Read on… Complete results and news stories.
STATE A TRACK PREVIEW: Blue Devils chasing their due
Bedeviled a year ago, the Corvallis boys’ track team has had a year to regroup and retool and, certainly, rehearse.
The Blue Devils have been in nine track and field meets this spring, and have won every one. Next up is the State A championships Friday and Saturday at Butte’s Bulldog Memorial Stadium, and Corvallis – second by two points to Whitefish a year ago – is primed.
“They’ve got enough pressure,” coach Spencer Huls said of his Blue Devils. “They know what’s at stake. I don’t have to tell them what’s on the line.
“It just comes down to the kids doing it, I guess.”
Corvallis has the kids to do it: thrower Dalton Sybrant, hurdler Slater Powell and sprinters Tyler Bonngard and Mahlone Jessop, for starters. Huls figures if his Blue Devils can just relax and run, they’ll get the job done against the likes of Whitefish and Laurel.
The hardest part may be over – getting the kids to state. Sybrant, who notably didn’t advance to Bozeman in the shot put a year ago, is a threat to win that event as well as repeat in the discus. Powell, the 110-meter hurdles champ last spring, could add a 300 hurdles title to his resume, especially with Lewistown’s Nick Kozub out with an injury.
That leaves the defending champions Bulldogs as, well, underdogs.
“We’re going to go down with the same goal we always have, which is to try to place,” said coach Derek Schulz. “There’s nothing we can do differently. Corvallis is really loaded. Very talented, good event coverage – all those things it takes to have a great team.”
The girls’ race could be tight, with Polson looking to repeat and Belgrade chasing its third girls’ crown in four years.
It won’t be easy for the Pirates, but that is nothing new. Bob Gunderson’s crew was patched together a year ago, when Christa Redcrow and Sierra Pete were banged up yet still garnered big points.
This year Redcrow, a threat to win the long jump, and Pete, a talented sprinter, are healthy. But the Pirates lost sophomore standout Nicole Davey early on to mono. She’ll be missed, since she scored 30 points at state a year ago.
“We have no room for error,” said the 62-year-old Gunderson. “We pretty much have to do our best.
“It’s the same thing as last year. We won the thing and went up and took our trophy, and we had eight girls. Belgrade went up and got the second-place trophy with 30.”
The green-clad Panthers have more than numbers. Kirsten Haas won the 100 hurdles last spring and the 300 hurdles two years ago. Jackie Dringle, Aimee Beck and Jamie Greany lend depth in the sprints; Nycole Devers and Lindsey Halgren lead the way in the throws and Greany and Dringle are threats in the high jump and pole vault.
Polson can match Belgrade in the throws, where Loni Havlovick excels, and the pole vault. Davey nailed down Polson’s title a year ago. In her place is Tara Johnson, who cleared 10 feet last week.
Bigfork is another team with trophy aspirations, led by distance standout Kayla Carlson, a threat to sweep the 800, 1,600 and 3,200.
“I don’t think anybody’s going to beat her,” said Gunderson.
Lewistown’s Brook Rodgers seems to have the best shot in the longer races, while Misha Trotter of Hamilton – the 2007 champ in the 400 – will bring pressure in the 800.
Trotter helps make the Broncs’ long relay formidable, and there are many other area favorites: Stevensville’s Brekka Johnson in the 100 and jumps; Corvallis’ Page Squire in the 200 and hurdles; Frenchtown has Jen Brown in the discus and Tasha Huset, the defending high jump champ; and Columbia Falls has Kelsey DeWit in the high jump.
The points are less spread out on the boys’ side, and that bodes well for the Blue Devils. Standout Drew Zeiler can look forward to a Saturday battle with Whitefish star Drew Coco in the 800 and the outcome may not affect the team race.
The Bulldogs, who have won four of the past six State A boys’ titles, can expect big points from Coco, along with Aaron Tkachyk and Willie Roche in the jumps. Big points are needed to catch the Blue Devils, chasing their first title since winning the State B in 1977.
“We’re a good team, too,” said Schulz of his Bulldogs. “But when you look at a coupe of their kids, they’re real elite. And their marks prove it.”
Trophies for both Pirates, Bulldogs
BUTTE — Whitefish and Polson are coming home with similar team trophies for the second year in a row.
