PREP TRACK AND FIELD: Nearing the final sprint .... Area schools get going on the road to state meet

By JASON ELLIOTT 

Sports writer 

COEUR d’ALENE — It’s that time again. 

Go to state. 

Or go home. 

For the Coeur d’Alene boys 4x200-meter relay team of senior Abraham Gallegos, junior Peyton Pool, senior Judah Lawhead and sophomore Kip Wellsandt, it was just their time on Thursday, the first day of the two-day 6A District 1 track and field meet at Coeur d’Alene High. 

The group won the race in 1 minute, 31.94 seconds, grabbing the automatic bid to state at Mountain View High in Meridian next Friday and Saturday. 

“We’ve put a lot of time in together,” Lawhead said. “We’ve been on the same 4x200 team for the past two years, so we’ve got good team chemistry. We know when it’s time to go or not go. Even when our coaches tell us we took off too late, we already know before they tell us. We’ve just got to put it all together.” 

Pool starts the race, then hands off to Gallegos for the next leg. 

“When the gun goes off, it’s just about getting out of the blocks fast,” Gallegos said. “You’re just trying to get around the corner and pick up the stagger.” 

Lawhead and Wellsandt close the relay. 

Post Falls was second in 1:34.77, nearly 3 seconds back. 

“I was just trying to keep the lead and gap in between us coming out of the curve,” Wellsandt said. “I was just focused on staying strong going into the straight and keep it going.” 

Coeur d’Alene's time in the event is currently 13th in 6A heading into state next week. 

“We’ve just got to get our handoffs dialed in,” Wellsandt said. “If we can do that, we should be able to compete.” 

Through 10 of 19 events, Coeur d'Alene's boys (51 points) and girls (65.33) lead the 6A team scoring.

"There are a lot of points still out there tomorrow, but what a great day for both our boys and girls," Coeur d'Alene coach Shawn Amos said. "Our boys won eight of the nine events, and finished second in the ninth event. Our girls won six of the nine events. We have already qualified 27 athletes for state."

In 5A, Lakeland's girls lead with 49 points, with Moscow — last year's state 5A champion — second with 48.5. Sandpoint leads the boys team standings with 48 points.

5A: It took some convincing, but once Lakeland junior Annabella Palaniuk started to throw the javelin, it was only up from there. 

“I just thought it was interesting,” Palaniuk said. “At first, I didn’t really want to do it. But my coaches told me that I might be really good at it because I used to play volleyball. And that’s why I started to do it because I had a knack for it.” 

On Thursday, Palaniuk hit a personal best throw of 104 feet, 8 inches to win the 5A girls javelin to advance to state. 

Her previous best was 97-1 on her third throw of the finals. 

“I just knew I had to throw really hard if I wanted to make it as first place,” Palaniuk said. “I’m just so, so happy. It felt like a big relief because I’ve been wanting to hit that mark. And it’s a perfect day for that.” 

Palaniuk credited her throws coach Ray Milks for some last-minute encouragement. 

“He was just telling me if I wanted to make it, I had to go hard,” Palaniuk said.  

Palaniuk’s throw on Thursday is the eighth best in 5A. 

“I made it last year to state through a wild card in the discus, but there’s some nerves for next week for sure,” Palaniuk said. “I’d like to get a PR again next week (at state, also at Mountain View High), but won’t be too angry if I didn’t.” 

Lakeland’s 4x200 relay team of freshmen Ashlyn Karle, Ruby Kindy, Tessa Lovell and sophomore Casey Foster won in 1:44.13, beating Moscow (1:44.94). The Hawks now hold the fastest time in 5A in the event. 

Both meets conclude today at Lewiston High starting at 2 p.m.

6A 

BOYS 

TEAM SCORES (Through 10 events) — 1, Coeur d’Alene 65.33. 2, Post Falls 29.33. 3, Lake City 9.33.  

(Top two individuals, winning relays to state, wild cards available) 

1,600 — 1, Wyatt Carr, Coeur d’Alene, 4:17.01. 2, Wyatt Morgenstern, Coeur d’Alene, 4:19.22. 3, Sam Reade, Lake City, 4:21.23.  

