Three county athletes qualify for WIAA D2 state track meet

Both Division Two schools from the county will be represented at the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association State Track and Field Championship meet this weekend.

Junior Casidi Pehler earned sectional titles in both the girls’ discus and pole vault competitions at the sectional hosted by Arcadia last Thursday, and Arcadia will also send Trey Lyga to state in the boys’ discus competition.

The Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau program will also have an athlete at the state meet thanks to Jordan Stanislowski — the senior will look for a podium finish in the triple jump after placing third at last week’s sectional.

The state meet opens on Friday at 9:30 a.m. at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

Thursday’s sectional featured multiple state champions from last year’s Division Two event, which made for a tough field for county athletes.

Arcadia sees two throwers advance

Pehler won every conference pole vault competition she took part in this spring and enters the state meet as one of the best vaulters in the state. 

Pehler jumped 11 feet, six inches at the sectional but has cleared the 12-foot mark this year. Her sectional jump tied her with Amery’s Kelly Fern for the best sectional vault in Division Two.

She has put in the work with camps and training for that event, coach Tim Braunschweig said. “Her goal is to go and win state, and she’s on a path to have the opportunity to do that. She needs to take care of her own business and hopefully everything will happen.”

Her recent rise in the discus came to a peak with a throw of 128 feet, 11 inches on Thursday, which was more than six inches clear of second place.

The discus improvement is impressive because she just added the event to her repertoire this spring, Braunschweig said. She built up to her sectional-winning throw from 90-foot throws just a few weeks ago.

“She’s just been progressing and progressing each week and keeps getting a PR every single week, so it’s been fun to watch,” Braunschweig said.

Lyga is in his second year of high school track but will also advance to the state meet at UW-La Crosse this weekend.

Lyga placed fourth in the boys’ discus with a heave of 152 feet, nine inches. Somerset junior Caymen Gebheim won the event convincingly with his throw of 171 feet, three inches.

Braunschweig said Lyga has also progressed in his first year in throwing events after joining the team as a jumper last year.

“Week after week after week he’s just been continuing to hit lifetime PRs. … he’s been really consistent hitting those deeper marks, so we’re really excited for him, too,” the coach said.

Arcadia’s 1600-meter relay team of Joel Fernando, Ted Teske, Nestor Badillo and Landan Bremer narrowly missed qualifying for state, taking fifth by less than half a second behind fourth-place Lakeland Union.

Other top six finishers for the Raiders included Pehler (high jump, sixth), freshman Jaylie Dahl (400, sixth) and Teske (high jump, fifth).

Stanislowski to represent G-E-T

Senior Jordan Stanislowski is ending her career at G-E-T with a trip to compete with the state’s best. 

It comes after a spring season that featured plenty of challenges on the injury front—Stanislowski wasn’t able to jump at every meet due to a leg injury, but she stayed persistent and smart in her recovery to be ready for sectionals.

Stanislowski leapt 33 feet, 9.75 inches in the triple jump to take third. She was beaten only by Madilyn DeLawyer of Rice Lake and the winning jump of 34 feet, 0.75 inches by sectional champion Kirkland Williams of Northland Pines.

The senior has had an impressive season, coaches Ryan Mendez and Paula Gold said. Stanislowski won the conference meet last year in the same event. 

Jumps coach Macy Sparks has worked with Stanislowski to continue improving after joining the team last year as a junior.

“Jordan rises to the occasion,” Mendez said. “Some of the great athletes are the ones who when the pressure is on and the stress is there, they don’t crumble. They find that extra gear or that next step and Jordan has been great about rising to the occasion when she needs to.

Top finishers for the Red Hawks outside of Stanislowski were Adrianna Rotering in the girls’ 800 (seventh) and Omar Jimenez in the boys’ 300-meter hurdles (eighth).

Gold also applauded senior Sam Ruiter for his work in the relays as well as Rotering’s 800-meter time that is now two seconds shy of the school record set by former state champion Dana Feyen.

The coaches said this year was about growth, and they saw that growth last week.

“You’re always hoping to get to the show,” Gold said, “and that’s the end goal for a lot of these kids. But you’re hoping when they are done and the season is complete that they can look back and know they gave it their all. And we can truly say with every athlete we had that they did.”

Boys track, Division Two Sectional, May 25 at Arcadia High School

Top 10: Logan 74.5, Lakeland Union 60, Osceola 52, Mauston 51, Aquinas 47, Somerset 45, Rice Lake 44, Elk Mound 42, West Salem 32, Prescott 29

Arcadia results

Fourths—Lyga, discus, 152-9.

Fifths—1600 relay (Fernando, Teske, N. Badillo, Bremer), 3:28.87; Teske, high jump, 5-10.

Sixths—800 relay (Rotering, Bremer, Fernando, Teske), 1:32.04.

Eighths—3200 relay (Nelson, Aguilar, Lockington, N. Badillo), 8:40.35.

11ths—Lyga, high jump, 5-8.

G-E-T results

Eighths—Jimenez, 300 hurdles, 43.93.

Ninths—400 relay (Mattison, B. Seiling, K. Seiling, Knapmiller), 44.43; Repaal, shot put, 45-10.75; Repaal, discus, 133-9.

10ths—K. Seiling, triple jump, 38-9.5.