The defending state champion Bulldogs, led by a distance sweep from senior Drew Coco, tallied 72 points for third place at the Class A state track meet on Saturday.
After two days of competition, Corvallis won with 108 and Laurel was runner-up with 76.
The Polson girls, defending state champs a year ago, earned a third-place finish this time around, totaling 58 points. The Belgrade girls won with 83 and Hamilton was second, 60.
Coco won the 800 in 1:58 and ran a 10:15 to win the 3,200. On Friday, he won the 1,600 also.
Last year, Coco placed second in both the 1,600 and 3,200 and didn’t race at state in the 800.
Christa Redcrow finished second in the 300 hurdles and teammate Breanne Kelley came in fourth for Polson.
The Polson 1,600 relay team took second and Loni Havlovick took fourth in the discus for the second year in a row.
The Bigfork girls came in fourth with 38 points. Mallery Knoll improved on last-year’s state finishes and earned third place in the 100 and 300 hurdles. Knoll took fourth in the 100 at state last year as a freshman and didn’t place in the hurdles.
Kayla Carlson placed third in the 1,600 in her last distance race in Class A.
Bigfork is moving to Class B next season.
Ronan’s Sadie McMillan won the 100, took third in the 100 hurdles and placed fifth in the 200.
Libby senior Seth Wright was a runner-up in the triple jump.
Ryan Kelley of Polson earned second place in the pole vault and fifth in the 110 hurdles, Jason Bowman took fourth in the 200 and the Polson boys scored 32 points for fifth place.
Friday’s Results
STATE A TRACK AND FIELD: Right on track: Corvallis boys in prime position after first day
BUTTE – Maybe a train wreck could derail the Corvallis Blue Devils at the State A track and field championships. Close calls are no problem.
Hurdler Slater Powell gave the Blue Devils a scare at roughly 11:30 a.m. Friday, when he caught too much of one of the 300-meter hurdles. The junior flailed and stayed upright, somehow, and Corvallis was able to stay on track at Bulldog Memorial Stadium.
“I was between 15-stepping the hurdles and 13-stepping,” said Powell, who recovered to win in a sub-par (for him) 40.87 seconds. “Then I couldn’t make up my mind.”
Powell’s win along with Dalton Sybrant’s victory in the shot put – he threw 55 feet, 5.5 inches – helped the Blue Devils to 32 first-day points. They’re encouraged, if cautious: Defending champion Whitefish is close behind at 29 points, with Drew Coco earning a 1,600 title to go with Aaron Tkachyk’s second straight long-jump crown.
With 11 events left, the Bulldogs are hopeful.
“Usually they (the Blue Devils) are way out there by now,” said Tkachyk, who flew 22 feet and a half-inch on his first attempt Friday.
Corvallis remains the favorite.
“It’s the big show, the one where we’re supposed to put it all together,” said Sybrant, who will defend his discus crown Saturday. “The coaches said, ‘Just treat it like a business trip.’ We’ve got to do what we’ve got to do, to win this. Not just personally, but as a team.”
Look no further than the Blue Devils’ short relay, which ripped through the trials in 42.74 seconds, the only record of the day (Anaconda ran 43.0 to set the Class A standard in 1994).
Powell, who won the 110-meter hurdles a year ago, cruised through his trials in 14.84 Friday. Teammate Tyler Bonngard ran second to Laurel flash Seth Marshall in the 400.
Marshall, a junior, clocked an impressive 48.56. Laurel sits third with 20 points.
The girls’ team race has tilted in Belgrade’s favor after seven events. The Panthers, with Lindsey Halgren winning the shot put and Jamie Greany taking the high jump, have 46 points.
Tied for second are Lewistown and defending champion Polson, with 23.
The Pirates are performing well enough – Sierra Pete was fourth in the 400, Loni Havlovick was second in the shot put and Christa Redcrow was second in the long jump – but the Panthers are powerful.
They scored big in the javelin, where Nycole Devers and Katie Kennison went 2-3 behind Sidney’s Kim Shulz, and in the shot, where Halgren and Devers finished first and third.
It wasn’t all Belgrade. Two of Friday’s girls’ races were won by Hamilton’s Misha Trotter, a junior who powered past a taller field in both the 800 and 400.
It wasn’t easy.
