BELGRADE — Belgrade senior Wesley Ehret has broken records as a track runner during his time with the Panthers.
And he will look to continue his athletic success on the football field with the Montana Grizzlies in the fall.
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Ehret's track coach Scott Palmer has seen his development firsthand over time.
"That's one of the fun parts about track," Palmer said, "is they come in as a freshman, especially on the boys side where they don't have the strength and all the coordination, and then throughout their high school career with lifting and Wes being a three-sport athlete, the coordination piece comes in and they get to their senior year and you truly see them flourish and become pretty resounding young men."
While there's still a couple of weeks to go until the state tournament, Ehret reflected on his senior year thus far.
"(It's been) pretty good," Ehret said. "We've already broke the relay record, what, three times, I think, and then just went sub-11 (in the 100-meter dash) two weeks ago, so hopefully cutting (that) down here soon."
"Throughout the season they've broke their own record twice now and they just continue getting better," Palmer said of the Panthers' 4x100 team. "It's fun when you see a group of individuals like them that push each other each time."
There were many reasons why the Griz felt like the best fit for Ehret but one specific driving factor.
"Just the family aspect," Ehret said. "They really took me in like family and since it's just me and my mom, that's the biggest thing for me."
What does it mean to Ehret to show his mom what he can do with his record-breaking season and the chance to compete at the next level?
"It makes me so happy," Ehret said with a smile. "She always knew I could do it, but just getting there and doing it myself, it makes her so happy."
Palmer called his mom his No. 1 fan, as well as Ehret's grandfather.
"She supports him, she's there for him," Palmer said. "You can't be more proud of a parent that truly is there watching their kid be successful."
Not only does Ehret have his family behind him, but he also has the support of the Belgrade community.
"We're excited for him," Palmer said. "We like to see our kids stay inside Montana and compete. I know that there's definitely some faithful here that would love to see him compete for (Montana State), but this was a good opportunity for him to branch out and go his own direction."
"He's a great kid," Palmer continued. "And he'll be successful in any endeavor he chooses to kind of pick. He's got a good work ethic and he'll stay with it.
Ehret will head to Missoula in July for summer workouts and begin the next chapter of his career.
