Schmit, Stoltz have standout performances at divisional meet

Hungry Horse News

Columbia Falls senior Devin Schmit is saving his best for last.

After his excellent performance at the Northwest Class A Divisionals this week, he is heading into the state meet with loads of momentum.

Schmit tore around the track in the 800, coming in at 1:57.1 - a record divisional time - besting the previous mark by one tenth of a second.

He didn't stop there, as he also won the 400 in 50.98 and took part in two relay teams that also placed first.

Boys coach Mark Beckwith said that Schmit battled back from a slow start to the season to peak at the right time.

"Devin started late, he was injured early," he said. "He's just now getting in shape."

The girls also had standout performances from seniors Bekah Stoltz, Kim Pearce and Cassie Stoneman.

Stoltz continued her stranglehold on the field events, winning the discus with a throw of 138-0 and set a divisional record in the javelin with a toss of 142-2. Stoneman won the triple jump with a 35-3 and the long jump with a 16-1. Pearce won the high jump, elevating to a 5-0.

Girls coach Wes Knutson was proud of all the seniors, saying that they contributed a large portion of the team's points.

"The seniors really came through," he said. "All our seniors."

Both teams also fared well overall, each coming in second, with the girls totalling 116 points and the boys collecting 113.

For the boys, senior Kyle Rosenbaum placed second in the triple jump with a 42-1/2 and junior Bobby Opp landed a 41-2 1/2. Junior Kevin Boyer came in fifth with a 40-7 1/2 and sophomore Kyle Jangula came in sixth with 40-1 3/4.

In the pole vault, senior Keyvin Walter placed third with a 13-0 and junior Daniel Byrd came in sixth in the 110 hurdles.

Senior Tommy McNulty came in fifth in the 100 with an 11.97, and Opp placed sixth with a 12.03.

In the shot put, senior Jace Ladenburg had a fourth-place finish, tossing a 47-7 and came in second in the discus with a 148-0.

In the 400, McNulty and junior Dillon West came in behind Schmit, with West finishing fifth with a 53.4 and McNulty coming in sixth with a 53.72.

Junior Greg Macijunas came in fourth in the discus with a 135-1 and junior Nick Beckwith finished fifth with a 127-7.

In the high jump, junior Jack Scherman came in sixth with a 5-10.

The 400 relay team placed first with a 45.3 and the 1,600 relay also won with a 3:31.0.

Beckwith felt his team performed well, saying that several individuals set personal bests.

"I think we had 15 kids score," he said. "Of those 15, nine of them had personal bests and some of them had two personal bests."

After resting several athletes last week, Beckwith said that the time off helped strengthen the scores.

"We rested everybody," he said. "You have to let them come in with fresh legs."

For the girls, freshman Emily Stoltz came in third in the high jump with a 4-10 and Bekah Stoltz also placed second in the shot put with a 36-10.

Sophomore Jessica Boyer placed third in the 800 with a 2:26.76 and Stoneman came in fourth in the 100 hurdles with a 17.4.

In the triple jump, sophomore Amber Lampman finished third with a 32-2 1/2 and Emily Stoltz came in sixth in the pole vault with a 7-6.

In the 1,600, Boyer finished second with a 5:43.1 and senior Desiree Marjerrison came in third with a 5:43.6. The 1,600 relay came in second with a 4:15.3.

Like Beckwith, Knutson rested some of his competitors last week, and he said it also raised the team's level of performance.

"It had a big effect," he said. "We had a lot of young ladies that were on fresh legs. It helped big time."

Knutson said the girls really focus and laid everything on the line at the divisionals.

"We felt we did everything we could do," he said. "We had some of our best performances of the year, and it's a perfect time to do that."

The top five individuals and relays move on to the state meet to be held Friday and Saturday, and expectations are high for the teams heading into the final meet of the season.

Beckwith said he thinks the boys will have a good showing.

"Our kids are really stepping up to compete," he said. "Our expectations are very high. We expect to score some points at the state."

Knutson was also complimentary of his team, saying the girls should do well at the meet.

"We feel real good about our chances," he said. "Anything can happen at a state track meet. We feel good about where we're at, but it's going to take some luck and some great performances."