State AA track: Great Falls’ Harrington takes third in 3200
BUTTE – The Electric City’s top distance runner continues to improve.
Great Falls High’s Ryan Harrington ran a career-best time in the 3200 meters Friday as the Class AA-B State Track Meet kicked off at Bulldog Memorial Stadium. The junior finished third in the event for the second year in a row, trailing defending champion Weston Brown and Nathan Neil, respectively, both of Bozeman.
Harrington was seeded fourth in the two-mile race heading into Friday but moved ahead of No. 3 Finneas Colescott of Missoula Hellgate, finishing with a time of 9:23.80. Harrington was out in front for the first six laps of the race before Brown and Neil pulled ahead for the final two.
“I felt like I kind of got pushed to lead the whole first part of the race,” Harrington said. “It was kind of disappointing to me. I felt alright during the race. It wasn’t the outcome that I wanted but I still think it was a good race overall.”
Harrington, who is seeded third in Saturday’s 1600 meters behind Brown and Neil, said he’s looking forward to another competitive race in the mile.
“I’m really excited for (Saturday),” Harrington said. “You combine some of those guys from the two-mile and the 800 and you get this really fast mix of guys with different specialties and different strategies. I’m pretty confident going into (Friday).”
Brown, a Princeton commit, credited Bozeman distance coach Casey Jermyn for his race strategy.
“The plan, though, Casey really set me and Nathan up to have a great race, so, I’m very thankful to have him as a coach,” Brown said. “I really try to keep the pressure (of repeating) out of it. I think that I just try to do my best and the results will come. It was good to get that, but definitely looking towards the mile and hopefully getting faster.”
C.M. Russell High’s Shelby Tadlock earned an All-State distinction Friday as well, taking fourth in the AA girls’ shot put. The junior hurled a personal-best throw of 38 feet, 11.5 inches, improving on her prior best by over a foot-and-a-half.
The Rustler boys 4x100 team finished fifth in the relay to kick off the day, with Chase Morgan, River Wasson, A.J. LaFurge and Jackson Tarver contributing.
Great Falls High junior Scott Klinker earned a pair of All-State marks on Friday, finishing fifth (21 feet, 2 inches) in the long jump and tied for sixth in the high jump (6 feet). Klinker is seeded first in Saturday’s triple jump, achieving the best jump this spring to date in all classes last weekend at the Eastern AA divisional at 46 feet, 9 inches.
Kyesha Farmer was also All-State for the Bison girls, taking sixth in the long jump with a personal-best mark of 17 feet, 2.75 inches. The junior was third last week at the divisional in Billings in the triple jump and is ranked eighth in the AA overall heading into Saturday.
Great Falls High’s Reed Harris was first in the 100-meter dash prelims Friday with at 10.9 seconds and was second in the 200 prelims to Billings Senior’s Tanner Macy (22.04) at 22.25. Harris owns the top time in Class AA this season in the 100 with a 10.8 at divisionals and is seeded third in the 200.
LaFurge of the CMR boys was third in the 110 hurdle prelims Friday at 15.27. The senior is seeded third overall in the event Saturday, and is also sixth heading into the 300 hurdles.
Defending state champion Anthony Okes of the Rustlers will also be competing for another state title in the discus Saturday and is currently seeded fourth.
Saturday’s schedule of events at Bulldog Memorial Stadium can be found here, and results can be tracked here on athletic.net.
File photo was provided courtesy of Matt Ehnes of Jared's Detours.