4x200 relay — 1, Coeur d’Alene (Abraham Gallegos, Peyton Pool, Judah Lawhead, Mac Wellsandt), 1:31.94. 2, Post Falls, 1:34.77.  

4x800 relay — 1, Coeur d’Alene (Wyatt Morgenstern, Rowan Henry, Wyatt Carr, Mitchell Rietze), 8:21.67. 2, Post Falls, 8:34.31.  

Shot put — 1, Gavin Beckenhauer, Coeur d’Alene,46-8. 2, Conner Keaggy, Coeur d’Alene, 45-7. 3, Andrew Spruill, Post Falls, 42-7.  

Discus — 1, Gavin Beckenhauer, Coeur d’Alene, 119-3. 2, Derek Theoret, Post Falls, 118-4. 3, Knowlton Nelson, Coeur d’Alene, 117-4.  

Javelin — 1, Landon Goodwin, Post Falls, 168-9. 2, Dawson Cushman, Coeur d’Alene, 162-09. 3, Jackson Hopper, Lake City, 141-10.  

High jump — 1, Kipp Wellsandt, Coeur d’Alene, 5-10. 2, Daxon Priebe, Coeur d’Alene, 5-6. 3, Jaeden Randall, Lake City, 5-6.  

Pole vault — 1, George Mitchell, Coeur d’Alene, 13-6. 2, Samuel Schmidt, Post Falls, 12-0. 3, Ezra Holt, Coeur d’Alene, 12-0.  

Long jump — 1, Gibson Comstock, Coeur d’Alene, 21-8 ½. 2, Wyatt Hutchins, Lake City, 21-2 1/5. 3, Jaxon Lysne, Post Falls, 20-6.  

Triple jump — 1, Jaxon Lysne, Post Falls, 42-4. 2, Riley Frazier, Coeur d’Alene, 42-1 ¾. 3, Brodie Nokes, Coeur d’Alene, 40-6.  

GIRLS 

TEAM SCORES (Through 10 events) —  1, Coeur d’Alene 51. 2, Post Falls 31. 3, Lake City 21. 

(Top two individuals, winning relays to state, wild cards available) 

1,600 — 1, Anna Christman, Coeur d’Alene, 5:00.22. 2, Olivia May, Coeur d’Alene, 5:09.83. 3, Victoria Howard, Coeur d’Alene, 5:12.31.  

4x200 relay — 1, Post Falls (Annabelle Tucker, Danica Pratt, Isabella Ward, Reagan Hutchinson), 1:46.83. 2, Lake City, 1:50.08.  

4x800 relay — 1, Coeur d’Alene (Olivia May, Lillie Dance, Anna Christman, Victoria Howard), 9:55.59. 2, Post Falls, 10:22.10.  

Shot put — 1, Courtney Johnson, Lake City, 36-1. 2, Evalyn Granstaff, Post Falls, 33-4. 3, Molly Carroll, Coeur d’Alene, 32-0.  

Discus — 1, Savannah Tidd, Coeur d’Alene, 119-0. 2, Courtney Johnson, Lake City, 110-11. 3, Londyn Morin, Coeur d’Alene, 109-7.  

Javelin — 1, Molly Carroll, Coeur d’Alene, 99-4. 2, Rylie Gump, Post Falls, 94-3. 3, Madison Valenta, Post Falls, 89-4.  

High jump — 1, Emmy Parris, Coeur d’Alene, 4-10. 2, Jaya Felix, Post Falls, 4-10. 3, Marly Sutich, Coeur d’Alene, 4-6.  

Pole vault — 1, Gemma Loose, Lake City, 9-0. 2, Madison Whipp, Coeur d’Alene, 9-0. 3, Crystal Magera, Lake City, 8-6.  

Long jump — 1, Lexie Wheeler, Coeur d’Alene, 16-1 ½. 2, Reagan Hutchinson, Post Falls, 15-11 ¾. 3, Jaya Felix, Post Falls, 15-7.  

