Congrats to the Panther boys’ golf team on winning the state championship! Jefferson High is probably the only school in Class B with no home golf course that practices on a football practice field, hitting shots into truck and car tires laid out on the field.
The Panthers were tied with Columbus after 36 holes at the Marias Valley Golf Course in Shelby. A winner-take-all playoff hole gave Jefferson the title, and yet another plaque: the Panther boys won State in 2022, and both the boys and girls teams took second in 2023. Head Coach Anna DeMars, a Townsend native who played golf at Rocky Mountain College, with assistant Anthony Connole, has built a dominant program.
Track & field
In what may have been a dry run for this weekend’s state championship, the Jefferson boys’ squad finished second at the Southern Divisional meet to Red Lodge — by just three points. The two schools have different strengths: the Rams excel at sprinting and the jumps, while the Panthers have dominated distance running and throwing. It’s going to be fun to see how the competition goes down in Laurel on Friday and Saturday.
At the divisional meet, the top six finishers in each event punched their tickets for State (in addition to those who had qualified earlier in the season). In the sprints, Mikael Richard finished 12th in the 100 at 12:24, and Aaron French took 3rd in the 400 at 52.10, with Jack Johnson 11th at 53.87.
Dominic Hurlbert won the 800 in 1:58.04, with French 2nd, 2:01.02, and McKenon Boyd 7th, 2:06.12. Luke Mest won the 1600 in 4:24.29, with French 2nd again, at 4:25.60, and Logan Hornung 10th, 4:42.50. Mest also took the 3200, winning in 9:51.80; Hurlbert was 2nd in 10:33.47, and Hornung 6th, 10:55.50.
The 4×100 relay team of Caleb Morris, Zeke Dove, Richard and Luke Mondlock took 9th in 46.22, and Johnson, Hurlbert, French and Boyd, McKenon finished 2nd in the 4×400, in 3:32.69. Parker Wagner placed 8th in the 300 hurdles in 44.16, with Luke Strizich 10th, 45.38, and Mondloch 14th, 47.41.
In the field events, Jefferson cleaned up in the shot put: Tavan McMaster won with a throw of 52′ 6.75″; Dalton Noble was 2nd, 52′ 3.75″, Luke Oxarart 3rd, 48′ 1;75″, Kaynon Martin 4th, 45′ 1.50″, and Dylan Stevens 5th, 44′ 1″. won the discus throw with 154’8″; McMaster was 2nd, 133′ 8″, Tavin Charlton 4th, 127′ 3″, and Brady Armstrong 10th, 117′ 1″.
Oxarart placed 4th in the javelin throw with 158’1″, while Jed Williams was 16th, 134′ 2″. And Cooper Mikesell finished 9th in the pole vault, at 10′ 6″.
Luke Strizich was 8th in the long jump, 19′ 4.25″, with Colton Thornock 18th, 16′ 1.50″. Hunter Stevens took 3rd in the triple Jump, 40′ 9.25″, with Strizich 11th, 37′ 6.50″. And Thornock placed 4th in the high jump at 5′ 10″; Stevens was 5th, 5′ 10″, Zachary Anderson 9th, 5′ 6″, and Tyler Frydenlun 12th, 5′ 6″.
The girls’ team finished 7th overall; Huntley Project won by a large margin. In the sprints, Arena Faler was 14th in the 100, in 13.81, and 8th in the 200, 27.84. Clare Ronayne was 2nd in the 200, 26.93, and 10th in the 400, 1:03.35.
Peyton Stearns finished 6th in the 800, 2:34.29, and 4th in the 1600, 5:51.22. And Nevayah Weninger was 15th in the 100m hurdles, 18.95. Maddy Averill, Ronayne, MacKenzie Layng and Faler took 2nd in the 4×100 relay, in 51.64.
In the field, Joslyn Buckley placed 3rd in the discus, 113′ 5″, with Katie Maus 15th, 75′ 3″, and Allie Muffick 17th, 74′ 8″. Muffick was also 12th in the shot put, at 29′ 6″, with Brianna Layng 17th, 27′ 2.25″. MacKenzie Layng took 6th in the javelin throw, with 108′, while Joslyn Buckley placed 7th, 107′ 5″, and Allie Muffick 9th, 103′ 3″.
Allison Zawacki finished 6th in the high jump, 4′ 10″, and 14th in the long jump, 14’ 6”. Averill was 12th in the long jump, 14’11”, and 9th in the triple jump, 32′ 9″.
Tennis
Five Panthers qualified for this week’s state meet. At the divisional tournament in Belgrade, Bailee Silvonen, Jefferson’s top player, took second in the girls’ singles competition. And Addy Leary and Clara Genger placed sixth in doubles.
And in Missoula, Izaak Luhrsen and Cole Christoferson also placed 6th in doubles, qualifying for this week’s action. State tennis will be played Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Fort Missoula and Playfair Park.
