State's best will go head-to-head at Archie Roe track

The longest event of the day may be the most intriguing at today’s Archie Roe Invitational at Legends Field.

On both the boys and girls side of the meet, the 3,200-meter run will be a must watch, with the top three boys and the top two girls in the state going head-to-head.

Future University of Colorado runners Zach Perrin of Flathead and Adam Peterman of Missoula Hellgate and Gonzaga signee Troy Fraley of Glacier have the fastest three times in the state this season in each of the distance events and with warm weather and low winds expected for the races, times could be record fast.

“That’s always been a great competition to watch,” Glacier boys coach Arron Deck said.

Bigfork’s Makena Morley and Hellgate’s Paige Gilchrist will make things interesting on the girls side. The top two distance runners in the state, their times have been neck-and-neck this season.

“That will be fantastic,” Flathead coach Tom Gillespie said.

The women’s sprints should feature some of the fastest runners in the state, including Whitefish star Marlow Schulz, Polson’s Anna DiGiallonardo and Flathead’s Dani Davis.

Logan Jones broke the Glacier record in the 100 at the ARM last week, and will be up against a fast group in the sprints today, led by Whitefish’s Logan Harwood.

The hurdles should be intriguing as well, with Hellgate’s Colin Dolese and Glacier’s Noah James expected to compete.

In the field, the boys javelin features four of the top five throwers in Montana. Hellgate’s Nate Buche, and Glacier’s Todd Ogden, Shelton Todd and Taylor Hulslander have each consistently thrown in the 180-foot range, and today’s event could be a preview of the battle at state.

The jumps are also going to be long for both the boys and girls, with the state’s top competitors in the long and triple. Glacier’s Kyle Griffith and Flathead’s Matt Tokarz have been feet in front of the rest of the state this season, as have Flathead’s Kwyn Johnson and Glacier’s Leah Cook.

Deck said Glacier’s athletes would run fewer events today to focus on better times.

“We’re looking for some speed,” Deck said.

“We’re really looking to cut some times. We’re going at it with a different philosophy this year and see if it pays off in the future.”

Flathead is also rounding its team into state form, looking to field its largest team this season.

“We’ll be fielding our strongest team of the year,” Gillespie said.

The events start at 10 a.m. beginning with the 3,200.