Records Fall In The Rain At Idaho State Meet

By Marlowe Hereford for DyeStat

Persistent rain through the Treasure Valley impacted Idaho’s high school track and field state championships, causing a much longer Day 2 for the 5A/4A state meet at Eagle High School. Friday's pole vault, throwing and high jump finals were all pushed to Saturday due to the weather.

Athletes endured Friday’s wet conditions and Saturday’s revised schedule, however, taking down records and closing seasons in a big way.

Such was the case for Mountain View junior Lexy Halladay, who completed a sweep of the 5A girls distance events for the first time in her career. Two years after setting Idaho’s all-classification and 5A records in the 3,200 and 1,600, she ran 10:39.23 to win her third consecutive 3,200 title Friday, won the 800 in 2:12.04 and won the 1,600 in 4:43.74, the fastest 1,600 in Idaho history, surpassing the 4:46.87 set a year ago by Boise’s Maggie Liebich. (Halladay ran 4:41.80 for the full mile in 2017).

Halladay’s 1,600 meters time is US#2, second to Marlee Starliper’s 4:38.70 from Saturday's Pennsylvania District 3 AAA Championships.

Another big performance came in the Class 2A girls 200 meters, where Brooke Weimer of Cole Valley Christian ran an all-time wind legal state record time of 24.74 seconds. 

Borah sophomore Nathan Green won the 5A boys 3,200 — a race he took second in a year earlier by five hundredths of a second — and defended his 1,600 title. He also anchored Borah to second place in the 5A boys 4x800 and placed second in the 800. Timberline’s Caleb Stamper won his third consecutive 5A boys 800 title and contributed to his team’s 4x800 win.

Two Rigby throwers concluded undefeated seasons in the shot put by claiming the 5A titles. Senior and Wyoming signee Mateya Mobley defended her title to complete her second consecutive undefeated season in the event, with fellow senior and Utah State signee Nathan Franz winning the boys title for his first individual state gold. Mobley also won 5A girls discus for the first time, with Franz placing second in the discus, which was won by Rocky Mountain’s Gerrit Tamminga.

Post Falls’ Tyler Trengove repeated as 5A boys high jump champion, concluding an undefeated season in the event, with Madison’s Rayven Nealey winning her first 5A girls long jump title and her third consecutive triple jump title to cap another undefeated season, in addition to anchoring Madison to the win in the 4x100. A Nevada signee whose short list also included LSU and Georgia, Nealey also placed fourth in the 100 finals after running the second-fastest time in Friday’s prelims.

"That was definitely a surprise,” Nealey said Friday after 100 prelims and winning the long jump. “This season, I haven’t been really focused on long jump at all. I’ve been focused more on my running.”

Two girls tied the meet record in the pole vault upon clearing 12-6. Rocky Mountain’s Kinsey Langin and Boise’s Maya Maloney both made it, but Langin won the tiebreaker on fewer misses. Capital’s Alec Bindner won 5A boys pole vault and long jump.

Mountain View’s Jasmine Devers swept the 5A girls 100- and 200-meter dash titles, with teammate Jaymon Barrus sweeping the boys 100 and 200.

Eagle won the 4x800, got the individual high jump champion in Zoe Johnson, scored 15 points in the girls 1,600 finals, and 10 in the girls 800 finals, en route to winning its first 5A girls track title since 2013. Rocky Mountain secured its eighth 5A boys track title in nine seasons.

In 4A, Twin Falls junior Mattalyn Geddes completed a sweep of girls distance titles, defending her 3,200 and 1,600 championships, along with adding her first 800 crown. Bishop Kelly’s Nicholas Russell defended his 4A boys 3,200 title. Pocatello’s Dallin Bird won the 1,600 and the 800 went to Idaho Falls’ Zac Bright by six hundredths of a second over Middleton’s Dax Wyatt.

Pocatello’s Destiny Harris won the girls discus and took second in shot put to Vallivue’s Shacole Hughes. Caldwell’s Zach Ramos (discus) and Century’s Dequa Lang (shot put) claimed the boys throwing titles. Twin Falls’ Sidnee Naerebout won the girls triple jump with a meet-record 38-5.25 and Pocatello’s Madi Zink swept the hurdles finals.

Skyline snapped Bishop Kelly’s three-year 4A boys title streak, edging the Knights 68-66 for a program first boys track state championship. Zackary Lott secured the team title by placing sixth in pole vault — the last event of the day due to the revised schedule — to put the Grizzlies past the Knights.