“I’ve never thrown up after a race before,” she said after the 800, which she won in a career-best 2:18.4, passing and holding off Bigfork’s Kayla Carlson.
Trotter won this same event as a freshman, and finished second a year ago.
“I kind of got boxed in,” she said. “It was a good race(this time) actually I got boxed in again, and I kind of had to get around some people to keep up with Kayla.”
Carlson, a relative newcomer to the 800, was happy enough. She came back for an out-of-the-pack victory in the 3,200.
Trotter, meanwhile, ran a career-best 57.78 while winning the 400.
Saturday will bring more hot weather plus a great chance of showers. Stevensville’s Brekka Johnson, who won the long jump title Friday with a career-best mark of 16-10.25, won her 100 trials heat and has the triple jump as well Saturday.
Whitefish’s Coco will go for a rare distance sweep, having the 800 and 3,200 to tackle. Corvallis’ Drew Zeiler awaits in the 800.
Girls
Team results (after 7 events) — 1, Belgrade, 46. 2, Lewistown, 23. 3, Polson, 23. 4, Hamilton, 21. 5 (tie), Bigfork and Frenchtown, 18. Billings Central, 15. Sidney, 10. Stevensville, 10. Glendive, 8. Libby, 6. Ronan/St. Ignatius, 6. Whitefish, 5. Butte Central, 4. Livingston, 3. Laurel, 1.
100 prelims (heat 1) — 1, Brekka Johnson, Stevensville, 13.26. 2, Mallory Knoll, Bigfork, 13.45. 3, Aimee Beck, Belgrade, 13.51. 4, Marissa Stanton, Billings Central, 13.54. 5. Sophia Lewis-Peterson, Col. Falls, 13.62.
100 prelims (heat 2) — 1, Sadie McMillan, Ron/St. Ignatius, 12.91. 2, Ashley Skillestad, Glendive, 13.18. 3, Amanda Foley, Whitefish, 13.21. 4, Sierra Pete, Polson, 13.30. 5, Jackie Dringle, Belgrade, 13.43.
200 prelims (heat 1) — 1, Paige Squire, Corvallis, 26.35. 2, Kirsten Haas, Belgrade, 26.97. 3, Mallory Knoll, Bigfork, 27.12. 4, Michelle Jones, Hamilton, 27.23. 5, Marissa Stanton, Billings Central, 27.54.
200 prelims (heat 2) — 1, Ashley Skillestad, Glendive, 26.72. 2, Sadie McMillan, Ron/St. Ignatius, 27.14. 3, Jackie Dringle, Belgrade, 27.15. 4, Brekka Johnson, Stevensville, 27.18. 5, Daylynn Batey, Livingston, 27.38.
400 finals — 1, Misha Trotter, Hamilton, 57.78. 2, Marissa Stanton, Billings Central, 59.13. 3, Jamie Greany, Belgrade, 59.27. 4, Sierra Pete, Polson, 59.74. 5, Jackie Elliot, Billings Central, 1:00.26. 6, Breanne Kelley, Polson, 1:00.42.
800 finals — 1, Misha Trotter, Hamilton, 2:18.40. 2, Kayla Carlson, Bigfork, 2:18.89. 3, Brook Rodgers, Lewistown, 2:20.91. 4, Jackie Elliot, Billings Central, 2:21.28. 5, Brianna Dudley, Butte Central, 2:21.58. 6, Jaelene Zygmond, Billings Central, 2:23.07.
3200 finals — 1, Kayla Carlson, Bigfork, 12:04.08. 2, Brook Rodgers, Lewistown, 12:19.32. 3, Emily Schall, Frenchtown, 12:21.91. 4, Bailey Eaton, Whitefish, 12.26.30. 5, Nocona Frame, Glendive, 12.40.17. 6, Jessica Sagen, Whitefish, 12:41.83.
110 hurdles trials (heat 1) — 1, Paige Squire, Corvallis, 14.9. 2, Kirsten Haas, Belgrade, 15.11. 3, Breanne Kelley, Polson, 16.31. 4, Sadie Sampson, Glendive, 16.52. 5, Alyson Heare, Frenchtown, 16.55.
