Broadus Track Team Is Ready For District Meet

Three members of the Broadus Track team competed at the Midland Roundtable Top 10 Meet, last week in Laurel. Mia Mader, Zeason Schaffer, and Thomas Oylear were among the Top 10 across all divisions in this end of the state, and showed their mettle against other top competitors at the meet. Schaffer and Oylear both medaled at the meet, with Zeason placing third in the long jump with a 16'8 1/2" jump, and Oylear placing 5th in the 1600 with a 4:30 time, which also happened to be a new school record. Oylear would also come in 7th in the 3200. Schaffer and Mader both jumped 4'10" in the high jump. Zeason placed 7th and Mader placed 8th.. Both ladies had jumped higher in previous meets, but Broadus Coach Jerry Coulter told us the jumpers across the board the day of the Top 10 were not performing as well as some previous meets, perhaps due to weather and short recoveries from previous meets.

On Thursday, May 4th, the Broadus team competed in their final regular season competition, traveling to Fairivew to competes against teams from across NE Montana and Western ND.

"We had a lot of great efforts, and a number of PR's", Coulter commented on the meet. Indeed, we counted 19 personal records at the Fairview Meet for Broadus individuals, which signals that the athletes are improving, and peaking at the right time as the head to Districts this Thursday in Laurel.

In Fairview, the boys took first place out of 16 teams to win with 84 points, and that's without the points that would likely have been scored by Thomas Oylear and Eli Heacock, who did not compete in the 1600 and 3200 meter runs, to save their energy and legs for the tournament.

The girls 4x400 meter relay team placed first in the event, as they were the only school to field a relay team in the event.

Coulter noted that the throwers in the shot put, discus, and javelin are doing well, and hope to see them compete well at Districts.

The 4C District Meet takes place this Wednesday in Baker, which is known for its windy conditions, and this week a forecast for rain.

The weather at the various district meets may prove to be a major issue for who goes on to Divisionals, as new MHSA rules this season change the rules with who qualifies. The three district meets in the Southern C Division (4C, 5C, and 6C) compete for spots at the Southern C Divisional, with the top two competitors in any event automatically qualifying for Divisionals. From there, the next four best times/distances from all the meets will go on.

That means a competitor who places as high as third at Districts may not qualify for Divisionals, if their time or distance is less than four other competitors from other districts. That makes weather a huge factor, as meets are not held in the same location or necessarily even on the same day – a meet where racers charge into a headwind may have slower times across the board compared to runners at a meet with more pleasant conditions. Organizations such as the NCAA have wind limits – a tailwind greater than 4.47 mph means a time is not legal for NCAA records.

Coach Coulter was not happy about the change, which was instituted this year. He commented to us that other coaches across the district are also unhappy about the change, which they think maximizes the chances for larger schools with more competitors, while potentially causing a source of frustration for athletes who come close but fall just outside the qualifying times, against other athletes they may not have even competed against. The changes will make for a quicker Divisional Meet, as the heats are now much more limited than in years past. The change also emphasizes the advantage of pre-qualifying for State – Thomas Oylear and Zeason Schaffer are the two Hawk athletes pre-qualified going into tournaments.

Results from recent meets:

Midland Roundtable Top 10 5/2/23

BOY'S RESULTS – 1600 M – Thomas Oylear, 5th, 4:30.59; 3200 M – Thomas Oylear, 7th, 10:06.29.

GIRL'S RESULTS – High Jump – Zeason Schaffer, 7th, 4'10", Mia Mader, T-8th, 4'10"; Long Jump – Zeason Schaffer, 3rd, 16'8½" .

Fairview Meet 5/4/23

BOY'S RESULTS (84 points, 1st) – 100 M – Matt Hanson, 2nd, 11.73; 400 M – Eli Heacock, 1st, 53.67, Jaxon Bilbrey, 2nd, 53.70, Thomas Oylear, 6th, 56.68, Zach Jones, 1:00.56; 800 M – Thomas Oylear, 1st, 2:07.35, Eli Heacock, 2nd, 2:07.67, Josh Rasmussen, 2:24.75; 1600 M – Josh Rasmussen, 3rd, 5:11.31; 3200 M – Josh Rasmussen, 2nd, 11:40.35; 110 M Hurdles – Matt Hansen, 2nd, 16.82, Zach Jones, 6th, 22.26; Discus – Landon Capp, 111'6", Reuben Kinzer, 81'5", Darren VerWolf, 51'3", Sean Oylear, 41'2"; Javelin – Reuben Kinzer, 114'2", Landen Capp, 97'1"; Shot Put – Landen Capp, 36'4", Reuben Kinzer, 28'4"; Long Jump – Jaxon Bilbrey, 3rd, 19'5", Zach Jones, 15'9½"; Triple Jump – Zach Jones, 32'9½"; 1600 M Relay – Jaxon Bilbrey, Thomas Oylear, Matt Hansen, Eli Heacock, 1st, 3:43.19.

GIRL'S RESULTS (32 points, 6th) – 100 M – Mia Mader, 5th, 13.41, Kiara Kelly, 14.21, Alivia Landa, 14.40; 200 M – Alivia Landa, 30.40, Kiara Kelly, 31.21; 400 M – Emory Gatlin, 1:17.50; 800 M – Maddie Zimmer, 3rd, 2:54.05; 1600 M – Shaylee Bilbrey, 5th, 7:15.33; 100 M Hurdles – Rebecca Aye, 22.60; 300 M Hurdles – Rebecca Aye, 1:06.20; Discus – Oliveah Schaffer, 73'0", Rebecca Aye, 60'8"; Javelin – Kiara Kelly, 69'10", Rebecca Aye, 67'10", Oliveah Schaffer, 62'7"; Shot Put – Oliveah Schaffer, 24'0", Rebecca Aye, 20'11", Kiara Kelly, 20'5"; High Jump – Mia Mader, 2nd, 5'0", Shaylee Bilbrey, 4'4"; Triple Jump – Emory Gatlin, 28'1", Shaylee Bilbrey, 27'1"; 400 M Relay – Maddie Zimmer, Mia Mader, Kiara Kelly, Alivia Landa, 4th, 56.00; 1600 M Relay – Maddie Zimmer, Mia Mader, Alivia Landa, Shaylee Bilbrey, 1st, 4:58.67.