The renovation at Memorial Stadium in Great Falls has forced the Swede Dahlberg Invitational and the Optimist Invitational to combine their meets in Butte this weekend. Athletes with some of the best times and marks in the state will be on display Friday with a possibility of meet records falling. The Swede Dahlberg is not the only large track meet on tap, as the Gallatin Valley Invitational and A Sunshine Meet will each host more than 25 teams.
Swede Dahlberg Invitational at Butte (Friday)
- The boys 100-meter dash will likely feature seven of the top 15 times in Montana this season. Ethan Larson of Kalispell Glacier is the only athlete to crack the 11-second barrier, but defending Class AA state champion Damien Nelson of Great Falls CMR will look to defend his throne. The projected field has seven runners under 11.4 seconds.
- The boys long jump will potentially have the top five jumpers in the state competing against each other. Bozeman’s Latrell McCutcheon is the leader with a jump of 21 feet, 10 1/2 inches, but Kalispell Glacier’s Hunter Nicholson and Billings Senior’s Gabe Sulser are within three inches of McCutcheon’s best leap.
- Trey Tintinger will likely have competition in the boys high jump. Billings Skyview’s Julius Mims (6-07) and Great Falls CMR’s Tucker Greenwell (6-05) will challenge Tintinger. The Swede Dahlberg meet record is also within sight. The record of 6-10 1/4 was set in 1993 by Mark Koefelda of Missoula Hellgate.
- The Optimist girls triple jump record could also potentially fall on Friday. Lauren Heggen of Missoula Sentinel leads the state with a leap of 39-04 3/4 while the record is 37-09 1/2 set in 2012 by Kalispell Flathead’s Kwyn Johnson. Heggen will have competition, though, as the top four marks in the state will likely square off.
- In what may be a preview of a matchup at the Class AA state track and field meet Bozeman’s Camila Noe and Glacier’s Annie Hill will likely square off in the girls 1,600-meter run. Noe and Hill own the top two times in Class AA, but will likely have competition in Hellgate’s Elise Stearns and Billings Senior’s Tiahna Vladic.
- The girls high jump will potentially feature eight athletes who have cleared the 5-foot mark. Bozeman’s Lucy Corbett leads the state with a jump of 5-07, but Flathead’s Madison Boles is hot on her tail after leaping over 5-05.
Gallatin Valley Invitational at Belgrade (Saturday)
- The boys 100 will likely boast some of Class B’s best sprinters. Huntley Project’s Austin Hernandez and Lane Sumner will look to improve upon their times when they square off with Class B leader Dawson Allen of Fairfield. Class A’s No. 2-ranked sprinter Colin Marks of Livingston will also likely join Allen, Hernandez, and Sumner. All four have ran sub-11.4 this season.
- The girls 100 has the potential to feature the three fastest times in Class A this season. Dillon’s Tylia DeJohn is the only athlete at the meet under 13 seconds, but Billings Central freshman Kellan Wahl (13.04) and DeJohn’s teammate Hayle Sundquist (13.04) will look to put the pressure on DeJohn.
- Laurel’s Paige O’Toole sits as the favorite heading into the girls discus, but Huntley Project’s Emily Poole will likely have a shot at unseating the top thrower in the state. While O’Toole leads the state in the discus, Poole leads the state in the girls javelin.
A Sunshine Meet at Columbus (Friday)
- The boys triple jump will potentially feature the top three jumpers in Class B, and the top two in Class C. Melstone’s Brody Grebe and Roberts’ Alex Kosel lead Class C while Paul Johnstone of Forsyth and Ry Olson and Caleb Bailey of Joliet are Class B’s top jumpers.
- The boys long jump will not be much different. Kosel, Olson, and Johnstone will likely compete against each other. Olson and Johnstone are Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, in Class B, while Kosel sits No. 2 in Class C.
- Winnett-Grass Range’s Zoe Delaney is the only girls athlete this season to run the 400-meter dash in less than 60 seconds. Delaney will likely compete against Savanna Wolf of Roundup, who currently sits No. 2 in Class B.
