Everybody knew the stakes at the start. There was no way around it—one group of Panthers was destined to be happy and another set of Panther boys was going to be a bit disappointed Saturday at the end of the State 1A 4x400-meter relay.
The Carey High School boys would win, or the Coeur d'Alene Charter Academy boys would win. They had the best qualifying times by far. They were neck and neck in the team totals. Whichever team won, it would be the first state boys' track title in school history.
And the final event of the United Dairymen of Idaho's 91st Idaho High School Track and Field Championships didn't disappoint. It had the most thrilling finish possible Saturday at Ed Jacoby Track in Boise's Bronco Stadium.
The Carey Panthers sent out their best athlete, senior D.J. Simpson, on the anchor leg of the 4x400m. Meanwhile, the Coeur d'Alene Panthers sent out the best 1A sprinter in the state, senior Mark Weller. And both boys left it all on the track.
Weller had already successfully defended his state championships in the 200-meter dash and 400m dash and had anchored CDA's winning 4x200m relay to first place over Oakley.
On the final lap around the track, Weller started out 15 meters behind Simpson, thanks to an outstanding third leg by Carey sophomore Gonzalo Zarate that had pulled Carey from fourth place into first place entering the final lap.
But there was no stopping Weller. He made his move with 200 meters to go and out-legged Simpson by 1.22 seconds at the finish line to win the first-ever boys' state track championship for the Coeur d'Alene public college preparatory school.
Coeur d'Alene Charter finished with 61 points (31 sprints, 25 relays, 3 hurdles, 2 distances) and Carey earned its second State 1A runner-up finish in five years with 57 (29 distances, 16 relays, 6 field, 5 hurdles, 1 sprints). Third-place Deary (54) was lurking in case both Panthers disqualified.
"Weller had a tremendous run on the anchor leg," said Carey coach Lee Cook. "D.J. couldn't hold him off. If the result in the 4x4 was reversed, both teams would have ended with 59 points and would have shared the championship."
Cook expressed the sentiment of the coaching staff that included Lane Kirkland and Liz Young when he said it was a wonderful weekend of track and field for the Panthers. Besides the state runner-up trophy won by the Carey boys, the Carey girls earned their first individual gold in six years.
Sophomore Amy Ellsworth won the 1600-meter run in a photo finish over Shoshone sophomore Taylor Astle. Ellsworth was timed in 5:40.60 and State 1A 3200m queen Astle in 5:40.76. It was Carey's first individual gold since Ginger Bingham won the 100m high hurdles back in 2002 in Boise.
Coach Kirkland said, "Amy set a goal this year to be the state champion in the mile. She had a great finish down the 100-meter homestretch and was three yards behind Taylor with 35 meters to go, when she realized that she could pass her."
Ellsworth, competing in her first state track meet, ended up with 20 of Carey's 24 points. Besides her 10-point victory, she was third for six points in the 800m (2:27.25), sixth in the 400m dash (1:01.70) and eighth in the triple jump (32-0.5).
Another outstanding achievement, Kirkland said, was sophomore Jessica Parke's fourth in high jump at 4-10.
For the Carey boys, senior Tyler Parke did "exceptionally well," coach Cook said, by placing third in the 1A high jump in 6-2 and "missing 6-4 by a whisker." The winning jump was 6-4 by Cascade senior Anthony Beskoon, who finished with four golds—winning both hurdle events in state-record times and also the triple jump.
Carey's distance runners set the stage for a memorable spring season for the Panthers—and state was no exception. Cook said, "Really the boys deserved a trophy because they've been consistent all year long. Our strengths have been distances and relays and that kind of followed suit at state."
The goal of senior Blake Whitby was to win the State 1A 3200m run—and he nearly did that Friday. Nipping Whitby (10:00.63) at the finish was Deary senior Jonathan Dalton (10:00.61), who won all three distance events, 800m, 1600m and 3200m. The pair was 16 seconds ahead of the others.
"Blake really trained hard and I thought he might have won the 3200m," said Cook. "In fact, Dalton himself thought Blake won. He said to Blake at the finish, I think you got me."
Carey 800m runners Whitby and senior Kade Peterson got trapped in a pack and couldn't get out, Cook said, so the pair settled for 10th place and 11th place of 15 runners in the 800m. Picking up a few points there might have been critical, but in general Cook said, "our distance runners came through."
Carey's two second places were Whitby's 3200m silver and the silver won by the 4x4 relay of Scott Ellsworth, Jacy Baird, Zarate and Simpson, just behind CDA's foursome of Cameron Hjeltness, Wesley Billingslea, Tom Raybell and Weller.
Third places for Carey—Tyler Parke high jump (6-2); D.J. Simpson 800m (2:03.43); and Whitby 1600m (4:44.44).
Fourth places—D.J. Simpson 300m intermediate hurdles (41.94).
Fifth places—Kade Peterson 1600m (4:52.97) and 3200m (10:26.31); 4x100 relay (46.11) and 4x200m relay (1:35.89).
Eighth places—Scott Ellsworth 400m (54.64) and Dillon Simpson 3200m (10:41.88).
Coeur d'Alene Charter also won its first-ever girls' team title 93-64 over Lapwai.
Check next week's Local Life for more state track photos.
Camas County Mushers
Three Musher boys, seniors Ben McLam and J.D. Jewett and sophomore Jeff Ellingson, earned 13 points to place Camas County 17th of 32 schools.
McLam was sixth in the 300m intermediate hurdles (42.04) and Jewett, the seventh seed, moved up to fifth place in the shotput at 44-4. Ellingson settled for third place in the discus at 144-7, behind seniors from Council and Cambridge.
The Musher girls had 18 points for 16th place. Junior Lindsey Peterson was sixth in the 100m dash (13.37) and seventh in the 200m (27.34). Sophomore distance runner Megan Stampke had a good weekend with a sixth place at 1600m (5:54.38) and fifth place in the 3200m (12:51.63).
Camas added six points in the relays with a fourth place in the 4x100m (53.73) and eighth place in the medley (2:06.09).
Carey sophomore Amy Ellsworth (left) just nips Shoshone sophomore Taylor Astle at the finish line of Saturday’s State 1A girls’ 1600-meter final at Boise’s Bronco Stadium. It was the first individual gold for a Panther girl in six years at state.