11ths—1600 relay (Sorenson, Jimenez, Brone, Thoma), 3:36.4.

12ths—3200 relay (Sorenson, Caya, Burmeister, Ruiter), 8:59.7; B. Seiling, long jump, 18-10.25.

14ths—Brone, 400, 55.53.

Girls track, Division Two sectional, May 25 at Arcadia High School

Top 10: Osceola 103, Rice Lake 78, Amery 57, Mosinee 47, Northland Pines 44, Hayward 36, Barron 30, Arcadia 26, Prescott 24, Medford Area 21

Arcadia results

Firsts—Pehler, pole vault, 11-6; Pehler, discus, 128-11.

Sixths—Dahl, 400, 1:00.86; Pehler, high jump, 5-0.

10ths—Michalak, 3200, 12:08.49; Golden, high jump, 4-10.

12ths—1600 relay (Dahl, Boberg, Golden, Pehler), 4:21.85.

13ths—Lockington, 800, 2:35.57.

G-E-T results

Thirds—Stanislowski, triple jump, 33-9.75.

Sevenths—Rotering, 800, 2:24.69.

Eighths—Stendahl, long jump, 15-8.

10ths—400 relay (Stendahl, Stanislowski, Truax, Hauge), 52.43.

11ths—800 relay (Stendahl, Stanislowski, Seymour, Hauge), 1:51.22; 1600 relay (Boberg, Hauge, Rotering, Stendahl), 4:21.61.

14ths—Gold, 300 hurdles, 53.46.

15ths—Gold, 100 hurdles, 18.53.

Five county athletes win regional titles

Casidi Pehler claimed three regional titles last Monday, and four other Trempealeau County athletes earned first-place finishes at the regional meet at West Salem High School.

Pehler took first place in the girls’ high jump, pole vault and discus to lead Arcadia, which finished sixth as a team. 

Junior Adrianna Rotering won the open 800-meter run for G-E-T. Teammate Jordan Stanislowski won the triple jump for the Red Hawks, which finished fifth as a team.

Ted Teske (high jump) and Trey Lyga (discus) won their respective events for Arcadia on the boys’ side on a day the Raiders finished sixth and G-E-T took fifth.

Senior Brady Seiling had the Red Hawk boys’ lone second place finish in the long jump, and Alayna Stendahl also placed second on the girls’ side for G-E-T in the same event.

Lyga had a second-place finish in the high jump for Arcadia, which also had a runner-up performance from its 1600-relay team of Joel Fernando, Teske, Nestor Badillo and Landan Bremer.

The Raider girls had multiple second place finishers including freshman Jaylie Dahl (400) and seniors Tegan Michalak (3200) and Breah Golden (high jump).

Arcadia advanced 14 athletes to the sectional event by placing in the top four at Monday’s regional, and G-E-T qualified 19 different athletes.

La Crosse Logan won the boys’ regional team title, and West Salem claimed the girls’ top spot.

Boys track, Division Two Regional, May 22 at West Salem High School

Logan 169, West Salem 127.5, Aquinas 96, Mauston 92, G-E-T 81.5; Arcadia 57, Black River Falls 48, Adams-Friendship 10

G-E-T Sectional Qualifiers

Seconds—B. Seiling, long jump, 20-2.75.

Thirds—Brone, 400, 55.82; 1600 relay (Sorenson, Jimenez, Ruiter, Burmeister), .3:31.38; 3200 relay (Sorenson, Caya, Burmeister, Ruiter), 8:38.19; K. Seiling, triple jump, 39-11; Repaal, shot put, 45-8.

Fourths—Ruiter, 800, 2:03.91; Jimenez, 300 hurdles, 43.07; 400 relay (Mattison, B. Seiling, K. Seiling, Knapmiller), 44.87; Repaal, discus, 131-7.

AHS Sectional Qualifiers

Firsts—Teske, high jump, 5-10; Lyga, discus, 149-1.

Seconds—1600 relay (Fernando, Teske, N. Badillo, Bremer), 3:27.40; Lyga, high jump, 5-10.

Fourths—800 relay (Rotering, Bremer, Fernando, Teske), 1:33.73; 3200 relay (Nelson, Aguilar, Lockington, N. Badillo), 8:38.46.

Girls track, Division Two Regional, May 22 at West Salem High School

West Salem 157, Logan 132, Aquinas 88, Mauston 81, G-E-T 76, Arcadia 71, Adams-Friendship 47, Black River Falls 23

G-E-T Sectional Qualifiers

Firsts—Rotering, 800, 2:26.90; Stanislowski, triple jump, 33-4.25.

Seconds—Stendahl, long jump, 15-0.

Thirds—Gold, 300 hurdles, 52.60; 400 relay (Stendahl, Stanislowski, Truax, Hauge), 52.33; 800 relay (Stendahl, Stanislowski, Seymour, Hauge), 1:50.68; 1600 relay (Boberg, Hauge, Rotering, Stendahl), 4:19.08.

Fourths—Gold, 100 hurdles, 18.45.

AHS Sectional Qualifiers

Firsts—Pehler, high jump, 5-2; Pehler, pole vault, 12-0; Pehler, discus, 120-4.

Seconds—Dahl, 400, 1:02.01; Michalak, 3200, 13:05.44; Golden, high jump, 4-10.

Thirds—Lockington, 800, 2:33.91.