Bishop Kelly compiled 153 points to win its fifth consecutive 4A girls title by an 86-point margin over Skyline, which claimed its first girls state track trophy since 2006. Bishop Kelly set meet records to win the 4x200 (1:41.99) and 4x100 (48.40), had the girls high jump champion in Kelly Donnellan and got multiple points from senior Alyson Tekippe, who defended her pole vault title, led a Bishop Kelly 1-2-3 finish in the long jump to repeat as champion, and placed second in triple jump.

Two eastern Idaho athletes, Bonneville’s Colton Reifschneider and Idaho Falls’ Laurel Taylor, swept the 100 and 200 titles. Reifschneider won the 100 in 10.79 seconds, just one hundredth of a second from tying the meet record, and ran 21.55 to win the 200. His 200 time would have been a classification record, but it was wind aided.

Taylor, who broke a meet record by running 12.26 seconds in Friday’s 100 prelims, won the finals in 12.32 and got a meet record with 25.07 to win the 200.

The 4A boys high jump title also went to Shelley senior Ty Wright. The BYU signee entered Saturday having won three consecutive boys high jump titles at the 3A level. Although Shelley moved to 4A this year, it did not keep Wright from ending his career with a fourth crown. Wright went undefeated in the event this year, including a 6-11 clearance May 4 to win the BYU Invitational.

“It’s one of the goals I set my freshman year and I’m so happy I did it,” said Wright, who also placed second in long jump Saturday.

At the 3A/2A/1A meet at Middleton High, Sugar-Salem won its third consecutive boys track title and sixth in seven seasons, with Kimberly capturing the girls title. Sugar-Salem’s title brings the career total to 43 combined state titles between cross country and track for head coach Brett Hill.

Sugar-Salem faced its stiffest competition from Kimberly for the second year in a row, a scenario Hill anticipated.

“They won nine events and set four state records,” Hill said. “To win nine events and lose the state championship, that’s unbelievable. They have an incredible group of sprinters.”

Kimberly’s Peyton Bair had a hand in all those records by winning the same four events he won a year ago. Bair won the 300 hurdles in 37.60, prevailed in the 110 hurdles in 14.41, contributed to his team’s 4x400 win in 3:22.32 and took down a 30-year-old meet record to win the long jump with a leap of 23-8.50. Teammate Blake Phillips won the 100 and led a Kimberly 1-2 in the 200 with Brett Bronson, who won the 400. Kimberly also won the 4x100 for the third year in a row.

Sugar-Salem got big points from Kooper Williams, who defended his 3,200 and 1,600 titles, got fourth in the 800, and was part of the second-place sprint medley relay. Kaysen Klingler was second in the 800, third in the 3,200, fifth in the 1,600. Jesse Fogle got second place in both hurdles finals and was part of the second-place sprint medley relay and fifth place 4x200. Gerohm Rihari  took second in the long jump, fifth in triple jump and second in high jump. Hadley Miller was fourth in the 200 and third in long jump.

Weiser’s Rhett Kunz defended his 3A boys 800 title. Priest River’s Colby Poe won the shot put and Homedale’s Thomas Symms took the discus. Timberlake’s Chase Gardom cleared 6-2 for the high jump title and he also won the triple jump.

Kimberly piled up points on the girls side with a discus title from Madison Alexander, long jump title from Meg Walker, the 800 title from Brinley Humphreys and winning the 4x200 and 4x400 relays. 

Parma’s Madison Jackson won four medals for the third time in four years, securing her third titles in the high jump and 100 hurdles. Gooding’s Laken Wolf won four golds, claiming the 100, 200, 400 and triple jump. Abigail Gorton of Bonners Ferry won the 3,200 and 1,600 titles. Gorton’s teammate Victoria Rae won shot put.

Nampa Christian's boys won the 2A team title for the fourth year in a row and Melba repeated as the girls champion after a close competition. 

Nampa Christian won the boys sprint medley, the 4x100, the 4x400 and had the triple jump champion in Drew Howerzyl, the 800 champion in Jeffrey Stewart, the 200 champion in Ethan Brands and had a 1-2 finish in the 400 with Brands and Stewart.

Salmon sophomore Johnathon Simmons won the 2A boys 3,200 and 1,600 titles. Garrett Hawkes of North Fremont won four medals for the third consecutive year, repeating as champion in the high jump and winning the long jump, as well as taking second in both hurdles finals. West Side’s Cyrus Rindlisbacher won four medals, including wins in both hurdles finals. Cole Valley Christian won the 4x200 and produced the 100 champion in Obadiyah Gee. Throwing titles went to New Plymouth’s Nick Woods (shot put) and Aberdeen’s Eduardo Barrera (discus).

