It was a beautiful day in Pelican Rapids as the Ottertail Central Bulldogs took to the track and field with tickets to state on the line and left with six athletes earning their way to the MSHSL Class A State Meet.

Kinley Bormann impressed with not one, but two state-individual qualifying performances, capturing the section title in the long jump with a leap of 17’ 1” and again in the triple jump, where she flew 35’ 10 1/2”. The sophomore also finished fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.55 and anchored the state-bound 4×200-meter relay.

Myiesha Antoni cleared 5’ in the high jump, hitting the state standard and earning her second trip to state. She also ran a strong leg on the 4×200-meter relay.

Gabe Lindstrom continued his steady rise in the pole vault, clearing 12’ 8” to earn third place and hit the qualifying mark for state. This mark is a new school record and Lindstrom becomes the first ever pole vaulter to qualify for the state meet for OTC. He also contributed on two scoring relays.

The girls 4×200-meter relay squad—Annabelle Evavold, Belle Bormann, Myiesha Antoni, and Kinley Bormann—blazed a season-best 1:47.44 to take second place and punch their ticket to state.

Peter Newark ran a smart race in the 3200-meter, seizing the section title in 10:12.27, and will represent OTC at state in the distance ranks.

Aidan Heggem, a senior leader, placed fifth in the triple jump with a huge 40’ 10 3/4” effort. He also competed in the 400-meter with a time of 54.02, contributed to the 4x200m and 4x400m relays to cap off his final section meet. 

Max Mekalson closed out his senior season strong with a sixth place finish in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 17.68, while Marcus Roisum gained valuable experience as an eighth grader.

Senior Elijah Fronning doubled in the 800-meter with a time of 2:14.12 and 1600-meter with a time of 5:00.14 PR, placing fifth in the mile and anchoring the 4x400m relay.

William Schwartz earned fifth place in shot put with a throw of 44’ 2 1/2” and 14th in discus with a throw of 109’ 9”.

“Watching the team compete was incredible, Kinley had an impressive day, Peter dominated his race, and Gabe set a new school record. But beyond the state qualifiers, we saw PRs, and so many young athletes stepping up at one of the biggest meets of the year,” said head coach Brady Spleicher. 

The state meet will be on June 10-11 at St. Michael-Albertville High School.

Girls Results

100m Dash – Annabelle Evavold, 8th (13.36) 200m Dash – Kinley Bormann, 4th (26.55); Belle Bormann, 8th (27.17); Brenna Saurer, 16th (28.14) 100m Hurdles – Kylie Akerman, 16th (20.62) 300m Hurdles – Kylie Akerman, 12th (53.62) 1600m Run – Brielle Malone, 10th (5:54.23) 4x100m Relay – Clara Mark, Brenna Saurer, Jalena Loder, Annabelle Evavold, 5th (52.23) 4x200m Relay – Annabelle Evavold, Belle Bormann, Myiesha Antoni, Kinley Bormann, 2nd (1:47.44) – State Qualifier High Jump – Myiesha Antoni, 6th (5-00.00) – State Qualifier Pole Vault – Kayetana Lopez Moen, 9th (7-08.00) Long Jump – Kinley Bormann, 1st (17-01.00) – State Qualifier; Belle Bormann, 8th (15-06.25) Triple Jump – Kinley Bormann, 1st (35-10.50) – State Qualifier; Aubrey Borgos, 11th (31-05.50)

Boys Results

400m Dash – Aidan Heggem, 9th (54.02) 110m Hurdles – Max Mekalson, 6th (17.68); Marcus Roisum, 13th (19.41) 800m Run – Elijah Fronning, 12th (2:14.12) 1600m Run – Elijah Fronning, 5th (5:00.14) 3200m Run – Peter Newark, 1st (10:12.27) – State Qualifier; Phoenix Allison, 15th (11:53.73) 4x200m Relay – Brock Resch, Mason Hoyt, Aidan Heggem, Gabe Lindstrom, 5th (1:36.94) 4x400m Relay – Brock Resch, Elijah Fronning, Gabe Lindstrom, Aidan Heggem, 7th (3:48.64) High Jump – Braxtyn Cameron, 10th (5-06.00) Pole Vault – Gabe Lindstrom, 3rd (12-08.00) – State Qualifier; Quinn Condiff, 11th (10-08.00) Discus – William Schwartz, 14th (109-09) Shot Put – William Schwartz, 4th (44-02.50); Billy Durbin, 9th (42-06.00) Triple Jump – Aidan Heggem, 5th (40-10.75); Brock Resch, 13th (35-07.00)