RF boys fifth, girls seventh at Big Rivers Conference track meet

By Reagan Hoverman
Posted 5/25/23

Although the River Falls High School track and field team came up short of winning a league title, the Wildcats had a lot to celebrate at this year’s Big Rivers Conference championship meet in …

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RF boys fifth, girls seventh at Big Rivers Conference track meet

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Although the River Falls High School track and field team came up short of winning a league title, the Wildcats had a lot to celebrate at this year’s Big Rivers Conference championship meet in Rice Lake on Monday, May 15.

River Falls, which finished fifth in the boys’ standings and seventh on the girls’ side, had 24 athletes post personal record results at the conference championship meet, including seven of the Wildcats’ eight relay squads.

For Max Haskins, who coaches the Wildcats along with Kady Bauschelt, the 2023 Big Rivers Conference championship meet was a massively successful day as evidenced by more than two dozen either career-best or season-best times.

“I thought our kids ran really well, both boys and girls,” Haskins said. “We had a ton of PRs and I was impressed with what our kids were able to do. I think some of the best individual performances we had this season were at (the conference championship).”

River Falls senior Kayleigh Volkman was the Wildcats’ lone individual Big Rivers Conference champion. Volkman pole vaulted 10 feet, 3 inches, which set a new PR by nine inches. Volkman bested second place by six inches and was the only competitor who cleared 10 feet.

Volkman’s journey to victory came full circle on Monday night. Just one season earlier, she won the JV conference title in the pole vault, also in Rice Lake. Volkman competed in tournaments throughout the offseason and continued honing her craft before having an excellent senior year.

“She had a PR by almost a foot, which was amazing,” Haskins said. “For her to go from JV conference champ to varsity conference champ, she made some huge strides. She did open meets in the winter and was committed to improving – it was a product of hard work. It was cool to see her accomplish that and set an example for the younger kids in our program.”

River Falls’ other Big Rivers Conference champion was the girls’ 4x200-meter relay, which included seniors Abi Banitt, Brooklyn Silloway, Rebecca Randleman and junior Lilly Jensen.

Their season-best time of 1:46.20 edged out Eau Claire Memorial and Chippewa Falls for the 4x200 title. The same squad also ran a season-best 51.22 in the 4x100-meter relay, which earned runner-up honors behind Rice Lake.

Randleman, who also set a PR and finished third in the 100-meter dash, is one of the most experienced athletes on the team and is a leader among the girls. Senior Jacob Gilbertson, who is a short-distance specialist, has brought similar leadership to the boys’ side of the roster.

Gilbertson ran a season-best 11.09 in the 100-meter dash before he set a PR of 22.33 in the 200-meter, both of which secured runner-up finishes. Gilbertson joined senior Trey Hartung, sophomore Charlier Loesch and freshman Joseph Tarasewicz for a season-best runner-up finish in the 4x100 meter relay later that night.

“It was fun with Jacob (Gilbertson) and Becca (Randleman) because they’ve been competing at the conference meet for a couple of years now,” Haskins said. “They’re two veteran runners who did what they had to do to put us in the best position possible, and they both had pretty big PRs.”

In addition to her success in the 4x100 and 4x200-meter relays, junior Lilly Jensen also finished third in the 800-meter run with a season-best time of 2:29.98. Sophomore Quin Andrews finished second in the boys’ 800-meter run and third in the 1,600.

While River Falls posted a lot of season and career-best times on Monday evening, the Wildcats were without senior Jordan Karras, who missed the meet with a lingering injury. Karras had been a top performer this year in the sprints and short-distance events.

With Karras in the lineup, River Falls had been in the mix among top teams in the Big Rivers Conference. Coach Haskins spoke about how not having Karras impacted the Wildcats’ results in Rice Lake.

“We knew on the boys’ side that it was going to be really close,” Haskins said. “Jordan missed the meet due to injury and he would have scored 15 or 20 points in three individual events, which would have put us up there. It’s a what-if, but it was tough to miss him.”

After completing the conference championship on Monday evening, River Falls turned its attention to its next meet, the WIAA Division 1 Regional, which will be at Hudson High School on Monday, May 22.

The preparation for the postseason is a complete mentality shift for the Wildcats. Instead of focusing on team points, the coaching staff will prioritize each athlete and capitalize on their best chance to qualify for sectionals and state.

“Conference is about points, but regionals is about getting kids to the state meet, which is the end goal,” Haskins said. “We’re focused on the pathway to state, and we’re starting to piece that puzzle together a bit.”

River Falls will compete at the Division 1 Regional at Hudson High School on Monday, May 22. The events are slated to begin at 3:30 p.m.

River Falls Track and Field, Big Rivers Conference Track Meet