple events.

EL might have the best of both worlds.

Not only do the Red Eddies boast 11 fourth-year competitors and a roster of 65, they also have the horses: Ranucci in sprints; Keith Tremblay in javelin and racewalk; Connor Harris and Ricardo Hairston in jumps; and Faisal Noor in distances.

“We have a lot of people who are good in multiple events,” said Tremblay, the reigning racewalk state champion. “We want to win that state championship. We’ve been trying to get it for a long time. It really excites us to know that we actually have a huge chance to win this year.”

The high number of seniors is an unusual luxury.

“Most years, you only have seven to 10 freshmen to start with. You’ve got to find kids,” LaRoche said. “Out of those 11 guys, seven of them were multi-event scorers. One of them scored in a relay. The others probably will score this year in the state meet. Not everybody scores at the state meet, so to have that many of them is pretty impressive. And they cover a wide variety of events.”

An additional six seniors are in their third year with the program.

All of them have been close enough to sniff a state title. In 2009, EL entered the final relay event trailing Bonny Eagle by less than a two-point margin. The Scots ran off with the title.

Last year, the Eddies were fourth, only 10 points out of the runner-up slot. They also were fourth at this year’s indoor showcase.

“The captains, we’re all seniors, and we’re just looking at the big picture,” Ranucci said.

EL gains a surplus of athletes from its successful basketball and skiing programs after winter ends.

Add it all up — as one track website has done — and the numbers finally seem to fall the Eddies’ way. Subtracting last year’s seniors from the state meet results, EL is projected to win by more than 20 points this season.

But LaRoche knows there are many x-factors, not the least of which are defections from his own team. One state meet scorer has relocated out of state. Another is expected to move away before season’s end. Yet another elected to play lacrosse.

That could mean shuffling the deck and experimenting with different combinations, jeopardizing those streaks and the bragging rights they bring.

“We still want to win. Winning is winning. It just helps. It feels good. I don’t think it changes whether we’re going to the championship or regular meets,” Tremblay said. “We try hard 100 percent of the time. Whether we win or not, at least we know we gave it our all.”

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Boys’ track and field

Athletes to watch

Dirigo — Bryan Blackman (sprints), Nick Young (sprints); Edward Little — Connor Harris (jumps), Ricardo Hairston (jumps), Michael Lucas (hurdles), Faisal Noor (distances), Taka Ranucci (sprints), Keith Tremblay (racewalk, throws); Gray-New Gloucester — Will Bartlett (distances), David McCann (distances), Nate Rowe (hurdles, sprints), Ethan Suvulich (sprints); Jay — Devon Autrey (distances), Ian Gingras (distances), Rico Gortmans (throws, hurdles), Robert Boulay throws), Peter Ruffulo (throws), Adam Gettle (jumps, distances); Leavitt — Dustin Collins (throws), Jack Griffin (throws), Jake Posik (throws), Zack Hudner (jumps), Korey Mulherrin (jumps), Keith Lemelin (distances), Elliott Wiegman (distances), Davis Rousseau (sprints); Lewiston — Hussein Ibrahim (distances), Ali Hersi (distances), Luke Olehowski (sprints), Rudy Pandora (throws); Lisbon — Morgan Reeves (jumps, pole vault), Kyle Sheehan (hurdles), Keenan Grover (sprints), Ben Kates (distances), Aaron Halls (sprints); Livermore Falls — Ethan Hutchins (sprints, hurdles), Jacob Freeman (jumps), Shane McDonald (sprints), Tom Bizier (hurdles, distances), Sam Chabot (throws), Holden Parker (hurdles, jumps); Monmouth — Patrick McInnis (distances), Kevin Desmond (distances), Eric Coulombe (throws), Matt Bryant (distances) Ben Bailey (sprints), Stewart Buzzell (middle distances), Marcques Houston (jumps), Dylan Thombs (distances); Mt. Blue — Jaron Jones (distances), Jonah Jones (distances), Justin Tracy (distances), Zach Veayo (racewalk); Mountain Valley — Zach Taylor (sprints) , Isaac Roberts (jumps), Jacob Arsenault (jumps), Ben Higley (throws), Justin Carter (throws); Oxford Hills — Andrew Courbron (sprints), Garrett Hudanish (jumps); Poland — Mike Adams (throws), Cam Woodford (throws), Tony Whalen (jumps); St. Dom’s — David Dean (distances), Patrick LaChance (racewalk, distances); Telstar — Adam Mahar (distances), Ben Lewis (distances); Winthrop — Joey Brennan (sprints), Colby Laflamme (sprints), Travis Hutchins (throws), Hunter Sherman (throws).

Overview

Edward Little is a prohibitive favorite to win its eighth consecutive KVAC championship and will be in the mix for its first Class A championship since 2002. Hairston and Tremblay are defending state champs in triple jump and racewalk, respectively. Harris came of age as a jumper during this year’s indoor season. Bonny Eagle, Mt. Ararat and Scarborough are considered the Red Eddies’ prime challengers at the state level. Lewiston could surprise in both the conference and state meets if its talented throwers and distance runners continue to improve.

Lisbon remains the local power in the MVC and Class C. The Greyhounds will need to reload in the throwing and jumping events in order to claim their sixth consecutive league title. Their depth remains the envy of league rivals, however. Reeves, a threat to win multiple events at conference and state meets, will be the cornerstone. Boothbay pulled off a regular-season win over Lisbon last season and will contend at MVCs. Winthrop’s sprinters and Mountain Valley’s throwers will give them a chance to make noise in the postseason. Sacopee Valley is the reigning Class C state champion.

Leavitt, Gray-New Gloucester and Poland all have the individual talent to finish in the top half at states. The Hornets’ Hersom and the Knights’ Woodford have state championship potential. In the team picture, Falmouth is a heavy favorite in Class B with Waterville, Greely and Old Town in the mix.