110 hurdles trials (heat 2) — 1, Sadie McMillan, Ron/St. Ignatius, 16.06. 2, Miranda Rabold, Billings Central, 16.8. 3, Karissa Linn, Glendive, 17.16. 4, Megan Apple, Whitefish, 17.5. 5, Kiera Bullock, Lewistown, 17.52.
400 relay trials (heat 1) — 1, Belgrade, 50.13. 2, Hamilton, 50.39. 3, Whitefish, 51.74. 4, Glendive, 51.89. 5, Hardin, 52.03.
400 relay trials (heat 2) — 1, Polson, 51.30. 2, Bigfork, 51.61. 3, Col. Falls, 51.87. 4, Miles City, 52.49. 5, Livingston, 52.88.
Long jump finals — 1, Brekka Johnson, Stevensville, 16-10.25. 2, Christa Redcrow, Polson, 16-2.50. 3, Ashley Skillstad, Glendive, 16.50. 4, Kaila Forster, Libby, 16.50. 5, Kacie McKeon, Butte Central, 15-7.50. 6, Kiera Bullock, Lewistown, 15-7.25.
High jump finals — 1, Jamie Greany, Belgrade, 5-02. 2, Tasha Huset, Frenchtown, 5-02. 3, Sadie McMillan, Ron/St. Ignatius, 5-02. 4 (tie) Leah Berry, Lewistown, and Svenja Gaida, Livingston, 5-0. 6, McCalle Feller, Lewistown, 5-0.
Javelin finals — 1, Kim Shulz, Sidney, 140-03. 2, Nycole Devers, Belgrade, 134-03. 3, Katie Kennison, Belgrade, 118-05. 4, McCalle Feller, Lewistown, 114-11. 5, Stephany Kluver, Libby, 113-10. 6, Ashley Albert, Hamilton, 109-02.
Shot put finals — 1, Lindsey Halgren, Belgrade, 37-08.50. 2, Loni Havlovick, Polson, 36-09.25. 3, Nycole Devers, Belgrade, 35-09.75. 4, Jennifer Brown, Frenchtown, 34-08.75. 5, Natasha Lafferty, Polson, 34-07. 6, Emylee Colling, Laurel, 33-0.50.
Saturday’s Results
Team scores n Belgrade 83, Hamilton 60, Polson 68, Bigfork 38, Billings Central 37, Lewistown 35, Stevensville 34, Ronan-St. Ignatius 32, Sidney 30, Glendive 28, Corvallis 22, Frenchtown 22, Columbia Falls 11, Miles City 10, Whitefish 9, Libby 7, Butte Central 5, Livingston 3, Dillon 2, Laurel 1.
100m 1, Sadie McMillan, Ronan-St. Ignatius, 12.84; 2, Brekka Johnson, Stevensville, 21.91; 3, Mallory Knoll, Bigfork, 13.01; 4, Amanda Foley, Whitefish, 13.02; 5, Ashley Skillestad, Glendive, 13.16; 6, Marissa Stanton, Billings Central, 13.19.
200m 1, Paige Squire, Corvallis, 26.09; 2, Ashley Skillestad, Glendive, 26.63; 3, Brekka Johnson, Stevensville; 4, Kirsten Haas, Belgrade, 27.07; 5, Sadie McMillan, Ronan-St. Ignatius; 6, Jackie Dringle, Belgrade, 27.20.
1,600m 1, Brook Rodgers, Lewistown, 5:17.94; 2, Misha Trotter, Hamilton, 5:21.56; 3, Kayla Carlson, Bigfork, 5;22.18; 4, Emily Schall, Frenchtown, 5:30.76; 5, Leann Quinlna, Lewistown, 5:32.02; 6, Brianna Dudley, Butte Central, 5:3.43.
100m hurdles 1, Paige Squire, Corvallis, 15.16; 2, Kirsten Haas, Belgrade, 15.29; 3, Sadie McMillan, Ronan-St. Ignatius, 15.50; 4, Breanne Kelley, Polson, 15.95; 5, Miranda Rabold, Billings Central, 16.51; 6, Sadie Sampson, Glendive, 16.55.
300m hurdles 1, Kirsten Haas, Belgrade, 44.42; 2, Christa Redcrow, Polson, 46.90; 3, Mallory Knoll, Bigfork, 47.12; 4, Breanne Kelley, Polson. 47.19; 5, Sadie McMillan, Ronan-St. Ignatius, 47.33; 6, Miranda Rabold, Billings Central, 47.85.
