Chester boys bring hardware home to the Hi-Line

It might not be a state championship trophy, but there is still some hardware coming home to the Hi-Line from the State C Track Meet in Missoula.

The Chester Coyote boys track team made sure the area didn't go trophy-less, capturing third place with 29 team points, finishing behind runaway state champ Harlowton (85) and runner-up Drummond (43) and just ahead of Augusta (28).

While co-coach Willie Schlepp wasn't exactly sure when the last time the Coyotes had brought home a trophy from a state track meet, he did know it hasn't happened in his six years at the school. And it is quite an accomplishment to be sure.

"We knew going in it would take right around 30 points to get a trophy and we did that," Schlepp said. "Harlo and Drummond were just too deep. We kind of knew that with the way we won divisionals, it would be tough to score many more points than we did. But it was great way to end things for our seniors. They've worked really hard over the years and deserve this."

Indeed, Chester only had one divisional champion - Patrick Walstad - coming into the meet. With 53 teams competing at state, the overall team points were going to be really spread out, which meant the Coyotes needed to get some quality performances from athletes to turn those thirds and fourths at divisionals into placings at state. And they did exactly that.

Walstad, the defending champion in the 800, wasn't able to make it two-straight, losing a very tough race to Harlowton's Pax Wojtowick by .38 of a second on Friday.

"It was an incredible race," Schlepp said of the 800. "Patrick just let him get a little too far ahead early in the race to come back. He came on strong at the end, but (Wojtowick) was able to hold him off."

Despite the disappointing end, Walstad bounced back on Saturday to finish second in the 1,600 with a solid time of 4:38.18.

Junior Isaac VanDyke had a solid state meet for the Coyotes placing a surprising fourth in the 1,600 behind Walstad and Wojtowick with a time of 4:41.82. On Friday, VanDyke ran a 10:08.51 in his best event - the 3,200-meter run - to finish third.

"Isaac had some great performances for us," Schlepp said. "He ran his best times of the year in both events. We knew he was strong in the 3,200, but he really surprised us in the 1,600."

Chester's two relay teams added critical team points as the team of Patrick Wicks, Zach Ramberg, John Tranberg and Walstad finished fifth in the 1,600-meter relay and sixth in the 400 relay.

"Those points may not seem like much," Schlepp said. "But without them we don't get a trophy. The kids really performed well and it was positive a way to end the season."

While the Coyotes might have been the only team to come home with a state meet keepsake, there were plenty of individuals that grabbed medals to remember their state meet.

Big Sandy's Mason Ophus not only took home a first-place medal, but he etched his name in the state record books in the discus.

Ophus smashed the state record with a throw of 172-7 on Friday, besting Phillipsburg's Landusky Hertz' throw of 164-8 in 1993. It was Ophus' best throw of the season. His previous best was 167-3, thrown in the first meet of the season.

But Ophus wasn't the only individual state champion.

KG senior Luke Antonich capped a fine career with a win in the 110 hurdles. Antonich defeated rival Kade Greaney of Augusta with a quality time of 15.44. Greaney got Antonich at the Northern C Divisional, but Antonich had the last word at state.

The other local winner came from Hays-Lodge Pole's sprinting sensation, Kevin Walker, who captured the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.29.

Like Antonich, Walker was beaten at the Northern C Divisional in his best race, finishing third behind rival Calvin Walter of Judith Gap and Greaney. But this time he wasn't denied.

The only other local placers on the boys side was Big Sandy's 1,600-meter relay team of Kyle Danreuther, Karl Osterman, Justin Willis and Adam Butler, which finished a respectable third with a time of 3:37.18.

On the girls side, no team brought home any trophies as Blue Sky/J-I was the highest placer, finishing eighth with 22 team points. Chester finished 15th with 10 points. But both team had several quality individual performances.

The Eagles got a second-place finish from the 1,600-meter relay team of Kile Patrick, Lindsay Anderson, Kaila Warren and Maia Aageson. The team ran a respectable time of 4:17.0, finishing behind powerhouse Geraldine, which ran a 4:11.65.

The relay team of Megan Warren, Aageson, Anderson and Kaila Warren finished third in the 400 relay with a time of 52.42.

Blue Sky/J-I also got a third-place showing from freshman Hannah Pimley in the high jump. Pimley cleared the winning height of 5-2, but had more misses getting to the attempt than champion Ellie Kauffman of Victor and Lacey Haughian of Terry.

Patrick was the Eagles' other individual placer with a fifth in her best event, the 800-meter run.

The youthful Coyote girls squad also had a good showing, considering it was the first state meet for several of its athletes.

