Whitefish girls, Glacier boys hope to strike gold in Butte

The State AA and A track meets are, for one of the few times in memory, being held in the same venue Friday and Saturday: Butte’s Bulldog Memorial Stadium.

When it’s over we could well have state championships for two schools 13 miles apart.

The Whitefish girls (State A) and Glacier boys (AA) are favorites this weekend, if season-long projections ring true.

Over in Great Falls, Bigfork’s boys are in the hunt for a state title as well, and the girls should be in the hunt for a top-three trophy.

Here’s a brief look at each meet:

State AA

It should be a tight race for the title boys, with two-time defending champion Missoula Sentinel — the Spartans won in 2019 and 2021, with the 2020 season wiped out by Covid-19 — ready to win it again.

Both the Spartans and Pack have points coming in multiple events, with Sentinel stronger on paper in the 400 and 800 but Glacier piling up points behind distance standout Sam Ells, hurdler Caleb Bernhardt, throwers Aiden Krause and Reuben Hornby and jumper Tate Kauffman.

The beasts of the Eastern AA are Billings West and Gallatin. Taco Dowler is a top-shelf sprinter for West, and will challenge Helena Capital’s Thomas Carter; Gallatin’s Garret Coley and Tyler Gilman have the two best times in Bernhardt’s best event, the 300 hurdles.

“We’ve got some work to do, that’s for sure,” Glacier boys coach Arron Deck said. “Gallatin has some nice athletes that have put up some really good marks. And West, shoot, they always pump out some athletes.

“But I like our team. We have some veterans. We have a nice mix. I like where our kids are.”

The Wolfpack is fittingly deep, with John Pyron in the triple jump and Connor Sullivan, Jackson Hensley and Jake Turner in the sprints. Glacier could take home its second state crown. The first came in 2018.

The junior Hensley, sophomore Ty Olsen and senior Pyron have all excelled in their first years of high school track.

“One of the terms we’ve always used is we’re kind of laying in the weeds,” Deck said. “We always have this date circled on the calendar, and we want to be at our best this weekend every year.

“It’s exciting at state because when teams get hot, the momentum — even more in basketball or football — it just takes over. We’re hoping for some of that this weekend.”

Flathead’s boys have a chance to score big in the triple jump with Dylan Zink and Carter Bullins, and the long jump with Brody Thornsberry and Zink.

Sentinel’s girls, with Brooke Stayner leading the way, could make it four championships in five seasons though Billings West will have some input.

Glacier saw Kai Johnson get a PR in the shot put last week; the sophomore could be a threat at state. Sidney Gulick comes in with the fourth-best 300-meter hurdles time.

Flathead’s top scoring threats are Lilli Rumsey Eash in the distances, Taliana Miller in the throws and Kennedy Moore in the high jump. Hania Halverson competed in the pole vault Thursday, and did not place.

State A

These meets are often won with 1-2 punches, and wow, do the Whitefish girls have one of those: Senior Hailey Ells and sophomore Brooke Zetooney are threats to go first-second in all three sprints.

Ells and Maeve Ingelfinger should provide points in the hurdles, and it goes without saying that the Bulldog relay teams have been stellar.

Erin Wilde is also an excellent jumper who set the school record in the long jump (17 feet, 10.5 inches) at last week’s divisional. Whitefish is seeing its fifth girls title and second in three seasons.

“I’m just bouncing off the walls,” girls’ coach Kelliann Blackburn said. “I think they’re ready. The best news is we’re healthy.

“What’s exciting about this team is we’ve had a lot of kids that have potential. We have kids that I don’t think people think about a lot. And they should.”

Isabelle Cooke comes to mind in the 800 and 1,600; so does sprinter Rachael Wilmot.

“They’re just coming on right when they should, and it’s super exciting to see,” Blackburn said.

In the wings: Dillon, with standout jumper-hurdler Ainsley Shipman; defending champion Laurel and perennially strong Corvallis.

Shipman’s hand-timed 14.00 in the 100 hurdles from divisionals was adjusted to 14.24; she breezed the competition, no matter the time.

“She’s going to be Lane 5,” Blackburn confirmed, then reiterated that qualifying times no longer matter.

“State’s about the place,” she said. “State’s about taking advantage of the opportunity and placing. Those times don’t matter anymore. That’s what it’s all about: Who’s going to show and race this weekend, and throw and jump?”

Columbia Falls has an outside chance at a trophy and got off to a great start Thursday: Hannah Sempf cleared 10 feet, 6 inches to take second in the pole vault while teammates Emma McAllister and Rebekah Walker were fourth and sixth. The Wildkats will start Friday with 13 team points.

The boys team race seems to be between defending champion Hamilton, with its fleet of distance runners and thrower Andrew Burrows, and Dillon, with five-event threat Treyton Anderson.

The Beavers, who tied Laurel for the 2019 state crown, have Anderson in the 100, 200, 400 and both hurdles races.

Whitefish is in the hunt along with Laurel for a state trophy, especially if the Bulldogs make hay in the relays. As it is they have jumper Gabe Menicke, hurdler Bodie Smith and thrower Talon Holmquist. Deneb Linton leads a solid distance crew.

State B

At Great Falls, Bigfork’s boys are easily in the hunt for a state trophy, while Missoula Loyola and defending champion Boulder could make a title tough to reach.

Bigfork far outscored Loyola at the Western B Divisional, but the Rams have an excellent 1-2 sprinter punch in Ridger Palma and Luca Dombrowski; they help make both their relay teams the favorites.

Boulder’s speed shows up in the hurdles, where Dylan Root and Braden Morris excel, and the Panthers also have a standout thrower in Wade Rykal.

Bigfork gets points from all over: Levi Taylor and Braden Guse in the throws; George Bucklin and Levi Peterson in the jumps; Jack Jensen in the 800 and 1,600. The rankings at athletic.net don’t project a Vikings win, but this is the same school that snuck up on people and won a state cross country title last October.

A track and field title would be their second; the other came in 1985.

The Bigfork girls also had an easy time at divisionals but will see their depth points eaten up at state. The favorite should be defending champion Big Timber, with jumper Emily Cooley, sprinter Alyssa Boshart and distance standout Natalie Wood.

The Valkyries have enough speed to take both relays, so it follows they have enough to take home a top-three trophy, with Colstrip and Townsend also in the chase.

Leading the way for Bigfork are sprinter Chloe Raats, hurdlers Inga Turner and Lily Tanko and thrower Scout Nadeau.

Eureka should score well: Remmi Stanger is a threat in the high jump and Maya Carvey is a standout sprinter.