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Off and running

Highlights from Day 1 of the state track and field meet

Alex Eisen/MDN Majettes sophomore Kelsie Fettig launches a shot put Friday at the state track and field meet. Fettig finished on the podium with a third-place finish.

BISMARCK — The sun was beating down while bodies were being pushed to extreme limits.

The first day of the North Dakota Class A and Class B state track and field meet was grueling Friday, as high school athletes took over the MDU Resources Community Bowl in Bismarck.

Sixteen field events and eight running finals were at the forefront, plus there were the other running preliminaries to determine who would make final events today.

After Day 1 with six events scored for each class and gender, Bismarck High leads the Class A boys team standings with 41 points and are ahead of Century (32.50) and Fargo North (28). Minot High is in sixth place with 17 points.

The Majettes, with 14 points, are in fifth place in the Class A girls standings. Fargo Davies is leading with 60 points, followed by Bismarck (38) and Century (25).

Over in Class B, defending boys state champions New Town holds first for now with 26 points. Second through ninth place are within 16 to 10 points.

The Class B girls are being led by Northwest Region champions Watford City with 18 points. Hillsboro/Central Valley (15), Thompson (14.50), Rugby (14) and Milnor/Wyndmere/Lidgerwood (14) aren’t far behind.

While local-area team aren’t faring too well in the team standings, many teams had its fair share of success with individual results.

The Magi matched their one state individual champion from a season ago with Adrian Davis-Aguilar winning the long jump.

New Town cruised to victory in the 4×800 relay with Robert White, Jalen Chase, Jaiven Hale and Colby Antell. White also took second in the final of the mile run.

The MHS girls 4×800 relay placed second with Allie Wahlund, Adrianna Wilder, Abbie Wahlund and Allie Nelson. They came in seeded third and spent the majority of the race in third and fourth place before Nelson came through on the anchor leg.

“Each person took care of what they needed to do,” sophomore Nelson said. “We all just ran our best and it came together in the end.”

The Majettes also nabbed a third place in the shot put with sophomore Kelsie Fettig. She punched well above her weight, as Fettig came in seeded ninth.

“The first flight I was kind of anxious, but I hunkered down and got through it,” Fettig said. “I had a pretty rough meet at the WDA, but I knew with my training that it could carry me to get me far at state.”

Also placing for Minot High was Odin Nelson, who took fifth despite having the highest seed mark in the boys javelin, and a sixth-place for Logan Krueger in the shot put.

Jumping back over to the Class B boys, Mohall/Lansford/Sherwood senior Beau Driscoll showed off his vertical for a state runner-up finish in the high jump.

“I jumped my personal best today,” Driscoll said. “I just tried not to be nervous. Last year, I was really nervous and was ranked like tied for third and didn’t place at all. So, this year, I had to keep my nerves down, and I placed and I’m proud of that.”

In the Class B boys 1600-meter run, Edgeley/Kulm’s Isaac Huber pulled away to win and left New Town’s White and Hale, plus Stanley’s Noah Rolfe to fight for the podium spots. White took second and Rolfe nipped Hale on the line for third.

Rugby had three individuals score points on Friday: freshman Brooke Blessum (second in the triple jump), senior Madison Uhlenkamp (third in shot put) and sophomore Jaden Hamilton (eighth in the high jump).

Other local Top 8 placings were MLS junior Skylar McLain (fourth in shot put), Powers Lake boys 4×800 relay (fourth), Glenburn’s Colby Mendiola (sixth in shot put), Harvey/Wells County girls 4×800 relay (seventh) and Stanley’s Hayley Schmidt (eighth in the javelin).

Looking at the preliminaries, here are some of the local athletes who have earned a spot in their final.

Class A boys

– Triston Emke, Minot High, 300-meter hurdles, fastest preliminary time (PT).

– Minot High 4×100 relay with Johann Madrid, Davis-Aguilar, Jacob Schiele and Devin Kramer, No. 4 PT.

– Kramer, Minot High, 100-meter, No. 6 PT.

Class A girls

– Minot High 4×100 relay with Morgan Alexander, MaLiah Burke, Elise Klein and Lauren Picard, No. 4 PT.

– Minot High 4×200 relay with Alexander, Burke, Klein and Alli McCoy, No. 3 PT.

– Allie Wahlund, Minot High, 400-meter, No. 5 PT.

– McCoy, Minot High, qualified in the 100 (seventh), 200 (seventh) and 400 (sixth)

“I think we are doing pretty good,” MHS girls track and field coach Disa Julius said. “The wind caught up with some of our girls in the 100 and 200. But, MaLiah Burke did a great job as an eighth-grader who played a late night game last night in soccer. She just missed being in the finals in two events.”

Class B boys

– Joshua Knutson, Des Lacs-Burlington/Lewis & Clark, qualified in the 110-meter hurdles (first), 300-meter hurdles (third) and the 200 (third).

– Jacob Rodin, Kenmare, 400, fastest time.

– Tyson Akers, DLBLC, 100, fastest time.

– Cody Fuchs, Surrey, 400, No. 5 PT.

– Wyatt Hanson, Stanley, 400, No. 6 PT.

– Clay Kummer, Surrey, 300-meter hurdles, No. 9 PT.

– Relays: Rugby’s 4×100 and 4×200, and DLBLC’s 4×200.

Class B girls

– Olivia Lautt, HWC, qualified in the 300-meter hurdles (forth) and the 400 (eighth).

– Kristian Brossart, Rugby, 100, No. 5 PT.

– Caitlyn Vogel, DLBLC, qualified in the 100 (sixth) and the 200 (sixth).

– Maria Blessum, Rugby, 100-meter hurdles, No. 7 PT.

– Kaitlyn Klein, Garrison/Max, 100, No. 7 PT.

– Anni Stier, Rugby, 300-hurdles, No. 8 PT.

– Illise Jennings, Garrison/Max, qualified in the 200 (eighth) and 100 (ninth).

– Kyley Lauf, DLBLC, 300-meter hurdles, No. 9 PT.

– Relays: Rugby’s 4×200, HWC’s 4×200 and Garrison/Max’s 4×200.

Day 2 of the Class A and Class B state track and field meet gets underway at 8:45 a.m. this morning at the MDU Resources Community Bowl in Bismarck.

Alex Eisen covers Minot State athletics, the Minot Minotauros and high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @AEisen13.

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