Freshman Kelsey Schweitzer opened a few eyes, finishing third in the 3,200 with a time of 12:10.71 and fourth in the 1,600 with a time of 5:32.54.

"That's just a great effort by a freshman," Schlepp said. "She went into the meet a little nervous and intimidated, but she went out there and competed and showed that she belonged with the best runners in Class C."

State Class C track meet

BOYS

Team scores

Harlowton 85. Drummond 43. Chester 29, Augusta 28, Broadview-Lavina 24, Saco 23, Fairview 20, Gardiner 20, Harrison 18, Big Sandy 16, Judith Gap 16, Valier 16, Geraldine 14, Denton 13, Geyser 12, Park City 12, Noxon 11, Belfry 10, Hays-Lodge Pole 10, Kremlin-Gildford 10, Lambert 10, Lima 10, Grass Range 8, Hot Springs 8, Rapelje 8, Roberts 8, Whitewater 8, Medicine Lake-Froid 7, Melstone 6. Ryegate 6, Charlo 4, Stanford 4, Belt 2, Richey 2, Dutton-Brady 1. Garfield 1, Hobson 1, Lincoln 1, Scobey 1, Shields Valley 1,

Saturday

100 - 1. Kevin Walker, Hays-L, 11.29; 2. Calvin Walter, Judith Gap, 11.35; 3. Derek Beadle, Saco, 11.42; 4. Mike Graham, Hot Springs, 11.48; 5. Kade Greany, Augusta, 11.50; 6. Chase Reynolds, Drummond, 11.51.

200 - 1. Derek Beadle, Saco, 22.89; 2. Calvin Walter, Judith Gap, 23.03; 3. Bryce Dick, Harlowton, 23.29; 4. Garath Stahl, Grass Range, 23.41; 5. Mike Graham, Hot Springs, 23.47; 6. Caleb Ridgeway, Stanford, 23.57.

400 - 1. Erik Johnson, Fairview, 51.34; 2. Travis Edmundson, Harrison, 51.83; 3. Mikel Erickson, Broadview-L, 51.91; 4. Garath Stahl, Grass Range, 51.91; 5. Mike Graham, Hot Springs, 52.18; 6. Skylar Harbaugh, Garfield, 52.23.

1,600 - 1. John Ricardi, Gardiner, 4:30.85; 2. Patrick Walstad, Chester, 4:38.18; 3. Pax Wojtowick, Harlowton, 4:40.84; 4. Isaac Vandyke, Chester, 4:41.82; 5. Nathan Michael, Park City, 4:41.92; 6. Stephen Wall, Belt, 4:42.76.

110 hurdles - 1. Luke Antonich, Kremlin-G, 15.44; 2. Kade Greany, Augusta, 15.54; 3. Owen Thatcher, Harlowton, 15.67; 4. Bryce Dick, Harlowton, 15.86; 5. Layton Veverka, Richey, 16.04; 6. Riley Bennett, Harlowton, 16.15.

300 hurdles - 1. Kade Greany, Augusta, 39.72; 2. Greg Reid, Geraldine, 40.25; 3. Robbie Seymour, Park City, 40.36; 4. Riley Bennett, Harlowton, 40.71; 5. Owen Thatcher, Harlowton, 41.47; 6. Brian Qualley, Med Lake-F, 41.48.

400 relay - 1. Drummond (Tyrell Cochrell, Chase Reynolds, Brett Graybeal, Clay Cantrell) 44.67; 2. Harlowton 45.27; 3. Valier 45.38; 4. Geraldine 45.96; 5. Lambert 46.0; 6. Chester 46.31.

1,600 relay - 1. Harlowton () 3:33.19; 2. Fairview 3:35.52; 3. Big Sandy, 3:37.18; 4. Drummond 3:38.12; 5. Chester 3:38.48; 6. Shields Valley 3:39.17.

Shot put - 1. Brock Hansen, Geyser, 48-3; 2. Casey Clausen, Harlowton, 47-6; 3. Kyle Richards, Harrison, 47-; 4. Alex Verlanic, Drummond, 46-10; 5. Daniel Beaudin, Noxon, 46-9; 6. Zach Posey, Scobey, 46-2.

High jump - 1. Jake Rohrer, Broadview-L, 6-4; 2. Tyge Devries, Roberts, 6-3; 3. Devin Dahl, Drummond, 6-3; 4. Kenny Bonham, Park City, 6-0; 5. Brett Irigoin, Lambert, 6-0; 6. Reilly Spence, Lincoln, 5-10.