400m relay 1, Belgrade (Kirsten Haas, Jackie Dringle, Aimee Beck, Jamie Greaney) 50.09; 2, Hamilton 50.21; 3, Columbia Falls 51.43; 4, Glendive 51.47; 5, Polson 51.72; 6, Bigfork 51.79.
1,600m relay 1, Billings Central (Maggie Powell, Jackie Elliot, Jaelene Zygmond, Marissa Stanton) 4:01.27; 2, Polson 4:03.88; 3, Hamilton 4:06.27; 4, Belgrade 4:08.78; 5, Corvallis, 4:09.75; 6, Bigfork 4:10.05.
Discus 1, Jamilea Kittlemann, Miles City, 116-8; 2, Averyl LaSalle, Hamilton, 113-8; 3, Jordan Sullivan, Sidney, 111-3; 4, Loni Havlovick, Polson, 110-6; 5, Heather Tyler, Dillon, 108-9; 6, Kim Shulz, Sidney, 107-7.
Triple jump 1, Brekka Johnson, Stevensville, 36-7 ¼; 2, Jackie Elliot, Billings Central, 36-2 ½; 3, Adessa Durglo, Ronan-St. Ignatius, 35-4; 4, Megan Baker, Hamilton, 35-1 ½; 5, Airika Blackburn, Sidney, 35- ¾; 6, Rachel Sweedman, Libby, 34-10.
Pole vault 1, Vanessa Bawden, Sidney, 11-0; 2 (tie), Sadie Sampson, Glendive; Tara Johnson, Polson; Megan Baker, Hamilton; and Ketti Wilhelm, Columbia Falls, 9-6; 6, Whitney Satra, Sidney, 9-6.
Boys
Team Scores — 1, Corvallis, 108; 2, Laurel, 76; 3, Whitefish, 72; 4, Frenchtown, 34; 5, Polson, 32; 6, Columbia Falls, 22.5; 7, Libby, 22; 8, Dillon, 21; 9, Lewistown, 13; 10, Belgrade, 12; 11, Billings Central, 12; 11, Hamilton, 12; 11, Ronan, 11; 11, Stevensville, 12; 15, Bigfork 11; 16, Glendive, 10.5; 17, Sidney, 10.5; 18, Browning, 8.5; 18, Anaconda, 8.5; 20, Butte Central, 8; 21, Hardin, 4; 22, Havre, 3; 23, Miles City, 1.
Friday’s Results
400 — 1, Seth Marshall, Laurel, 48.56. 2, Tyler Bonngard, Corvallis, 50.25. 3, Bryce Carver, Dillon, 50.71. 4, Nathan Francis, Frenchtown, 50.79. 5, Matt Thibault, Belgrade, 51.04. 6, Anto Daoud, Whitefish, 51.46.
1,600 — 1, Drew Coco, Whitefish, 4:33.28. 2, Shawn Whitman, Col. Falls, 4:38.23. 3, Caleb Bentley, Lewistown, 4:38.74. 4, Colter Bull, Polson, 4:39.04. 5, Brett Weidler, Laurel, 4:42.68. 6, Jake Jessop, Hamilton, 4:43.07.
330 hurdles — 1, Slater Powell, Corvallis, 40.87. 2, Chris Alfiero, Polson, 41.17. 3, Levi Cade, Belgrade, 41.24. 4, Jamie Engledrum, Ron/St. Ignatius, 41.34. 5, Chris Muhlbeier, Hardin, 41.34. 6, John Perrodin, Havre, 41.45.
Long jump — 1, Aaron Tkachyk, Whitefish, 22-0.5. 2, Derek Ohs, Glendive, 21-08.25. 3, Tyler Wilde, Frenchtown, 21-0.75. 4, Willie Roche, Whitefish, 20-09. 5, Isaac Hunter, Stevensville, 20-08.5. 6, Seth Wright, Libby, 20-06.25.
High jump — 1, Darrell Weatherwax, Browning, 6-06. 2, Seth Wright, Libby, 6-06. 3, Garrett Pewe, Bigfork, 6-04. 4, Willie Roche, Whitefish, 6-04. 5, Rusty Ewing, Billings Central, 6-02. 6 (tie) — Brady Sundheim, Sidney and Dalton Kettner, Glendive, 6-02.