Triple jump — 1, Jaya Felix, Post Falls, 34-10. 2, Makaela Randall, Lake City, 33-11 ¼. 3, Lexie Wheeler, Coeur d’Alene, 33-0 ½. 

5A 

BOYS 

TEAM SCORES (Through 10 events) — 1, Sandpoint 48. 2, Moscow 42.67. 3, Lewiston 35.33. 4, Lakeland 26. 

(Top two individuals, winning relays to state, wild cards available) 

1,600 — 1, Paul Kent, Sandpoint, 4:27.11. 2, Kai Budensiek, Sandpoint, 4:27.36. 3, Orion McClory, Moscow, 4:29.80.  

4x200 relay — 1, Moscow (Owen Lassen, Connor Horne, George Stott, Caleb Heywood), 1:27.31. 2, Sandpoint, 1:27.35.  

Sprint medley — 1, Lakeland (Sean Burke, Kayden Karle, Jaron Yager, Ryan Engelbrecht), 3:36.05. 2, Moscow, 3:39.32.  

Shot put — 1, Brayden Carrel, Lakeland, 52-10. 2, Parker Bagley, Lewiston, 50-8. 3, Riley Bontrager, Moscow, 47-10.  

Discus — 1, Gabriel Kessinger, Lewiston, 153-9. 2, Parker Bagley, Lewiston, 144-1. 3, Damian Porter, Sandpoint, 143-1.  

Javelin — 1, Hayden Peterson, Sandpoint, 150-2. 2, Peyton Hillman, Lakeland, 144-4. 3, Cairn Rookey, Sandpoint, 137-10.  

High jump — 1, Caleb Tomlinson, Sandpoint, 5-10. 2, Reid Krahn, Lewiston, 5-10. 3, Curtis Carr, Moscow, 5-8.  

Pole vault — 1, Cameron Fairbanks, Moscow, 13-6. 2, Wyatt Neal, Sandpoint, 13-6. 3, Noah Hoger, Moscow, 11-0.  

Long jump — 1, Reid Krahn, Lewiston, 21-9 ½. 2, Curtis Carr, Moscow, 21-4 ½. 3, Dawson Bernatz, Lewiston, 20-10.  

Triple jump — 1, Clayton Ernst, Sandpoint, 43-0 ½. 2, Levi Abbott, Lakeland, 41-8 ½. 3, Bryant Scruggs, Moscow, 41-6. 

GIRLS 

TEAM SCORES (Through 10 events) — 1, Lakeland 49. 2, Moscow 48.5. 3, Lewiston 31.5. 4, Sandpoint 23. 

(Top two individuals, winning relays to state, wild cards available) 

1,600 — 1, Cora Crawford, Moscow, 5:17.02. 2, Elizabeth Storms, Sandpoint, 5:23.15. 3, Ruthie Laughridge, Sandpoint, 5:23.48. 

4x200 relay — 1, Lakeland (Ashlyn Karle, Casey Foster, Ruby Kindy, Tessa Lovell), 1:44.13. 2, Moscow, 1:44.94.  

Sprint medley — 1, Lakeland (Ashlyn Karle, Casey Foster, Tessa Lovell, Karstyn Kiefer), 1:49.05. 2, Moscow, 1:51.97.  

Shot put — 1, Jackie Robbins, Lakeland, 40-8. 2, Emmy Roberts, Lewiston, 37-9. 3, Suzie Huff, Lewiston, 32-2.  

Discus — 1, Jackie Robbins, Lakeland, 128-4. 2, Emmy Roberts, Lewiston, 114-9. 3, Rylee Crocker, Lakeland, 113-7.  

Javelin — 1, Annabella Palaniuk, Lakeland, 104-6. 2, Jordyn Tomco, Sandpoint, 98-9. 3, Ella Kessinger, Lewiston, 89-4.  

High jump — 1, Mattea Nuhn, Moscow, 5-6. 2, Jasmin Laing, Sandpoint, 5-2. 3, Aliah Winterbottom, Lewiston, 5-0.  

