Wildcats ready for divisional track meet

Columbia Falls head track coach Jamie Heinz has said all season that he wants his teams to peak at the right time. The Wildcats seem to be doing just that as several new personal bests qualified the Cats for state in three more events last week.

“As a team, we are at our best right now, and that is good for us. It has been our objective to peak late in the season and at state, and that is what we are doing,” Heinz said.

Angellica Street qualified for her second event at the state track meet at the Polson ABC Meet over the weekend, finishing fifth in the shot put with a toss of 35 feet, 11 inches. Tallia Sova was second with a throw of 37 feet, 1/2 inch.

Street continued her dominance in the javelin, besting her state-leading distance with throw of 145 feet, 1 inch. Street now has the furthest throw in the state by more than 15 feet, with Hamilton’s Cariann Kunkel a distant second at 129 feet, 6 inches.

Street won the event in Polson while Sova was third with a toss of 112 feet, 3 inches.

Josie Windauer also made a drastic improvement this week, upping her best height in the pole vault by 2 feet at the Mike Nicosia Meet in Columbia Falls Thursday as she cleared 9 feet to qualify for state.

On the boys side, the mile relay team of Easton Sempf, Zackary Pletcher, Tucker Salmonsen and Drew Morgan qualified for state and moved into second overall in Class A with a time of 3:31.92 at the ABC Meet in Polson. They finished second in the event to state-leading Corvallis by less than one second.

Russell Albin set a new personal best in the vole vault at the ABC Meet, clearing a height of 12 feet, 6 inches, just half a foot below the state qualifying mark. If he gets there, Albin would join teammates Austin Green and Ben Windauer at state in the event. Windauer won the event in Polson, clearing a height of 13 feet, 6 inches.

Drew Morgan improved on his season best throw in the javelin with a toss of 173 feet, 10 inches Thursday, earning him second and moving him into sixth place in the state in Class A this season.

Overall, the boys were second at the ABC Meet, behind only Corvallis, while the girls were third behind Corvallis and Whitefish.

There were no team scores at home Thursday, but several Cats earned top honors, including Ben Windauer in the 110-meter hurdles, Chance Adams in the long jump, Josie Windauer in the 100 meter dash and pole vault, Sova in the shot put and Street in the javelin.

The Cats will be in Polson this weekend for the Northwest A Divisional Meet Friday and Saturday.