Shot put — 1, Dalton Sybrant, Corvallis, 55-05.5. 2, Joe Raymond, Anaconda, 51-10.5. 3, Jarred Hergett, Laurel, 50-04.75. 4, Matt Smith, Corvallis, 49-01. 5, Nick Wilson, Laurel, 49-0.25. 6, Donny Tudahl, Bigfork, 48-06.
Saturday’s Results
100 — 1, Seth Marshall, Laurel, 11.11; 2, Jonny Dilworth, Frenchtown, 11.18; 3, Ben Dixon, Corvallis, 11.19; 4, Dean Phillips, Columbia Falls, 11.2; 5, Derek Ohs, Glendive, 11.35; 6, Bryce Carver, Dillon, 11.42.
200 — 1, Seth Marshall, Laurel, 22.21; 2, Jonny Dilworth, Frenchtown, 22.67; 3, Bryce Carver, Dillon, 22.83; 4, Jason Bowman, Polson, 23.02; 5, Anto Daoud, Whitefish, 23.06; Stephen Baumgartner, Columbia Falls, 23.08.
800 — 1, Drew Coco, Whitefish, 1:58.28; 2, Drew Zieler, Corvallis, 1:59.16; 3, Jake Jessop, Hamilton, 2:00.29; 4, Brett Weidler, Laurel, 2:00.49; 5, Derrick Williams, Columbia Falls, 2:00.79; 6, Caleb Bentley, Lewistown, 2:00.91.
3,200 — 1, Drew Coco, Whitefish, 10:15.76; 2, Tucker White, Billings Central, 10:20; 3, Shawn Whitman, Columbia Falls, 10:20.03; 4, Chris Jessop, Corvallis, 10:22.05; 5, Mikey Wall, Billings Central, 10:23.85; 6, Jake Jessop, Hamilton, 10:33.39.
110 Hurdles — 1, Slater Powell, Corvallis, 14.69; 2, Jamie Engledrum, Ronan, 15.72; 3, Justin Morgan, Corvallis, 16.04; 4, Derek Crittenden, Whitefish, 16.42; 5, Ryan Kelley, Polson, 16.5; 6, John Perrodin, Havre, 16.51.
400 Relay — 1, Corvallis, 43.01; 2, Dillon, 43.85; 3, Polson, 44.11; 4, Sidney, 44.25; 5, Belgrade, 44.38; 6, Whitefish, 44.44.
1,600 Relay — 1, Laurel, 3:27.42; 2, Whitefish, 3:27.53; 3, Frenchtown, 3:29.65; 4, Corvallis, 3:30.53; 5, Belgrade, 3:31.34; 6, Columbia Falls, 3:32.03.
Javelin — 1, Nick WIlson, Laurel, 207-9; 2, Austin Landis, Corvallis, 183-3; 3, Dylan Buehler, Lewistown, 177-0; 4, Joel Fuller, Libby, 174-8; 5, Dustin Beck, Whitefish, 169-2; 6, Nick Love, Miles City, 167-8.
Discus — 1, Dalton Sybrant, Corvallis, 166-7; 2, Sean Ferriter, Butte Central, 154-7; 3, Sean Condon, Laurel, 154-4; 4, Donny Tudahl, Bigfork, 152-6; 5, Jarred Hergett, Laurel, 151-4; 6, Seth Wright, Libby, 144-3.
Triple Jump — 1, Isaac Hunter, Stevensville, 44-5 1/2; 2, Seth Wright, Libby, 43- 3/4; 3, Brady Sundheim, Sidney, 42-5 3/4; 4, Devin Leonardi, Hamilton, 42-3 1/4; 5, Tyler Wilde, Frenchtown, 41-11; 6, Kaden Keto, Havre, 41-9.
Pole Vault — 1, Austin Byron, Corvallis, 15-0; 2, Ryan Kelley, Polson, 14-6; 3, Kaleb Prestegaard, Whitefish, 14-0; 4, Easton Padden, Laurel, 14-0; 5, Kelby Dorn, Hardin, 13-6; 6, Joel Ballard, Columbia Falls, 13-0; 6, Marcus Fischer, Anaconda, 13-0.