Pole vault — 1 (tie), Alyssa Hinkle, Lakeland, Izzy Davidson, Sandpoint, 10-0. 3, Reesa Saxe, Lakeland, 9-6.  

Long jump — 1, Mattea Nuhn, Moscow, 19-0 ½. 2, Jessa Skinner, Moscow, 16-11 ½. 3, Aliah Winterbottom, Lewiston, 16-2 ½.  

Triple jump — 1, Saskia Hohenlohe, Moscow, 36-8. 2, Ella Julye, Moscow, 35-7. 3, Jessa Skinner, Moscow, 34-6 ¼.  

Timberlake leads after

first day in 4A meet

SPIRIT LAKE — Timberlake leads both the boys and girls standings after the first day of the 3A District 1 meet at Timberlake High. 

Timberlake leads the boys meet with 30 points, followed by Bonners Ferry with 29 points through six events. 

In the girls meet, Timberlake leads with 23.5 points, followed by Bonners Ferry with 20.5 points through five events. 

The meet continues today at 3 p.m. at Timberlake. 

4A 

BOYS 

TEAM SCORES (Through six events) — 1, Timberlake 30. 2, Bonners Ferry 29. 3, Coeur d’Alene Charter 4. 

(Top two individuals, winning relays to state, wild cards available) 

3,200 — 1, Caleb Royce, Timberlake, 10:07.70. 2, Joseph Sateren, Timberlake, 10:14.63. 3, Jacob Sateren, Timberlake, 10:16.31.  

Sprint medley — 1, Timberlake (Waylin MacArthur, Weston Herbert, Joshua Yeager, Jonathan Barnhart), 3:42.44. 2, Cd’A Charter, 3:46.83.  

Shot put — 1, Archer Higgins, Timberlake, 49-2. 2, James Morgen, Bonners Ferry, 47-5 ½. 3, Grady Atkins, Bonners Ferry, 41-11 ½.  

Javelin — 1, Archer Higgins, Timberlake, 132-5 ½. 2, Daric Vincent, Bonners Ferry, 109-11. 3, Lane Ensley, Timberlake, 104-7 ½.  

High jump — 1, Logan Archibald, Bonners Ferry, 5-10. 2, Riley Beggerly, Bonners Ferry, 5-6. 3, Shane Rice, Bonners Ferry, 5-6. 

Long jump — 1, Riley Beggerly, Bonners Ferry, 20-7. 2, Spiro Petras, Bonners Ferry, 18-7. 3, Weston Herbert, Timberlake, 18-3.  

GIRLS 

TEAM SCORES (Through five events) — 1, Timberlake 23.5. 2, Bonners Ferry 20.5. 3, Coeur d’Alene Charter 8. 

(Top two individuals, winning relays to state, wild cards available) 

3,200 — 1, Helen Oyler, Cd’A Charter, 11:31.16. 2, Lola Eggleston, Timberlake, 12:14.17. 3, Kylie Calderone, Bonners Ferry, 12:52.85.  

Sprint medley — 1, Timberlake (Sierra Nalen, Amarijana Olivieri, Emily Wright, Adelynn Archer), 1:51.31. 2, Cd’A Charter, 1:52.11.  

Discus — 1, Hana Hartman, Bonners Ferry, 126-2. 2, Hallie Hartman, Bonners Ferry, 116-7. 3, Alicia Nield, Timberlake, 95-11.  

Pole vault — 1, Ireland Grady, Bonners Ferry, 9-0. 2, Paige Sartell, Bonners Ferry, 6-6. 3, Kylie Calderone, Bonners Ferry, 6-6.  

Triple jump — 1, Aleigha Persyn, Timberlake, 32-7. 2, Payton Young, Timberlake, 31-10 ½. 3, Layla Webb, Timberlake, 31-10.  

    JASON ELLIOTT/Press Lakeland junior Annabella Palaniuk makes an attempt during the girls javelin at the 5A District 1-2 meet at Coeur d'Alene High on Thursday. Palaniuk won the event with a throw of 104 feet, 6 inches.