POCATELLO, Idaho — Treasure State athletes combined to win more than three dozen events Saturday at the USA Track and Field Region 11 Junior Olympic Championships at Davis Field on the campus of Idaho State University.
Athletes competed in six age divisions — 8 and under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, and 17-18 — at the meet, which serves as a qualifier for the USATF Junior Olympic National Championships. The national meet is July 27 through Aug. 2 in Norwalk, Calif.
Choteau's Kesston Thomas headlined Montana's performers at the Region 11 meet, as the senior-to-be launched a personal-best throw of 66.78 meters (219 feet, 1 inch) to easily win the javelin. That mark places Thomas inside the top 10 nationally and fourth among incoming seniors. Thomas won the Class B state title in the event with a throw of 199-10 in May.
A few Treasure State boys — including Hunter Cadena of Missoula, Braden Anderson of Corvallis, Luke Skelton of Billings and Jackson Pelc of Kalispell — each won two events, but Bozeman's Iris Hancock stole the show on the track, as the 15-year-old swept the sprints in her age group. Hancock, who will be a freshman at Bozeman High School in the fall, won the 15-16 girls 100-meter dash in 12.14 seconds, the 200 in 25.05 and the 400 in 1 minute, 04.18 seconds.
Reagan Johnstone of Stevensville also won three events in the 15-16 age group, claiming gold in the 100- and 400-meter hurdles as well as the long jump. Johnstone, who in May set the Class A record in the 100 hurdles at 14.42 seconds and won the 300 hurdles in 43.36, clocked a time of 14.5 seconds in the 100s and 1:03.07 in the 400s on Saturday. In the long jump, she recorded a mark of 5.55 meters (18 feet, 2½ inches). Johnstone will be a junior at Stevensville in the fall.
Allison Gama, the reigning Class B state champion in the 100 and 300 hurdles for Missoula Loyola, was also a double winner in the 17-18 age division on Saturday. She won the 100s in 14.41 seconds and the 400s in 1:03.45.
Montana girls also had a strong day in the field, with Helena's Kendall Naipo, Stevensville's Eva Brunell and Bozeman's Kate Breeding winning their age groups in the shot put. Naipo also added wins the discus and javelin, and Brunell got another win in the disc.
A list of winners from Montana is below. Please report any errors or omissions to scores@montanasports.com.
USA Track and Field Region 11 Junior Olympic Championships
Saturday, July 11, at Pocatello, Idaho
Boys
100 17-18: Hunter Cadena (Missoula), 10.71
200 8u: Luke Skelton (Billings), 35.77
200 17-18: Hunter Cadena (Missoula), 21.98
400 17-18: Preston Welch (Shepherd), 49.19
800 15-16: Braden Anderson (Corvallis), 2:02.77
1,500 9-10: Richard Pemberton (Bozeman), 5:37.27
1,500 15-16: Braden Anderson (Corvallis), 4:19.59
3,000 15-16: Anze Vaux Witt (Missoula), 10:09.38
100 hurdles 13-14: Jackson Pelc (Kalispell), 14.73
110 hurdles 15-16: Rhys Jensen (Helena), 15.23
200 hurdles 13-14: Jackson Pelc (Kalispell), 26.83
400 relay 17-18: Kaden Manraksa (Missoula), Hunter Cadena (Missoula), Case Procacci (Missoula), Daniel Slonaker (Hot Springs), 43.61
Discus 13-14: Russell Allen (West Yellowstone), 38.97m
Javelin 11-12: Bodie Anderson (Helena), 23.92m
Javelin 13-14: Lincoln Skinner (Frenchtown), 40.33m
Javelin 17-18: Kesston Thomas (Choteau), 66.78m
High jump 15-16: Spencer Bolles (Boulder), 1.85m
Long jump 8u: Luke Skelton (Billings), 3.03m
Long jump 11-12: Kingston Ansah (Missoula), 4.68m
Hammer 17-18: Kolby Palm (Billings), 47.27m
Girls
100 15-16: Iris Hancock (Bozeman), 12.14
200 15-16: Iris Hancock (Bozeman), 25.05
400 15-16: Iris Hancock (Bozeman), 1:04.18
100 hurdles 15-16: Reagan Johnstone (Stevensville), 14.5
100 hurdles 17-18: Allison Gama (Missoula), 14.41
400 hurdles 15-16: Reagan Johnstone (Stevensville), 1:03.07
400 hurdles 17-18: Allison Gama (Missoula), 1:03.45
Shot put 13-14: Kendall Naipo (Helena), 10.64m
Shot put 15-16: Eva Brunell (Stevensville), 9.87m
Shot put 17-18: Kate Breeding (Bozeman), 12.89m
Discus 13-14: Kendall Naipo (Helena), 31.56m
Discus 15-16: Eva Brunell (Stevensville), 32.59m
Javelin 13-14: Kendall Naipo (Helena), 21.39m
Javelin 15-16: Peyton Poole (Butte), 33.64m
Javelin 17-18: Macey Kay Smith (Frenchtown), 39.53m
High jump 17-18: Kate Lindsay (Bozeman), 1.65m
Long jump 9-10: Sadie Daniel (Great Falls), 3.78m
Long jump 11-12: Julia VanPernis (Helena), 4.25m
Long jump 15-16: Reagan Johnstone (Stevensville), 5.55m
