It was a good test for the opening meet of the season for several of the Montana high school track and field teams.

The Blue Devil Invitational, hosted by Corvallis High, was also a good place to see who’s got what coming into the 2024 track and field season.

One thing for certain, Hamilton, a class A school, has very good boys’ and girls’ teams as evidenced by their resounding team victories in both categories.

And it also showed there are some strong Class B and C teams in western Montana as demonstrated by Superior and Valley Christian, while Alberton had a strong showing also.

The Superior boys finished ninth in the field of 16 mostly larger schools, while the Lady Bobcats tied for ninth in the women’s team competition.

Hamilton won the boys' varsity team chase, piling up 105 points, comfortably ahead of Jefferson High (Boulder), which was second with 80.5 team points.

The Hamilton girls scored an even more decisive team win, scoring 142 points, well ahead of second-place Corvallis, which had 59.33 points.

The Superior boys amassed 20.5 team points, while the Lady Cats had 18 in the field of 16 teams taking part.

Superior senior Trizten Avila finished eighth in the men’s 100 meter sprint, crossing the finish line in a personal best time of 11.96. Jefferson sprinter Luke Oxarat won the event with a blistering time of 11.33. Avila’s teammate, senior Lucas Kovalsky, came across the finish line in a personal best time of 12.03, good for tenth place.

Freshman Gannon Quinlan placed 27th to give the Bobcats three top 30 finishers in the event.

The Bobcats’s success in the sprints continued in the 200-meter race, where senior Micah Acker crossed the finish line with a personal best time of 26.07, good for ninth place. Sophomore teammate Garrett O’Day placed 20th with a time of 28.78, also a personal best.

Stevensville sprinter Brogan Gard won the 200-meter event with a school record time of 24.43.

Alberton’s small but talented contingent got points on the board in the 400-meter run with Shea Fredette finishing tenth in a school record 1:01.39. Sophomore fellow Panther Baylor Baughman took 15th in the 400 event, crossing the line with a time of 1:06.72.

Acker added a 13th-place finish in the 1600-meter run with a time of 5:15.54 for the Bobcats.

In the shot put competition, Superior senior Jaxson Green placed sixth with a throw of 43-3. Teammate Jason Merrill, also a senior, finished twelfth for the Cats with a personal best heave of 39-10. Alberton freshman Dyln Woerz took 40th with a personal best toss of 21-06.

Merrill and Green finished 16th and 17th respectively in the discus for Superior, with Merrill launching the disc 102-02 while Green threw 100-03. Bobcats’ senior Wathen Reese finished 20th with a throw of 99-08. Hamilton’s Andrew Burrows won the discus event with a throw of 161-0, well ahead of second place Issac Stoker of Corvallis, who recorded a toss of 143-08.

Alberton’s Colton Baughman, a junior, placed tenth in the javelin competition with a throw of 141-04, while Reese came in 20th at 110-07. Merrill was 15th in the javelin with a toss of 118-01. The event was won by Hamilton’s Tyson Bauder, who unleashed a toss of 183-10.

In the men’s high jump, which was won by Jefferson’s Hunter Stevens with a leap of 6-02, Superior freshman Landon Richards finished sixth, clearing 5-08.

Senior pole vaulter Lucas Kovalsky, the Superior school record holder, won the event in Corvallis with a vault of 12-06, just ahead of Frenchtown’s Brody Hardy who cleared 12 feet.

Superior also got a sixth-place finish from Acker (9-0), and a seventh-place showing from Quinlan (9-0).

Avila added to his medal haul in the triple jump, placing fourth with a hop, skip, and jump of 38:08.50. Alberton’s Fredette took tenth with a jump of 36:06.75.

The Bobcats also got a 17th-place finish in the long jump from Turner Milender, who lept 17-09.

Superior’s girls also showed off some depth in several events, including the 200-meter sprint, where Makenzie Reum placed tenth with a time of 31.49.

Junior Braelynn Mangold placed in multiple events, including the 400-meter run, where she finished third at 1:06.25. Mangold was also third in the triple jump with a leap of 31-11.

Alberton’s girls got a 19th-place finish from Georgia Fredette in the women’s discus event on a throw of 64-09.

Superior sophomore Maryisa Swope was also a multiple placer for the Lady Bobcats, taking home third in the javelin (104-03) and 12th in the long jump (13:11.50).

Next up for Alberton is the Hamilton Invitational this Saturday (April 6), while Superior will compete in the Bigfork Invitational, also this Saturday.