By Rich Winter

605 Sports

A year ago the Sioux Falls Christian boys dominated Class A track winning a third consecutive team title and beating their closest competition by over 100 points.

The chargers graduated two absolute horses from the lineup in Isaac Davelaar (mid-distance) and Josiah Adams (sprints/hurdles) that have been major cogs in each of the last three state titles. 

Class A boys: 

Sprints (100 - 400)

West Central’s Layton Johnson finished second in the 100-meter dash at the state track meet (:10.99). Keep an eye out for Deuel’s Oliver Fieber who was fourth (11.04) at state as a freshman. Johnson is the top returner in the 200 meter dash and his teammate Jade Jarding finished third in the 400-meter dash (:49.53). Hot Springs senior Braden Peterson had a brilliant start to his 2023 season but an injury kept what could be the top Class A sprinter this season out for most of the 2023 season. 

800-meter run:

The Class A boys 800-meter run turned out to be one of the feature events at the 2023 state track meet. Beresford’s Andrew Atwood was third at the state meet (1:55.85). Tri-State’s Kaleb Foltz, Miller’s Alex Schumacher, Hot Springs’ Matt Close and Custer’s Drew Lehman all return, having run sub 1:59 at the 2023 state track meet. 

Distance (1,600 - 3,200)

With Davelaar (Dordt) and Belle Fourche’s Sawyer Clarkson (Gonzaga) out of the picture new state champions will be crowned in both events. 

Belle Fouche’s Lane Krautschun finished third in the 1,600 meter run (4:20.89). Athletes like Dakota Valley’s Joe Cross, Tri-State’s Foltz and Hill City runners Luke Rupert and Leighton Aves all return for what should be a loaded race. 

Cross was second in the 3,200 meter run (9:26.89). Class A state cross country champion Luke Rupert, along with Krautschun and Dakota Valley’s Jack Brown should all be in the mix.

Hill City runners Luke Rupert and Leighton Aves lead a strong contingent of Ranger runners in the distance events - Rodney Haas - 605 Sports

Hurdles

A trio of juniors, Sioux Valley’s Donovan Rose, Tea’s Matthew Rogers and West Central’s Liam Schmeichel all made the 110-meter hurdles podium as sophomores. Mobridge/Pollock’s Simon Fried finished second in the 300-meter hurdles (40.95) and he will be looking to hold off Wagner’s Jhett Breen and Elkton’s Blake DeVries. 

Mobridge-Pollock's Simon Fried was second in the 300-meter hurdles at the 2023 state track meet - Ryan Deal - 605 Sports

Relays:

Platte-Geddes won the 400-meter relay a year ago to prevent Sioux Falls Christian from sweeping the boys relays. The Chargers won’t be as dominant in the relays as 2023 but with the depth of their track team they will likely score big points in every relay. 

Look for West Central and Ethan/Parkston to make some noise in the sprint relays all the way up through the 1,600 meter relay. 

Keep an eye on the Milbank quartet of James Batchelor, Bryan Meyer, Garrett Mertensn and Payton Brown in the 3,200 meter relay. Milbank was second a year ago (8:04.75) and returned everyone. Lennox and Hill City both ran under 8:15 at the state meet and returned all four runners in the long relay.

Field events

High Jump: Sanborn Central/Woonsocket’s Jeff Boschee cleared 6-7.25 to win the Class A state title in 2023. Lennox jumpers Tegan Musser and Tate Gerdes, along with Bennett County freshman Rush O’neil will also contend.

Triple Jump: McCook Central/Montrose’s Paul Kaffer finished third a year ago (42-6.5)

Long Jump: Ethan/Parkston junior James Deckert finished third a year ago (20-9.75).

Pole Vault: Rapid City Christian’s Chase Maher cleared 15-7 to win in 2023. Madison’s Aaron Hawkes and Custer’s Robbie Emery will make the Class A pole vault extremely competitive. 

Shot Put: Sioux Falls Christian’s Paul Hoekman finished second a year ago (54-7.5)

Discus: Chamberlain’s Canyon Burkard (155-5) finished second a year ago. Should be a very competitive event with Hamlin’s Christhan Rodreguez, Hoekmab and Hanson’s Brock Tuttle all capable of winning at the state meet.