THE STATE MEET: The 122nd Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Boys Track and Field Championships and the 47th Girls Track and Field Championships will be held Friday and Saturday, June 2-3, at the Veterans Memorial Stadium Complex on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
ADMISSION TICKETS: Ticket prices for the meet are $8 for each session or $12 for both sessions Friday if purchased at the stadium. Tickets may also be purchased online with an applicable convenience fee. To order online, access the ticket link on the WIAA website homepage or go to:
https://www.expressoticketing.com/wiaa/pickevent.aspx?ecn=19
MEET INFORMATION: The meet features two sessions Friday. The Divisions 2 and 3 session begins at 9:30 a.m. with the competition proceeding in the order of events. Division 1 session begins at 3 p.m. The competition resumes Saturday at 10:30 a.m. The order of the finals for each event Saturday begins with Division 3, followed by Divisions 2 and 1, respectively.
STATE MEET SCHEDULE: The meet schedule and order of events are available on the WIAA website at: https://www.wiaawi.org/Portals/0/PDF/Sports/Track/2017statemeetschedule.pdf
MEET LIVE ON NFHS NETWORK.COM: The live stream of the State Meet will be produced by PlayOn! Sports on the WIAA.TV portal of the NFHS Network. To purchase a subscription to the live programming, log-on to www.nfhsnetwork.com and click on the subscription image on the home page.
LAST YEAR’S TEAM RESULTS-BOYS: Brookfield East won the Division 1 championship with 48 team points. Kettle Moraine and Middleton finished runner-up, compiling 41 points. Freedom won the Division 2 title with 45 points, which was two more than runner-up Wisconsin Lutheran. In Division 3, Coleman, Marathon and Wild Rose all shared the title by scoring 42 points. Marquette won the team championship in the wheelchair competition with 35 points. Wisconsin Heights/Barneveld was second with 29 points.
LAST YEAR’S TEAM RESULTS-GIRLS: In Division 1, Milwaukee King won the team championship by accumulating 44 points. Brookfield East finished runner-up with a point total of 30.5. Jefferson earned the title in Division 2 with 44 points, which was two more than runner-up Wisconsin Lutheran with 42. Cuba City won its second straight crown in Division 3 by scoring 34 points to edge runner-up Weyauwega-Fremont by a single point. Catholic Central won the wheelchair competition for the second straight season, tallying 40 points. Burlington placed second for the fourth consecutive season, compiling 32 points.
BY THE NUMBERS-BOYS: Whitefish Bay has won the most boys team championships with 18, 16 of them coming consecutively from 1937-52. Milwaukee Riverside and Kohler are second with 16 titles each. Only two competitors have ever won the same individual event four times. Dave Greenwood of Park Falls won four titles in the high jump from 1976-79, and Paul Annear of Richland Center repeated the feat in the same event from 2005-08. Three individuals have won four relay titles in the same relay. Kevin Bledsoe of Milwaukee South did it in the 400 relay (1984-87) as did Josh Dickerson of D.C. Everest (1993-96) and Greg Bracey of Milwaukee Vincent (2000-03). Justin Austin (2005-08) of Brown Deer holds the boys record for the most titles won by an individual in a career with nine. Darrell Jansen of Kimberly (1958-60) and Annear have won eight championships. Three others have won seven titles. Only Alvin Kraenzlein of Milwaukee East has won five State titles in one meet (1895), and Andrew Rock of Stratford is the only other athlete to win four State titles in the same year (2000). Milwaukee South lays claim to the most event titles throughout the history of the meet with 99. Whitefish Bay is second with 96.
BY THE NUMBERS-GIRLS: Madison West and Rosholt have won the most girls’ team titles with six. Three of West’s titles came in succession from 1980-82. Arcadia, Marathon and Nekoosa have won five titles with Edgar, Madison Memorial, Milwaukee Bradley, Prairie du Chien, Waukesha West and Whitewater next on the list with four. Twenty-four girls have won the same event four times during their career. Kennedy Blahnik of Algoma, Bonnie Draxler of Wrightstown, Molly Seidel of University Lake School and Joanna Schultz of Holmen are the only athletes to accomplish the feat in two different events. Blahnik won the discus and shot put from 2011-14; Draxler won the 400 dash and pole vault from 2011-14; Seidel won the 1,600 and 3,200 runs from 2009-12; and Schultz captured the titles in the 200 and 400 dashes from 2003-06. Draxler, Jaclynn Kriegl of Florence, and both Elizabeth Pospyhalla and Tess Thurs of Edgar hold the record for the most championships won by in a career by an individual with 10. Dana Collins of Milwaukee Marshall, Heather Hyland of Nekoosa and Jenni Westphal of Marinette are next in line with nine. Edgar has won the most events in the history of the meet with 40 titles. Madison Memorial is next on the list with 34.
