A competitive weekend at the 3A State Track and Field Championships saw the Powell Panther boys finish in third, paced by sophomore Caden Nelson who broke a 32-year-old school record in the process.

Nelson’s record came in the long jump, as he claimed the sole victory for Powell High School on the weekend with a leap of 22 feet, 9 1/2 inches.

He narrowly edged out the previous record that was set by Bo Warner in 1992, who previously held the record at 22-9.

Nelson also had a strong weekend in the sprints, finishing second in the 200 meters with a 22.18, while also finishing third in the 100 meters in 11.37.

“Caden had a fantastic weekend and I really look forward to seeing him continue to develop over the next couple of years,” coach Scott Smith said. “State champion, All-State in two events and a school record against the talent out there this year is an incredible accomplishment for anyone, especially a sophomore.”

Throughout the weekend the Panthers had also got strong contributions from their senior class, with key points coming in the hurdles and field events.

In the field events, Isaiah Woyak placed second in the high jump clearing 6-4 and also took third in the triple jump with a leap of 43 feet. Adam Williams tied for second in the pole vault clearing 13-3, Jeremy Harms was just behind clearing 13 feet to place fourth. Seston Shoopman placed fifth in shot put with a throw of 47-4 1/2.

In the hurdles, Stuart Shoopman placed fifth in the 110 meter hurdles (15.92) and sixth in the 300 meter hurdles (42.38).

“Our seniors had a great meet with big personal records and scored a lot of points for us in the hurdles and field events,” Smith said. “We are really going to miss them, they are all great kids.”

Other placers for the Panthers included Nathan Preator placing seventh in the 110 meters hurdles (16.65) and eighth in the 300 meter hurdles (44.01); Liam Taylor placing eighth in the 1600 meters (4:44.08) and Gabe Weimer placing eighth in the shot put with a throw of 45-5.

Powell had two relay teams each place fourth, the 4x100 team of Stuart Shoopman, Preator, Breckyn Kobbe and Nelson (45.49) and the 1600 sprint medley relay team of Stuart Shoopman, Marshall Lewis, Evan Whitlock and Taylor (3:46.11) but it was the 4x400 team that placed eighth that caught the eye of Smith.

“The boys’ team did a nice job of working through some tough stretches,” Smith said. “Jeremy Harms stepping up to fill in for an injured runner in the boys 4x400 at the end of the meet and then running very well was a great example of the team concept in an individual sport.”

Powell ended the weekend with 77 points, six ahead of fourth place Buffalo and 10.5 behind second place Lovell. Douglas ended up running away with the team title with 135.5 points to win its first state title since 2015.

The Panthers will lose several key point getters from this year’s team, but Smith feels the team is well positioned to compete next year with a strong incoming freshman class adding to an already strong young core.

“The boys have a good nucleus returning in all areas and I think they are set up well to compete at a high level next season,” Smith said.

STATE TRACK AND FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS

p denotes preliminary round mark

Team scores — 1. Douglas 135.5, 2. Lovell 87.5, 3. Powell 77, 4. Buffalo 71, 5. Worland 64.5, 6. Mountain View 63, 7. Lander 60, 8. Thermopolis 37, 9. Torrington 34, 10. Wheatland 27.5, 11. Newcastle 16, 12. Lyman 14, 13. Glenrock 8, 14. Rawlins 6, 15. Pinedale 1

100 meters — 3. Caden Nelson 11.37

200 meters — 2. Caden Nelson 22.18

400 meters — 12. Evan Whitlock 55.5p

800 meters — 11. Liam Taylor 2:05.75

1600 meters — 8. Liam Taylor 4:44.08

3200 meters — 13. Korbyn Warren 10:55.65

110 meter hurdles — 5. Stuart Shoopman 15.92, 7. Nathan Preator 16.65

300 meter hurdles — 6. Stuart Shoopman 42.38, 8. Nathan Preator 44.01

4x100 relay — 4. Stuart Shoopman, Nathan Preator, Breckyn Kobbe and Caden Nelson 45.49

4x400 relay — 8. Jeremy Harms, Landon Hyde, Liam Taylor and Evan Whitlock 3:43.95

1600 sprint medley relay — 4. Stuart Shoopman, Marshall Lewis, Evan Whitlock and Liam Taylor 3:46.11

High jump — 2. Isaiah Woyak 6-4

Pole vault — T2. Adam Williams 12-3, 4. Jeremy Harms 13-0

Long jump — 1. Caden Nelson 22-9 1/2, 14. Marshall Lewis 19-0 1/2

Triple jump — 3. Isaiah Woyak 43-0

Shot put — 5. Seston Shoopman 47-4 1/2, 8. Gabe Weimer 45-5, 11. Jonathan Harms 41-11

Discus — 12. Jonathan Harms 127-10