by Mikayln Brickley
The track athletes of the Bitterroot Valley headed to Laurel to compete in the 2021 A-B State Track Meet this past weekend. The Hamilton boys took home the first-place trophy with an overall score of 87 in A State, with second place (Beaverhead County) scoring a mere 61. Hamilton junior Colter Kirkland won first in the 800 meters with a PR of 1:56.85 and the mile with a time of 4:29.05. Andy Purcell took second in the 1600, finishing only .87 seconds behind Kirkland. Lane Cole from Hamilton set a new PR in the 3200 meters race, winning the State title with a time of 9:49.00. Brinson Wyche (Corvallis) trailed Cole by just 3 seconds, and finished with a time of 9:52.26. Kellan Beller from Stevensville won second in the 110 meter hurdles, timing 16.17. The Hamilton boys’ 4×400 relay, comprised of Eli Taylor, Colter Kirkland, Lance Cole and Colter Purcell, took second, scoring a time of 3:28.44.
In the boys’ throwing events, Tyler Burrows of Hamilton scored second in the discus, and fourth in the shot put. Kellan Beller earned another medal, throwing a 169’7” in javelin to take home first. Jason Jessop from Corvallis earned third in the javelin with a distance of 164’4”. Colter Kirkland also placed third in the pole vault, with a PR of 12’6”.
In the B competition, Nathaniel Gale from Florence took home third in the 1600 and 3200, earning a PR in the mile of 4:34.14. Luke Maki, also from Florence, placed third in the javelin, throwing a 158’4”.
For the girls, Olivia Lewis from Corvallis won third in the 100 and 300, setting a PR in both events. The Corvallis girls’ 4×400 relay placed second overall, with a score of 4:09.58. The girls’ relay team includes Emelia Schairer, Olivia Lewis, and sisters Kailen and Rylee Herbstritt. Katelyn Dickemore (Hamilton) set a new PR of 40’7¼” in the shotput placing second, with Madison Lewis from Corvallis taking third with a distance of 39’11¼”. Dickemore also won first in the discus, blowing her competition out of the water with a score of 138’10”. Brooke Powell from Corvallis placed fourth in the javelin, with a new PR of 120’10”. Camas Cratty (Hamilton) won second in the girls’ high jump with a height of 5’.