DIVISION 1 NOTES - BOYS: Kimberly has 17 entries in the meet, including 13 individual participants and four relays, to lead the rest of the division. Oak Creek is next with 14 entries with three relays, while Arrowhead has 13 entries with three relays. Four individual events and two relays return their champions from last year. Senior Jack Herkert of Verona won the high jump a year ago. He qualifies this season with the fourth-best qualifying mark at 6-4. Senior Shon Pratcher of Germantown has his sights on repeating as champion in the long jump. He’s the division’s top qualifier with a leap of 23-2 3/4 at sectionals. Junior Jose Guzman of Ashwaubenon captured the title in 400-meter dash last season. He returns this year as the sixth-fastest qualifier with a time of 49.27. Senior David Dunlap of Nicolet is the top qualifier in the 200 dash this year with a seed time of 21.62 after winning gold in the event last year. The Brookfield East 800 relay team attempts to win back-to-back titles. It returns to the field with the ninth fastest qualifying time at 1:29.36. Kimberly is the returning champion in the 3,200 relay. The Papermakers enter the meet with a time of 7:55.65, which positions them third among the qualifiers.
DIVISION 1 NOTES - GIRLS: Hudson, Muskego and Sun Prairie have 13 entries in the meet. The totals include three relays and 10 individual participants for Hudson and Muskego, and 12 individual event competitors and one relay for Sun Prairie. Arrowhead and Milwaukee King has 12 entries including four and three relays, respectively. Seven individual events and three relays feature the return of their champions from 2016. In addition, one champion from Division 2 moves up to challenge for another title. Senior Cami Davre of Whitefish Bay is the returning three-time champion in two events. She won both the 800 and 1,600 runs in 2014, 2015 and 2016. She set the meet record in the 800 in 2015. Her qualifying time in the 800 of 2:14.75 ranks second among qualifiers entering the meet as does her time of 5:01.11 in the 1,600. She also possesses the top qualifying time in the 3,200 run at 10:59.92. Junior Alexis Johnson of Oregon is the returning champion in both the 100 and 300 hurdles. She returns in defense of her titles with a seed time of 14.74 in the 100 hurdles, which ranks second-best among the field of qualifiers, and a time of 44.65, which ties for the second-best qualifying time in the 300 hurdles. Sophomore Brooke Jaworski of Wausau West is also a defending champion in two events. She is in pursuit of her second straight title in the 400 with the top qualifying time of 53.80. Her seed time of 24.67 in the 200 dash ranks as the second-fastest in the event after earning the title last season. Senior Josie Schaefer of Baraboo is the defending champion in the discus. She is heavily favored to win a second title with her qualifying toss of 165-4 at sectionals, which is more than 32 feet beyond the mark of the next best qualifying throw. Junior Hailey Orlowski of Wisconsin Lutheran won the pole vault in Division 2 last season. She moves up to Division 1 this year and has qualified at a height of 12-0, which ranks third among qualifiers in the event. Waukesha West has the top qualifying time of 9:20.80 in the 3,200 relay in pursuit of its second consecutive crown in the event. Wausau West returns seeking its second 1,600 relay title in a row. They are fourth among all qualifiers in the event with a time of 3:57.71. Oregon’s attempts to win back-to-back championships in the 800 relay. The quartet enters the meet with a qualifying time of 1:44.85, which ranks 16th.
