LAUREL — It'd be unfair to call Jolee Klempel a one-woman band at the Class C state track and field meet.
But the junior sure was a tour de force over two days at the LHS Sports Complex, leading the Richey-Lambert girls to their second consecutive team championship.
WATCH THE HIGHLIGHTS:
Following her state-record win in the long jump on Friday, Klempel took gold medals Saturday in the 100 (12.48 seconds), the 100 hurdles (14.81) and the shot put (36 feet, 4 inches), and added a second-place finish in the triple jump as well as a No. 2 finish with Richey-Lambert's 400-meter relay team and a fourth-place showing in the 1,600 relay.
"I think it's been amazing," said Klempel, who broke her own Class C record in the long jump on Friday with a leap of 18-8¾. "I didn't think I could do any of this. The PRs I've been getting in my running events is what I'm probably most surprised by. I just did not think that was going to actually happen."
Photos: Day 2 of the Class A and C state track and field meet in Laurel
The meet was halted Saturday for 2 hours and 35 minutes due to lightning and fierce rain that passed through the area, but when it resumed Richey-Lambert finished the meet with 78 total points to easily bring home the team trophy. Belt was second with 48 points and Turner took third with 35.
And though Klempel scored 48 points in her individual events, her teammates added key support. That included Brynne Hill, who edged Klempel by half an inch to win the triple jump with a bound of 36-3½.
"I'm proud of our team and how far we've come," Klempel said.
The boys team champion was Cascade, which won its first first-place trophy since 1994. The Badgers were led by Trent Lane, who won gold in the 800 and 1,600 meters, as well as a victorious 400-meter relay squad made up of Peyton Hauk, Elijah Kennerson, Kegen Vanek and Brant Ligameri.
Cascade finished with 82 points, topping second-place Lustre Christian with 71 points and third-place Hot Springs (39 points).
One of the biggest thrills of the day was provided by springy Superior junior Landon Richards, who broke the Class C record in the high jump by clearing the bar at 6-9½ and bringing the crowd to its feet.
Richards eclipsed the previous record of 6-9¼ set by Noxon's Ricky Williams last year. Richards then nearly cleared 6-10, but his calf clipped the bar on one of his attempts and it wasn't to be.
"A little upset about that one," Richards conceded, though it couldn't dampen his sense of accomplishment for setting a new standard in Class C.
"Getting over that bar is something that I've been looking forward to all season," he said. "I've been hitting 6-8 consistently, so to do it at state the last meet of the year felt amazing."
Elsewhere, Lustre Christian's Johnslee Pierre, like Richey-Lambert's Klempel, added two more golds to his haul on Saturday to become a four-time medalist.
Pierre won the 300 hurdles and the triple jump, following his wins Friday in the long jump and the 400. Pierre did, however, false start in the 110 hurdles Saturday, but he clearly had a big weekend.
After the storm subsided on Saturday, Dane Grammar of Chester-Joplin-Inverness broke the Class C record in boys shot put with a heave of 58-3. That took down a 31-year-old mark set by Power's Ben Toeckes in 1995.
It also solidified Grammar as a two-time titlist over the weekend; he also won gold in the discus on Friday.
Meanwhile, Jacob Swanz of Denton-Geyser-Stanford owned the sprints on Saturday. Swanz won the 100 meters in 11.08 and also took the 200 in 22.46.
The girls 800 and race belonged to Philipsburg's Addi Lilyquist. After winning the 1,600 on Friday, Lilyquist also took the 3,200 meters in a time of 5:20.24.
For results from the 2026 Class A/C track and field meet, click here.
2026 Class C gold medalists
Boys 100: Jacob Swanz, D-G-S, 11.08
Girls 100: Jolee Klempel, Richey-Lambert, 12.48
Boys 200: Jacob Swanz, D-G-S, 22.46
Girls 200: Sierra Wilcox, Shields Valley, 26.11
Boys 400: Johnslee Pierre, Lustre Christian, 49.04
Girls 400: Vannie Urick, Belt, 59.21
Boys 800: Trent Lane, Cascade, 1:59.68
Girls 800: Addi Lilyquist, Philipsburg, 2:19.83
Boys 1,600: Trent Lane, Cascade, 4:34.56
Girls 1,600: Addi Lilyquist, Philipsburg, 5:20.24
Boys: 3,200: Trent Lane, Cascade, 10:22.27
Girls 3,200: Addy Lilyquist, Philipsburg, 5:20.24
Boys 110 hurdles: Braden Tuning, Gardiner, 14.7
Girls 100 hurdles: Jolee Klempel, Richey-Lambert, 14.81
Boys 300 hurdles: Johnslee Pierre, Lustre Christian, 38.13
Girls 300 hurdles: Ali Doyle, Turner, 45.06
Boys 400 relay: Cascade, 43.36
Girls 400 relay: Belt, 50.06
Boys 1,600 relay: Hobson-Moore, 3:29.9
Girls 1,600 relay: Belt, 4:06.83
Boys long jump: Johnslee Pierre, Lustre Christian, 22-10
Girls long jump: Jolee Klempel, Richey-Lambert, 18-8¾*
Boys triple jump: Johnslee Pierre 45-8¼
Girls triple jump: Brynne Hill, Richey-Lambert, 36-3½
Boys high jump: Landon Richards, Superior, 6-9½*
Girls high jump: Audrey Young, C-J-I, 5-2
Boys pole vault: Tanner Vick, P-D-B, 14-0
Girls pole vault: Emerson Downing, Saco, 10-6
Boys javelin: Jace Bantz, Winnett-Grass Range, 173-0
Girls javelin: Kennedy Simonson, Whitewater, 134-1
Boys discus: Dane Grammar, C-J-I, 173-4
Girls discus: Lillian Boyd, Seeley-Swan, 147-6
Boys shot put: Dane Grammar, C-J-I, 58-3*
Girls shot put: Jolee Klempel, Richey-Lambert, 36-4
* Indicates Class C record
