LOCKWOOD, Mont. – Beau Ackerman unleashed the second-longest javelin throw in Great Northwest Athletic Conference history on Thursday afternoon at Lockwood High School, breaking his own Montana State University Billings school record to highlight the final home track meet of the 2021 season.
 
Ackerman initially broke his own record on his fourth attempt at just over 70 meters, before bettering the mark with a toss of 71 meters/232-11 feet in his final attempt of the day. "It feels so good to be back, especially after three years," Ackerman said in his first season competing since 2018. "It means everything to me, and I want to keep it going through the season and keep improving. I feel like I wouldn't want to spend the last five years anywhere else."
 
Ackerman initially broke the school record with a throw of 226-10 feet, which was the fourth-longest mark in GNAC history, during his junior season in the spring of 2018. With his throw on Thursday Ackerman surpassed two more GNAC athletes and trails only the conference record of 255-10 feet set by Cody Parker of Alaska Anchorage during the 2013 season. "I think that will move Beau back to Number 2 in D2," said Woehl. "That was a really good throw, and hopefully he will get to compete at the Drake Relays again where he was champion in 2018."
 
Fellow senior Isaiah Girard reacted emphatically after clearing a height of 6-8.75 feet in the high jump, which was good enough for an NCAA provisional qualifying mark for the national meet. Girard's leap was just one foot shy of his MSUB school record of 6-9.75 feet, which he set during the 2019 season. Girard finished the day with three attempts at 6-10.25 and narrowly missed surpassing his own school record. "I am gaining confidence every week," Girard said. "It was quite a moment, and I never thought I'd be back where I am after my injury. I was really close on that second attempt at 2.09 and I wish I could have that one back. But there are a lot of meets left, and specifically conference. The higher the competition level, the higher I typically compete."
 
Girard also placed third in the long jump at 22-0.75 feet, while Lucas Harper took fifth at 19-9.75 feet. "Coming back from ankle surgery last year we didn't really know what to expect, but he is back to his old self," Woehl commented on Girard. "He had some really good cracks at 2.09, and he is definitely back to 100 percent."
 
Seven graduating seniors from the Yellowjacket program this spring and seven more who graduated last spring were all honored during a mid-meet ceremony. Along with Ackerman and Girard, Mason Schram, Rahkei Eyer, Brenna Beckett, Anne Lory Chevalier, and Taylor Stringari were recognized as the graduating class of 2021. With their spring season being canceled in 2020, the previous year's cast of seniors were recognized as well with Nikki Aiken, Kyle McLaughlin, Ronald Venema, Marcus Lindquist, Cristina Chapi, Miranda Livingston, and Rachel Hiner each being honored on Thursday.
 
"Those two classes contributed a ton to our program, and definitely raised the bar when it came to what our expectations are," Woehl commented on the seniors from 2020 and 2021. "They took us to new heights, and we have younger, underclassmen now who are ready to take over and continue to push the boundaries and continue to improve."
 
Beckett and freshman Kendall Lynn each posted a top-10 mark in the long jump, with Beckett winning the event at 16-9.75 feet which ranks sixth in MSUB history. Lynn was right on her heels at 16-9.25 feet, checking in at seventh in program history. The duo flipped the script in the triple jump, with Lynn winning at 35-6.75 feet and Beckett taking second at 34-11.75 feet.
 
"It has been a really great five years, and I'm really thankful for the time I have spent with my teammates and my coaches," said Beckett, who holds the school indoor records in both the long jump and triple jump. "It's really exciting to get to mentor the younger athletes and look forward to their futures. The last five years I have grown an incredible amount, and MSUB and athletics have been great. It has taught me a lot."
 
The Yellowjacket men swept the top three spots in the triple jump, with Bryce Olson taking first at 43-5.75 feet. Payden Lynn was close behind at 42-8 feet, and Garrett McMillen took third at 42-7.5 feet. Schram took second in the 200 meters with a time of 23.51 seconds, and he and Eyer teamed up with Olson and Lynn to take second in the 4x100-meter relay with a time of 42.85 seconds.
 
Nick Redgrave hit a personal best in the 800 meters, running a time of 2:02.78 minutes to take fourth place. Redgrave then helped lead the men's 4x400-meter relay team to a second-place finish, as he was joined by Carson Jessop, Olson, and McMillen to run a time of 3:31.81 minutes.
 
Kailee Stoppel continued her steady improvement throughout the spring, setting another personal best in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:56.66 minutes to finish in second place among a field of eight runners. Jessop meanwhile ran a personal-best time of 4:12.39 minutes in the 1,500 meters, taking fourth place among the field of 13 competitors.
 
After breaking the school record in the javelin in her debut outdoor meet on March 19, freshman Jordan Cookman achieved the feat again on Thursday with a throw of 123-9 feet to win the event. Stringari picked up another win in the hammer throw, falling just shy of her own school record with a throw of 148-8 feet on Thursday. Stringari also led MSUB in the discus, with a toss of 110-6 feet. Joleen Pollat was MSUB's top finisher in the shot put at 38-3.25 feet to take third place among a field of nine competitors. The freshman also competed in the discus, javelin, and hammer, posting a season-best mark of 118-0 feet in the latter event.
 
Michaela Johnson took second in the 100 meters at 13.55 seconds, and also finished second in the 100-meter hurdles in 17.34 seconds. Sierra Durbin ran the eighth-fastest 400-meter hurdles time in school history, as she rounded the track in a time of 1:09.11 minutes.
 
Ally Whitmer ran a season-best mark in the 800 meters at 2:31.20 minutes, finishing in the upper half of the field of 11 runners in fifth place. Jordan Lahi posted a season-best mark of 34-6.75 feet in the shot put.
 
THE BUZZ: Ackerman was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Athlete of the Day.
 
NEXT UP: The teams head to Rapid City, South Dakota next weekend for the South Dakota School of Mines Bauer Invitational. The event is scheduled for April 10 and will take place at O'Harra Stadium.