BILLINGS — Athletes broke or tied 12 state records, including two all-class marks, at the 2023 state track and field meets.
If the 2024 regular season is any indication, even more records are in jeopardy of falling at this weekend's meets when Class AA and Class C athletes compete in Great Falls and Class A and Class B athletes compete in Laurel.
In all, top-seeded athletes enter the state meets with 20 regular-season marks better than current state records. State records can only be set at state meets.
Seven of those marks are better than the current all-class records:
- Ryan Dierenfield of Billings Skyview has clocked a blazing 10.45-second time in the 100-meter dash, which is faster than the record of 10.5 seconds set by Great Falls CMR sprinter Damien Nelson in 2017.
- Bozeman runner Nathan Neil is on track to break former teammate Weston Brown's record in the 1,600. Neil has a best time this season of 4:06.71, well ahead of Brown's record 4:10.68 at the 2023 state meet.
- Nash Coley of Bozeman Gallatin has a personal-best time of 37.3 seconds in the 300-meter hurdles. The current all-class record is 37.66 seconds, set by Butte's Jake Larson in 2000.
- Kalispell Glacier's Aiden Krause has the discus record within reach. His best throw of 193-08 is just better than the all-class record of 193-07 set by Missoula Hellgate's Dan Tabish in 1982.
- The Class AA girls long jump field features the current all-class record holder, Logan Todorovich of Helena High who jumped 19-04½ at last year's state meet. But Missoula Sentinel's Ava Kellenberg brings the top mark into this year's meet after popping off a 19-06 jump this season.
- Brooke Zetooney of Whitefish tied Sidney's Stacey Rehbein's 1998 Class A record in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.24 seconds last year. Now, Zetooney has her sights on the all-class record. Her personal-best time of 12.04 seconds is faster than the current record of 12.08 seconds set by Jaeden Wolff of Billings West in 2022.
- A year after setting the Class A record in the 300 hurdles with a 43.37-second race, Olivia Lewis of Corvallis could get the all-class record this weekend. She's posted a time of 42.36 seconds, which is half a second faster than the current record of 42.87 seconds set by Liz Harper of Missoula Sentinel in 2013.
Additionally, a number of athletes have hit marks in the regular season that would best their current class records.
The Class AA girls long jump will draw a lot of attention, but Scott Klinker of Great Falls High, Caiden Sekuterski of Cascade and Brooke Reuter of Savage are each looking to take down their class records. Klinker has a personal-best mark of 23-08¼, which is just better than the Class AA record of 23-02 set by Mike Ramos of Missoula Hellgate in 1980.
Sekuterski marked a jump 23-06½, more than a foot longer than the Class C record of 22-05½ set by Tyler Bucklin of Outlook in 1995. Sekuterski is in position to get the Class C triple jump record, too. His best jump is 46-04½, and Greg Stene of Columbus set the current Class C record of 45-07¾ in 1976.
Reuter, who already owns the Class C record in the 100- and 200-meter dashes, could add the long jump to her resume. The current record is 17-07½, which Alberton's Fran Peterson hit in 1976 and Superior's Nicole Stroot tied in 2013. Reuter leads Class C with a mark of 17-11¼ this spring.
She could also trim some time off her 200 record of 25.33 seconds set last year. Reuter has a season-best time of 25.26 seconds this year.
Roberts' Taylee Chirrick is looking to take down a couple more Class C marks, as well. She set the class records in the 400, 800 and 300 hurdles last year and this year could add the triple jump. Though she's new to the event, Chirrick already has a jump of 38-00½ to her credit. The Class C record is 37-10¾, which was set by Ryegate's Kelsey Kirkpatrick in 2003.
Chirrick has improved her time in the 400 this spring, too. Her season-best mark of 56.26 seconds is better than her Class C-record 56.69 set last year.
The Class C boys discus record is in jeopardy, too. Belt's Johnny Tingey threw 175-08 this regular season. Walker McDonald of Seeley-Swan set the current Class C record in 2022 with a throw of 174-03.
The only other thrower entering the meet with a record-level mark is Wyatt Miles of Corvallis. His best shot put of 59-07 is more than a foot better than the current Class A record of 58-05½ set by Livingston's Chris Emter in 2014.
In Class B, Isabelle Berry of Missoula Loyola is looking to leave her mark on the record books. She has both the 100-meter dash and 100 hurdles records within reach. Her 12.25 in the 100 is faster than the current record of 12.29 set by Joliet's Tru Roginske in 2015, and her 14.62 in the 100 hurdles is faster than the Class C-record 14.75 run by Hailey Phillips of Plains, also in 2015.
Huntley Project's Brynn Wandle and Conrad's Breaunna Erickson both surpassed the old Class B record in the pole vault at last year's state meet, with Erickson ultimately setting the classification's new record at 11-09. Wandle this season hit 12-0 and has the top mark in the class entering the meet.
And Peyton Summers of Wolf Point could take down the Class B boys 3,200-meter record, too. Summers placed third in the event last year but enters this year's state meet with the top time in the class at 9:23.76. Poplar's Scott McGowan set the current record of 9:30.64 in 1999.