Melba senior Emma Clark, who has signed with Northwest Nazarene to play basketball and track, was again responsible for carrying a big load for the Mustangs. She placed second in long jump, second in the 100 and won the triple jump and pole vault. Her triple jump win concluded an undefeated high school career in the event and the pole vault gold was her fourth in a row.

Other major point scorers were Kylahn Heritage, who won the 800, placed fifth in the 1,600 and took fifth in the 3,200, and Jordan Dayley, who placed second in the 300 hurdles, fourth in 100 hurdles, fifth in the 100 and was part of a second-place finish in the 4x100.

Weimer scored 40 of Cole Valley Christian’s 63 points, thanks to wins in the long jump, the 300 hurdles, the 100 and her record-setting 200. Her 100 hurdles winning time of 14.60 broke a 20-year old meet record.

State runner-up West Jefferson kept the title race tight with Melba, particularly upon scoring 17 points in the 200 finals. Senior and Boise State volleyball signee Jordi Holdaway claimed four medals for the third consecutive year, placing third in the 100, second in the 100 hurdles, second in the 200 and anchoring West Jefferson to its third consecutive state title in the 4x100, fittingly using a gold baton. Cheers, tears and embraces were shared between Holdaway, Malaika Rogers, Sage Wood and McKenzie Sermon — relay teammates for three years — upon learning their winning time of 49.8 set a 2A record.

“It’s unbelievable,” Wood said.

Rogers, Wood and McKenzie Sermon also teamed up with freshman Cambree Hall to give West Jefferson another state title three-peat earlier in the day in the 4x200.

Bear Lake entered the trophy race and placed fourth thanks to a 2A shot put title from Chelsea Gundersen and distance points from sisters Josi Kelsey, Elli Kelsey and Elise Kelsey. Elli and Elise went 1-2 in the 3,200 while Josi placed fourth, Elise placed second in the 800 and Elli, Josi and Elise finished in that order to take the top three spots in the 1,600.

Third-place Firth got a 1-2 finish in the 400 finals from Cassi Robbins and Jaylyn McKinnon, who also contributed to a repeat state championship in the 4x400 with Abby Schiess and Kaydee Park.

McCall-Donnelly’s Brynne Kundrick repeated as 300-meter hurdles champion and took third in 100 hurdles. St. Maries’ Madison Sotin won the discus.

Team champions also remained the same in 1A as Valley won its third consecutive boys title and Raft River repeated as girls champion.

Valley’s Adam Elorrieta won the 800 and 400 and was part of a second-place finish in the 4x400. Valley also won the boys sprint medley relay in a classification record 3:36.20.

Raft River’s Ryan Spaeth swept 1A boys throwing titles, with Carey’s Brigham Parke winning 1A boys high jump. North Star Charter’s Josh Nichols won two jumping golds with classification record marks, winning 1A boys long jump with 22-4 and triple jump with 46-1.5. Tri-Valley’s Colt Uhlenkott also set a 1A classification record upon clearing 14-8 to win boys pole vault. Liberty Charter’s Caleb Hamblin won the 3,200 and ran a classification record 4:22.50 to win the 1,600.

Challis senior William Ashley claimed four state medals for the fourth consecutive year, winning the 100, placing fourth in the 200, sixth in long jump and second in the 400.

Raft River won the 1A girls sprint medley relay, got a 1-2 finish in the 3,200 finals from Kaybree Christensen and Karlee Christensen, and another 15 points from the Christensens in the 1,600, which Kaybree won.

Butte County got three individual medals from Natalya Babcock. The sophomore placed third in the 3,200, won the 800 and moved up considerably on the bell lap to place second in the 1,600.  

Rockland’s Charlotte Wilson won triple jump, the 100 and 200, with Notus’s Kristin Carlin capturing her third consecutive 100 hurdles title. Throwing titles went to Carey’s Brittany Conrad (shot put) and Challis’ Hannah Corrigan (discus). Liberty Charter’s Brenna Bagley won the 400 and was part of the winning 4x400 relay team.

Team champions

Class 5A - Rocky Mountain boys 98 points, Eagle girls 123 points RESULTS

Class 4A -  Skyline boys 68 points, Bishop Kelly girls 153 points RESULTS

Class 3A - Sugar-Salem boys 130 points, Kimberly girls 101 points RESULTS

Class 2A - Nampa Christian boys 131.5 points, Melba girls 99 points RESULTS

Class 1A - Valley boys 101 points, Raft River girls 77.50 points RESULTS