Tracksters tune up at Kim L Haines meet

That was, in basic terms, a clean-up, rest-up and tune-up weekend for area Class B-C track and field teams as post season playoffs get underway this week.

One of the biggest meets of the year, the Kim L Haines (KLH) Invitational meet, highlighted the last track events of the regular season for this part of Montana, with teams from Drummond and Broadwater flexing their team potential.

Broadwater’s girls won the KLH team title, while Drummond captured the men’s crown.

Superior’s boys finished fourth in the KLH standings, scoring 41 points with their deep, multi-event lineup.

Hot Springs’ boys finished ninth among 21 schools in the team race with 22 points. Noxon was fourteenth with 16 points, Alberton was tied for seventeenth (8 points) and St. Regis came in nineteenth among local (Sanders and Mineral County) teams.

Superior’s girls place thirteenth in the team chase with 12 points, just ahead of number fourteen Hot Springs (10). Noxon was seventeenth with two points, while St. Regis was nineteenth with one team point.

Several of the teams entered were not the full, front-line entrants who will return to Missoula County Public Stadium this coming weekend for the Western District 13-14 championships and the right to move on to Divisionals two weekends from now. The Class C state championship is in Great Falls the weekend of May 23-25. Some players are engaged in other activities, some are resting and healing as teams got in some important work before the postseason chase begins this weekend.

Class B schools gather this weekend in Libby for the Western B Divisional tournament. The State Class B championship meet is in Laurel, May 23-25.

Superior’s boys got another individual championship from senior pole vaulter Lucas Kovalsky on their way to fourth place. Kovlasky cleared 13 feet even to claim first among a large field of vaulters. Kovalsky earlier broke his own school and personal vault standards, capped by a 13-6 mark last month. Lincoln High’s Kayden Riddle was second with a vault of 11-6.

Kovlaksky’s teammate, ninth grader Gannon Quinlan, place seventh for the Bobcats with a 10-6 effort, while another Superior freshman, Turner Milender was twelfth at 9-6. Kovalsky was also ninth in the men’s 100 meter event and ran the anchor leg on the Bobcats first-place 4X400 relay team, which also consisted of Quinlan, Micah Acker and Trizten Avila, who placed in several events for the Bobcats. Superior also captured third in the 4X100 relay.

Perhaps the top performance of the meet was turned in by Florence-Carlton sprinter Issac Butler, who won the 100 meter, 200 meter and 400 meter events.

Hot Springs’ junior David Chapman also had an outstanding meet, winning the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 16.42, just ahead of runner up Chris Graham, Conrad, who crossed the finish line at the 16.95 mark. Noxon’s Ricky Williams was third in the event with a time of 17.16 seconds.

Chapman added a third place finish in the 300 meter hurdles, finished eighth in the 200 meter sprint, and came in eleventh in the men’s 100 meter sprint.

Noxon junior Williams, a state high jump placer from last season, was fifth in the event Saturday with a leap of 5-10. Two weeks ago Williams set a personal best record with a 6-4 jump. Williams also added a fifth place finish in the 300 meters and a third place finish in the triple jump Saturday.

Alberton continued to have a good season with just a handful of athletes, led by sophomore Shea Fredette, who finished fifth in the triple jump and eighth in the 1600 meter run. Teammate Colton Baughman added to the Alberton total with his third place javelin throw.

Superior’s girls got one individual first place when Ava White won the 300 meter hurdles with a time of 47.92, a new personal best for the freshman. White also placed eighth in the women’s 100 meter event (17.45).

Lady Bobcats’ teammate Alysha Ryan was seventh in the 300 meter hurdles and ninth in the 100 meter hurdles.

Hot Springs sophomore multiple event standout Kara Christensen continued her competitive Spring, tuning up for next weekend’s District event with a fourth place finish in the javelin via a personal best throw of 105-3. Broadwater’s Havyn Vandenacre won the event with a toss of 117-07.

Christensen added to her day’s work with a thirteenth place finish in the 200 meters, and fifth place medal in the 300 meter hurdles (51.40, also a personal best).

St. Regis senior John Pruitt, a multi-sport standount for the Tigers who is heading to Rocky Mountain College in Billings next Fall to play basketball and study small business administration, was fourth in the javelin with a throw of 145-6. The event was won by Conrad’s Roscoe Shaw who uncorked a toss of 158-03 feet. Noxon junior Shane Murray was seventh in the event (138-7), St. Regis’ Hunter Stolla was thirteenth (131-0, a new personal best), and Superior senior Wathen Reese placed eleventh (136-0).

Superior also got customary points from senior Jaxson Green, who finished fourth in the shot put (42-8.5) and tenth in the discus (111-1.5).

Class B Superior now travels to Libby this weekend, along with Thompson Falls and Plains boys and girls for western District postseason action, while the Class C schools, Alberton, St. Regis, Hot Springs and Noxon return to Missoula’s MCPS for the District 13-14 tournament this coming weekend.