Triple jump - 1. Dustin Cichosz, Belfry, 44-2; 2. Chase Reynolds, Drummond, 43-4; 3. Pat Menge, Saco, 43-3; 4. Mike Erickson, Broadview-L, 43-2; 5. Ryan Neumann, Geyser, 42-5; 6. Derek Sande, Geraldine, 41-2.

Friday

800 - 1. Pax Wojtowick, Harlowton, 1:59.08; 2. Patrick Walstad, Chester, 1:59.46; 3. Shawn Schreiber, Harlowton, 2:00.04; 4. Mikel Erickson, Broadview-L, 2:02:33; 5. Ryan Kopp, Fairview, 2:04.34; 6. Jesse Logan, Dutton-B, 2:04.87.

3,200 - 1. John Ricardi, Gardiner, 9:47.64; 2. Zach Nordahl, Rapelje, 10:07.57; 3. Isaac Vandyke, Chester, 10:08.51; 4. Zac Jones, Lambert, 10:25.19; 5. Robert Blessing, Melstone, 10:28.05; 6. Stephen Wall, Belt, 10:35.45.

Javelin - 1. Charlie Clark, Lima, 183-6; 2. Shade Stiles, Whitewater, 169-3; 3. Scott Buckentin, Denton, 167-9; 4. Brian Cahoon, Charlo, 167-1; 5. Blake Lehman, Harrison, 166-1; 6. Daniel Beaudin, Noxon, 165-2.

Discus - 1. Mason Ophus, Big Sandy, 172-7 (Class C record; old record 164-8, Landusky Hertz, Philipsburg, 1993); 2. Daniel Beaudin, Noxon, 155-4; 3. Lance Brekke, Med Lake-F, 147-7; 4. Mark Buckentin, Denton, 144-10; 5. Kyle Richards, Harrison, 142-5; 6. Ryan Kolar, Hobson, 141-6.

Long jump - 1. Chase Reynolds, Drummond, 21-9; 2. Kade Greany, Augusta, 21-5; 3. Gabe Blomquist, Ryegate, 20-11; 4. Kale Eike, Melstone, 20-2; 5. Brett Irigoin, Lambert, 20-8; 6. Pat Menge, Saco, 20-9.

Pole vault - 1. Chris Widhalm, Valier, 13-9; 2. Cavan Cooney, Harlowton, 13-6; 3. Jesse Merritt, Harlowton, 13-0; 4. (tie) Cole Derks, Denton and Daniel Hawkey, Stanford, 12-6; 6. Joey Boso, Geraldine, 12-0.

GIRLS

Team scores

Geraldine 86. Opheim 45. Centerville 36. Harlowton 36. Terry 34. Victor 30, Bridger 24. Blue Sky-J-I 22. Ryegate 20, Broadview-Lavina 20, Bainville 16. Drummond 16. Culbertson 14. Twin Bridges 11. Chester 10, Hot Springs 9, Fairview 8, Rapelje 8, Shields Valley 8, Valier 8, Garfield 7, Grass Range 7, Charlo 6. Lima 6. Richey 6. Medicine Lake-Froid 5. Circle 4. Fromberg 4. Harrison 4. Hysham 4. Judith Gap 4. Lambert 2. Savage 2. West Yellowstone 1; Belt 1. Joliet 1. White Sulphur Springs 1.

Individual Results

100 - 1. Toni Qunell, Geraldine, 12.77; 2. Callee Swandal, Shields Valley, 13.13; 3. Ellie Kauffman, Victor, 13.27; 4. Alex Baldwin, Culbertson, 13.28; 5. Georgia Gooch, Harlowton, 13.49; 6. Brittany Olson, Grass Range, 13.52.

200 - 1. Toni Qunell, Geraldine, 26.34; 2. Rachel Clark, Geraldine, 26.88; 3. Alex Baldwin, Culbertson, 27.11; 4. Katie Degel, Twin Bridges, 27.15; 5. Georgia Gooch, Harlowton, 27.23; 6. Anna Liesa Fauth, Opheim, 27.46.

400 - 1. Toni Qunell, Geraldine, 59.29; 2. Jayln Kapp, Centerville, 59.84; 3. Rachel Clark, Geraldine, 60.07; 4. Fawn Kirkpatrick, Ryegate, 60.67; 5. Anna Liesa Fauth, Opheim, 60.70; 6. Jamee Galahan, Harlowton, 62.09.

800 - 1. Jayme Larson, Opheim, 2:23.86; 2. Miriam Davis, Hot Springs, 2:25.24; 3. Amy Allen, Lima, 2:25.72; 4. Sarah Dailey, Garfield, 2:26.49; 5. Kile Patrick, Blue Sky-J-I, 2:26.84; 6. Kendall Theriault, Harlowton, time not listed.

