Ready! Set! Start!

Boys Track

The Big Lake boys track and field team will have some questions to answer this season.

The Hornets will continue to put up a strong distance squad led by state cross-country finishers Jack Leuer and Owen Layton and a few others from the cross country team.

“It’s nice having two state entrants coming back,” says Coach Bob Blanchard.

Those two runners will rack up points in the 800, 1600 and 3200 meters, and combine with other runners like Trent Erickson, David Guyse and Gavin Flavin in the 4x800 relay. There is also Judd Layton, an eighth-grade cross-country runner who might be one to watch this year.

Josh Kennedy is a runner who made a big improvement in the 400 meters last season, lowering his time and running 52 seconds at the end of the season. He’ll lead the 4x400 relay team.

The sprint team is led by returners CJ Mikely and Wouson Nehwah who were part of the school-record breaking 4x100 relay in sections last year. Blanchard says there are a few more newer sprinters.  

“We have new blood out this season in the sprint - upper classmen who have never been out for track before,” he says. “So I think we have some depth in sprinting.”

The Hornets lost their top high jumper, Carson Kunz, to graduation. He set the school record at 6’4”. But there are others coming up who can score points in the event.

“We have some guys at 5’ 10,” says Blanchard, “and a few who can do 19” to 20” in the long jump.”

As far as the rest of the field events, it’s wait and see who stands out as the season progresses.

The Hornets lost their record-setting pole vaulter in Spencer Vold and most of their shot putters and discus throwers. So it will take some good performances to fill those spots.

But the numbers are there with 45 athletes coming out this spring, so it should be interesting to watch how everyone performs.

The Hornets had a meet at Becker Tuesday and host their own Invitational this Thursday (April 9) at 4 p.m.

Girls Track

The Big Lake girls track and field team has a new head coach this season.

Angela DeMichele, who has worked with Monticello athletes and the St. Michael track team, is looking forward to a good season. The team captains who will help her guide the other athletes are Raina White, Sydney Roy, Grace John and Elsie Johnson.

This year’s team is a mix of veterans and younger athletes. Returning are cross country runners Emilee Doperalski, Erin Kjellberg and Campbell Slattery, who should share duties in the distance events. Kjellberg also had a season’s best time of 63.94 in the 400 meters last year.

Alivia Voss led the high jumpers last season. She will be joined by Alayna Boe in that event.

Boe was the team’s top pole vaulter at 7’8” last season. She will share that event with Bryn Scheer and Naomi Huizenga, who had the team’s best triple jump last season at 30’4.5”.

Leah Uphoff did well in the 100 meter hurdles along with Voss, and Lexi Kapsner led the 300 meter hurdlers.

Raina White competed in the long jump last season and is looking to improve even more. She also competed in the 4x100 and 4x200 relays along with Grace John, Sydney Roy, Emily Shoop and Arrianna Wagner. They will all likely run in the individual 100 and 200 meter events and up to 400 meters.

Tayla Gassman is back. The sophomore competed in four wheelchair events at the state meet last season and came home with the title in the shot put and discus.

Coach DeMichele says there are lots of younger faces who are still to be tested.

“We have avery athletic freshmen group,” she says. “I am excited to see how the freshmen class will do.”  

They will all be competing to find their expertise on the team, and see how well they do against the other athletes.

The Hornets compete in a home Invitational Thursday, results next week.