DIVISION 2 NOTES - BOYS: Lakeland has the most entries in the meet with 13, including one relay. Catholic Memorial, East Troy, Freedom and Osceola are next with eight entries. Freedom’s list includes four relays, Catholic Memorial’s and Osceola’s three, and East Troy’s two. There are five defending individual event champions and one relay attempting to win consecutive titles. Junior Kenneth Bednarik of Rice Lake is the returning champion in both the 200 and 400 dashes. He qualifies this year with the top sectional times posted in each of those events. He ran a 21.34 in the 200 dash and a 46.29 in the 400 dash at sectionals. Junior Ben Dunkleberger of Lake Mills is the defending champion in the triple jump with the top qualifying mark of 45-7 at sectionals. Senior Kyle Thomas of River Valley has recorded the swiftest time in the 100 dash entering the meet at 10.53 after his gold medal performance in the event a year ago. Senior Clark Otte of Sheboygan Falls is the reigning champion in the 1,600 run. He returns to the field with a sectional time of 4:16.18, which places him second among the qualifiers in the event. The Dodgeville/Mineral Point 3,200 relay attempts to repeat as champion with the third quickest qualifying time of 8:05.88.
DIVISION 2 NOTES - GIRLS: East Troy leads all schools in the division with 10 participant entries, including eight individual event competitors and two relays. Freedom and Marinette are tied for the second-most entries with eight. Freedom’s total includes two relays, and Marinette’s sum comprises of only individual competitors. Thirteen of the 18 events in the meet have former champions returning to challenge for another title this year, including nine individual events and all four relays. Senior Tess Keyzers of Little Chute is the two-time champion in the shot put. She is a strong contender to win her third straight title with a qualifying throw of 47-6 1/4, which is more than five feet farther than the next best qualifying mark. Senior Kyra Arendt of Bloomer has twice been crowned the champion in the triple jump, claiming the title in 2015 and again last year. She is ranked seventh among the qualifiers this year with a sectional mark of 35-11. Sophomore Ja’Cey Simmons of Milwaukee Lutheran had a brilliant freshman season, winning the titles in the 100 and 200 dashes. She is in position to defend both titles with the fastest qualifying times in each. She enters competition this week with a time of 12.29 in the 100 dash and 24.89 in the 200 dash. Senior Abbey Zastrow of Arcadia is the fastest qualifier in the 400 dash with a time of 56.10 after capturing the crown in the event last season. Senior Jordan Hirsbrunner of Monroe is the returning champion in the 300 hurdles. Her sectional time of 44.52 places her atop the qualifiers list, nearly two seconds faster than the next swiftest qualifier. Senior Destinee Haas of Baldwin-Woodville is the returning champion in the discus. She qualifies this year with a toss of 135-10, which ranks second among the qualifiers. Senior Brooke Blazei of Martin Luther enters the State Meet attempting to win the high jump for the third time. She won the championship her freshman and sophomore season, and finished runner-up last year in her bid to win a third title. Her sectional leap of 5-3 ranks tied for sixth among qualifiers in the event this season. Senior Brielle Buechler of Wrightstown shares the distinction of possessing the top qualifying height in the pole vault at a height of 11-6 after winning the pole vault in 2015 and finishing runner-up last year. The Catholic Memorial 400 and 800 relays seek back-to-back titles. The Crusaders enter the meet with the top time in the 800 relay at 1:43.50 and the second-fastest qualifying time in the 400 relay at 49.76. Wittenberg-Birnamwood is the defending champion in the 1,600 relay, returning with the second-fastest seed time of 4:02.25. Big Foot/Williams Bay has the best qualifying time in the 3,200 at 9:37.56 in pursuit of a second consecutive victory in the event.
DIVISION 3 NOTES - BOYS: Darlington will be competing with the most entries with 10, including seven individual event participants and three relays. Spencer has qualified nine entries, all in individual events. There are three individual events that return their champions along with three relays. In addition, one event has its 2014 champion hoping to return to championship form. Senior Josh Pillath of Coleman accounts for two of the returning champions. He won both the 110 hurdles and the high jump last year. He has the top qualifying time this season in the 110 hurdles at 14.78 and is tied for the seventh-highest jump at 6-1. In addition, his sectional time of 39.84 in the 300 hurdle ranks first among qualifiers in that event. Senior Caiden Haake of Alma/Pepin is in a position to win his second consecutive championship in the discus. He enters the event with the division’s top distance of 182-5, which is more than 25 feet farther than the next-best qualifier in the field. The Newman Catholic 400 relay, the Wild Rose 800 relay and the Rosholt 3,200 relays seek to win back-to-back titles. Their times of 45.13, 1:33.47 and 8:22.94, respectively, are relatively competitive with the top qualifiers in each of those events entering the State meet.
