Boys, girls could contend come May

The route to a state track title in Wyoming has long run through Park County. Don’t expect that to change in 2012 as the Powell Panthers are loaded and looking to return to the podium come May.

After scoring a state title on the boys’ side and a state runner-up finish last season, head coach Scott Smith’s teams now face the task of putting the pieces together for another mid-May drama. For fans of the Powell track and field, there will be no shortage of available pieces to choose from.

A total of 67 students have reported for the start of the track season. That number is split as evenly as possible between the two teams with 34 boys and 33 girls.

On the boys’ side, the Panthers have captured four of the last six state championships in 3A. The team returns good depth across the board, which could enable the Panthers to grab points in every event this season.

Senior Josh Cragoe has spent the last two seasons chasing former teammate and current University of Wyoming Cowboy Kyle Sullivan down the track. Now, the Panthers’ senior should have the opportunity to shine in the 110-meter hurdles, where he was state runner-up a year ago. Cragoe was also fourth in the 400-meter finals last season, despite picking up the event just weeks before the state meet.

Not to be outdone, younger brother Hayden Cragoe, a sophomore, comes back in the field events after medaling in both the pole vault and triple jumps at state last season.

On the short track, Marco Borja should be among the area favorites in the 100 meters. Justin Lynn was a medalist a season ago in the 800 while Zander Andreasen scored points in Casper in the 3200 a year ago.

Add to that fact that the Panthers return three members of their 2011 state champion 4x100 relay, two members from the state champion 4x400 relay that narrowly missed all-class honors and three members from the state runner-up 4x800 relay and there aren’t many track events that won’t have orange and black leading the pack.

But to truly see the Panthers’ strength this season, it might be necessary to get out of the stands and take a short stroll over to the throwing pits. Sophomore Garrett Lynch and junior Vince Sleep could put on a show for Panther fans in both the shot put and the discus events on a routine basis.

The pair are two of the top three performers in 3A returning from last year’s state meet. Lynch, who will be the highest returning finisher from last year’s 3A discus finals, placed fifth a season ago in the event and added a seventh-place showing in the shot put. Sleep was sixth in the shot and seventh in the final distance standings.

In addition to the returning medal winners, Smith notes the Panthers have some youth poised and ready to funnel up through the ranks.

“We have some young kids returning that have really developed over the last year and who have looked very good in practice so far,” said Smith. “We also have a good freshman class that is working hard and improving every day. There are a few of them that look like they could develop into point scorers at regionals and state this year.”

Overall, the Panthers’ head coach looks for the state to be more balanced than a season ago when Douglas and Powell pulled away from the rest of the 3A field.

“The vast majority of the point scorers at state last spring have graduated,” Smith said of the boys’ field. “The race is really open.”

The Panthers’ head coach expects his biggest regional challenge to come from cross-county rival Cody and 3A newcomer Star Valley. Lander, long a regional nemesis of Panther track, has been shifted to the 3A East this season and, along with Douglas, should produce some of the toughest challenges to Powell’s dominance from that half of the state.

While the Panther boys are a product of balance throughout all the track and field events, the Panther girls will utilize a somewhat different approach, particularly in the early stages of the season. The Panthers return a major point scorer in senior Desiree Murray, state runner-up in the 400 and 300-meter hurdles last season and third in the 100-meter hurdles in Casper.

The team will also be stacked in the distance events. Tess Mitchell placed in the top six of the 1600 and 3200 races last year. Tally Wells also scaled the medal podium in both of those races, including a third-place finish at 3200 meters. Sierra Morrow was a medalist at 1600 meters. Three of the four members from the state champion 4x800 relay team, which shattered a school record last spring, will also be back.

On top of that, Smith can grin as he adds Bailey Sanders, who made an instant splash last fall with the Panthers’ cross country team, and Brooke Nisley, a state medalist in 2010 who missed all of last year due to injury.

“We don’t have the overall balance that the boys team has,” Smith said of the girls’ program. “What we have are some pockets of depth and talent, similar to last year’s state runner-up team.”

Another of those pocket areas will be in the throws. Sophomore Shawnea Harrington was third in last year’s shot put competition. Classmate Tori Sleep turned in impressive regional distances in both the shot and discus before finishing just outside the top eight a season ago.

One piece to the puzzle which Smith and the Panther girls will have to do without this season is senior Kendra Ostrom. A state-meet fixture for the Panthers in the jumps since her freshman season, Ostrom underwent knee surgery and won’t be available to the Panthers’ track team this spring, leaving a void in both the jumps and sprints.

“We are going to miss Kendra. We have some young ltalent in the sprints and jumps that could develop to give us the depth we need to make a run at Cody,” said Smith.

The Fillies, shooting for their fifth consecutive girls’ track title, are once again the team to beat.

“Cody is really loaded on the girls’ side this year,” Smith notes.

The Panthers could also see a challenge from Star Valley, which returns a number of state qualifiers from last year’s 4A meet.

Despite the rosy outlooks, it is important for Panther fans to note that both the boys’ and girls’ teams are fairly young this season. Both the boys’ and the girls’ teams feature just two seniors apiece.

Focusing on this weekend’s debut meet in Cody, the Panthers, like the soccer teams last week, will be missing a few key players due to other activities.

“We will not be anywhere near full strength for this meet,” Smith notes. “It will be a great opportunity for our youngsters to gain valuable experience and for our veterans to show their stuff.”

With a weather forecast promising high temperatures that could tickle the 70-degree mark, Smith notes conditions for the 2012 season-opener could rival the best conditions experienced by Panther track last season.

“We had some freshmen asking why we were having practice on Monday,” Smith said, referring to the sudden appearance of 5 inches of snow in town. “We told them it was because that was exactly what we had for the state meet last year.”

Fans of Panther track will have two opportunities to watch the team compete at home this season. Powell hosts its regular invitational meet on April 14. The Panthers also serve as the 3A West regional meet host. That meet runs May 11-12.

Anyone interested in working or assisting with either of those meets is asked to contact Powell High School activities director Tim Wormald at 764-6181.

Track schedule 2012