3,200 - 1. Kayla Larson, Opheim, 12:01.02; 2. Kayla Hauso, Bainville, 12:06.56; 3. Kelsey Schweitzer, Chester, 12:10.71; 4. Megan Young, Harrison, 12:20.10; 5. Sharlie Whiteside, Garfield, 12:36.97; 6. Christy Pletan, Harlowton, 12:38.00.

100 hurdles - 1. Toni Qunell, Geraldine, 15.84; 2. Jayln Kapp, Centerville, 16.62; 3. Amanda Burrington, Victor, 16.73; 4. Brittany Olson, Grass Range, 16.80; 5. Annie Barker, Fromberg, 16.99; 6. Brittney Opp, Med Lake-F, 17.19.

300 hurdles - 1. Toni Qunell, Geraldine, 45.18; 2. Jayln Kapp, Centerville, 46.02; 3. Fawn Kirkpatrick, Ryegate, 46.37; 4. Sarah Servais, Richey, 47.54; 5. Brittany Olson, Grass Range, 47.56; 6. Miriam Davis, Hot Springs, 48.28.

400 relay - 1. Geraldine 51.17; 2. Harlowton 51.31; 3. Blue Sky-J-I 52.42; 4. Med Lake-F, 53.31; 5. Lambert 53.60; 6. Joliet 53.71.

1,600 relay - 1. Geraldine 4:11.65; 2. Blue Sky-J-I 4:17.0; 3. Harlowton 4:17.44; 4. Opheim 4:19.57; 5. Fromberg 4:20.88; 6. Centerville 4:23.18.

Javelin - 1. Lacey Haughian, Terry, 127-2; 2. Kelsey Ballach, Rapelje, 120-3; 3. Cayla Wruck, Harlowton, 117-4; 4. Ashley Morgan, Culbertson, 115-11; 5. Jade Freiboth, Terry, 111-7; 6. Lindsey Nicholls, Twin Bridges, 111-3.

Shot put - 1. Kylee Zent, Bridger, 47-6 (All-class record, old record 46-5. Bree Fuqua, Polson, 2000); 2. Alli Jones, Harlowton, 40-0; 3. Lacey Haughian, Terry, 39-3; 4. Brooke Zent, Hysham, 36-1; 5. Amanda Murphy, Charlo, 35-8; 6. Shona Desaye, Ryegate, 34-8.

High jump - 1. Ellie Kauffman, Victor, 5-2; 2. Lacey Haughian, Terry, 5-2; 3. Hannah Pimley, Blue Sky-J-I, 5-2; 4. Ashley Grammens, Broadview-L, 5-2; 5. (tie) Shona Desaye, Ryegate and Cejay Rossberg, West Yellowstone, 5-0

Triple jump - 1. Ashley Grammens, Broadview-L, 34-10; 2. Alissa Klose, Fairview, 34-6; 3. Katie Degel, Twin Bridges, 33-10; 4. Kama Urton, Circle, 33-8; 5. Jill Jorgensen, Savage, 33-6; 6. Andi Wilham, Centerville, 33-4.

Friday

1,600 - 1. Jayme Larson, Opheim, 5:20.80; 2. Kayla Larson, Opheim, 5:28.96; 3. Kayla Hauso, Bainville, 5:31.51; 4. Kelsey Schweitzer, Chester, 5:32.54; 5. Rayna Berndt, Bainville, 5:34.61; 6. Sarah Dailey, Garfield, 5:35.67.

Long jump - 1. Andi Wilham, Centerville, 16-4; 2. Ellie Kauffman, Victor, 16-; 3. Ashley Grammens, Broadview-L, 15-10; 4. Erica Warner, Judith Gap, 15-9; 5. Rachel Clark, Geraldine, 15-9; 6. Jamie Blum, White Sulpher Springs, 15-8.

Discus - 1. Kylee Zent, Bridger, 138-11; 2. Shona Desaye, Ryegate, 122-7; 3. Lacey Haughian, Terry, 118-11; 4. Marci Mudd, Bridger, 113-11; 5. Jade Freiboth, Terry, 113-9; 6. Megan Wichman, Belt, 112-5.

Pole vault - 1. Alexx Leeper, Drummond, 9-6; 2. Emily Johnson, Valier, 9-6; 3. Holly Dahl, Drummond, 9-0; 4. Nicole Bierie, Charlo, 9-0; 5. Kaci Switzer, Richey, 9-0; 6. Brittney Burreece, Harlowton, 8-6.