DIVISION 3 NOTES - GIRLS: Shell Lake has 10 entries in the meet, including nine individual event participants and one relay. Benton/Scales Mound and Edgar have qualified nine entries. Edgar’s list includes two relays and Benton/Scale Mound’s list includes one relay. There are an abundance of returning champions in the division with nine individual events and all four relays featuring the return of past victors. Senior Faith Lubner of Reedsville headlines the group. She has sights on becoming the 25th girl to win an event four times. Her top qualifying time 44.77 in the 300 hurdles suggests she’s poised to earn her fourth title in the event. Lubner will also contend for her third straight gold medal in the 100 hurdles with the quickest qualifying time of 14.92. In addition, she looks to return to championship form in the long jump. She slipped to fifth in the event last season after capturing the crown in 2015. Her sectional performance of 17-7 1/2 places her atop the performance list in the event. Junior Erika Kisting of Iola-Scandinavia appears to be in contention to repeat as champion in a pair of events. She has the fastest seed time in the 3,200 run at 11:30.96 after winning the event a year ago, and she has the second-swiftest time in the 1,600 run at 5:19.54, which is more than four seconds off the pace of the top qualifier in the event this season. Senior Sydney Thompson of Mercer is back after winning the shot put competition in 2016. She enters the State meet having recorded the best qualifying throw at sectionals at 43-3. Junior Emma Richards of Ozaukee attempts to retain the discus title she gained possession of last season. She returns to the event this year with the top qualifying distance of 138-11. Based on qualifying heights, senior Johanna Ellefson of Spencer should be considered the favorite to win her second straight title in the pole vault. Her vault of 11-0 at the sectional meet is seven inches higher than the next-best qualifier in the field. Sophomore Ashlie Lockington made an impressive debut in the triple jump, winning the championship as a freshman last season. She is back to defend her title, but to do so, she will need to contend with number of other qualifiers that turned in performances that eclipse her qualifying mark of 34-9 3/4. The Cuba City 400 relay returns attempting to win its second straight title with the fastest qualifying time of 51. 14. The same can be said of the Wild Rose 800 relay with the best seed time of 1:47.44, as well as the Lourdes Academy 3,200 relay with the event’s top sectional performance of 9:47.32. The Hilbert/Stockbridge 1,600 relay also attempts to win back-to-back titles. Its time of 4:10.48 at sectionals ranks fifth among the field of qualifiers.
WHEELCHAIR NOTES: Senior Joe Schubert of Marquette highlights the boys competition as he attempts to win his fourth straight championship in the 100 and 400 dashes. He enters competition with the best qualifying time in the 100 dash at 17.98 and the second-best effort in the 400 dash at 1:08.85. In addition, he looks to win the 800 race for the second consecutive year. He is the top qualifier this year with a time of 2:29.58. Among the challengers in the 800 is senior Brenden Ojibway of Wisconsin Heights/Barneveld, who won the title back in 2015. He also seeks his second straight gold medal 1,600 race. Ojibway has posted the second-fastest qualifying time in event at 5:32.65. In the girls’ wheelchair competitions, senior Leah Joslyn of Burlington is the only former champion returning to any of the events. She won the shot put in 2014. She hopes to reclaim the title this year. Joslyn enters competition with a qualifying toss of 10-0, which ranks her second in the field. She placed runner-up last year in the 100 and 400 dashes, the 800 run, and the shot put.
NEED THE QUALIFIERS?: Qualifiers and qualifying performance lists, along with meet schedule, heats and lane assignments are available on the WIAA website by navigating to the track & field results page at: http://www.wiaawi.org/Sports/BoysTrackField.aspx or http://www.wiaawi.org/Sports/GirlsTrackField.aspx
NEED RESULTS?: The quickest way to get results of the 2017 State Track and Field results is to access the WIAA website at www.wiaawi.org and access either the boys or girls track and field home page to choose the links to live updates as the meet unfolds, provided in cooperation with PrimeTime Event & Race Management, LLC.
FOLLOW THE TOURNEY ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Receive the updates of the Boys and Girls State Track & Field Championships on the WIAA State Tournament Facebook and Twitter accounts. The Twitter account is @wiaawistate with the hashtag #wiaatrack. Also like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram at wiaawi, and add us on Snapchat at wiaawis.
PARKING AVAILABILITY: Parking is available in a number of general public lots surrounding the stadium on event days. Cost of parking is $8 per day.