State T&F: Who to watch this weekend
By:
Jamie Hult, Staff writer
Hurdler and sprinter Jesse Van Hemert and Brielle Dixon (below) are among several Lynx likely to medal at AAA state track and field championships this weekend. Jamie Hult/BV Journal
As Brandon Valley track and field coach Troy Sturgeon tells his athletes, anything can happen at a state meet – and often does. While the field is wide open for surprises, here’s a quick guide of which Lynx are among the ones to watch this weekend.
200 dash (boys): Trey Reindl is ranked No. 5 in Class AA at 22.92. To medal, he’ll need to out-sprint Watertown’s Jacob Hartman (No. 4) and Harrisburg’s Breken Hamilton (No. 3).
200 dash (girls): Krista Bickley is one of two Lady Lynx who holds two BV all-time records – the 200 meter (24.27 seconds) and the 400 (54.08; also S.D.’s all-time record). She’s currently No. 4 in the 200 at 26.08. To medal, she’ll need to push past Washington’s Nyanas Kur (No. 3).
400 dash (boys): Reindl (No. 3) is likely to medal if he maintains his personal record of 50.83 and keeps Aberdeen’s Seth Martens in check (Martens is only three-tenths of a second behind Reindl at No. 4).
400 dash (girls): Bickley’s 58.49 finish at the Metro Conference has her leading the Class AA ladies, with a gold medal likely, though she might feel some heat from Spearfish’s Makayla Tracy (No. 2) and No. 3-ranked Emily Rystrom of Brookings. There’s a chance we’ll see Bickley in the 100-meter lineup, too; while the senior doesn’t typically run the 100, she entered at the Last Chance meet and took first.
1600 run: No. 3-ranked Lauren Wells looks likely to rise to the top if she can repeat her personal record of 5:09.34. What could stand in her way: A pack of Lincoln runners (Leah Derenge, Lila Batcheller and Hannah Dumansky), ranked No. 4, 5, and 6, may give Wells a run for her money.
100 hurdles: To medal, Brielle Dixon (No. 4) needs to out-shoot No. 3 Sophie Tietz (Watertown) and/or Lincoln’s Josephine Dal (No. 2). Barring injury, Stevens’ Elizabeth Schaefer looks likely to win the gold.
110 hurdles: Jesse Van Hemert (No. 3) stands a strong chance of medaling if he can maintain his 1-second lead on RC Central’s Taegen Wells (No. 4) and Sturgis Brown’s Tayler Opstedahl (No. 5). Watertown’s Pierre Lear looks poised to win.
300 hurdles (boys): Lear will likely land the gold here, too, though Van Hemert (No. 2) will challenge, provided he stays ahead of RC Central’s Kayleb Twomey (No. 3) and under 40 seconds.
300 hurdles (girls): Taia Rude (No. 3), who has already broken her own BV all-time record this season (45.40 on April 26), will take Lincoln’s Josephine Dal (No. 2) for the silver here, though Stevens’ Elizabeth Schaefer is poised to take the gold.
High jump (boys): Carter Olthoff’s personal best of 6-feet-5 ranks him third in AA, so he just needs to repeat the leap – and surpass the slew of competitors behind him with 6-4 PRs. Isaiah Morin-Baxter of Stevens (No. 1), who holds the record with 6-7, is the favorite to win.
High jump (girls): In addition to holding BV’s 300 hurdle record, Rude holds the high jump record, which she surpassed at the May 4 Dakota Relays with her leap of 5-foot-6. With her No. 3 rank in AA, Rude has a strong shot of medaling here, too.
Triple jump (girls): Morgan Thompson (No. 4) is a contender if she can repeat her 35-foot, 10.25-inch PR and surpass Stevens’ Rylie Stonecipher (No. 3).
Pole vault (girls): 2018 state runner-up Sydney Pelletier and sophomore Halayna Hendrick both have a shot at medals this weekend. Hendrick is No. 3 in AA with her May 4 vault of 11-6, and Pelletier is No. 4 with her PR of 10-6. They’ll need to overshoot Stevens’ Madisyn Trupe (No. 1) and Watertown’s Alayna Falak (No. 2), but the chances of seeing at least one Lady Lynx on the pole vault podium this weekend are good.
Pole vault (boys): Ethan Tellinghuisen has been at the top of AA most of the season and appears to be a shoo-in for the gold – provided he stays ahead of Mitchell’s Sam Jones (No. 2) and O’Gorman’s Tycho Clausen.
Discus (boys): No. 4-ranked Jorey Sorenson’s top throw of 162-7 is less than a foot behind Pierre’s Jack Maher’s personal best, so seeing Sorenson medal is not out of the question. Lincoln’s Tyler Hiatt (No. 1) looks likely to snag the gold.
Shot put (boys): Alex Kolbeck could easily walk away with a AA medal this weekend. He’s currently ranked second behind Tyler Hiatt of Lincoln. What could stand in his way? Consistency. Kolbeck will need to hit his top throw of 53-0.5, or very close to it, to remain in the running.
