Andy Lillejord closed out a big day for the Blue Jay boys’ track team in style at the Bowl Friday afternoon.
Lillejord claimed the first of what could be three state championships by winning the long jump at the Class A state meet in Bismarck. Jamestown High School had nine point scorers on the day en route to 41.50 points, and were just three points behind five-time defending state champion Bismarck (44.50). The Jays and Demons were the only two teams with more than 31.50 points. The JHS girls had just two place-winners, led by junior Nikki Iverson’s third in the long jump. Lillejord had two top three finishes, adding a third in the high jump earlier in the day. He’s favored in the long jump and pole vault — the finals for both are today. The NDSU-bound Lillejord won the triple jump handily, going nearly 10 inches further than anybody else with a mark of 43 feet, three inches. Alex Nelson of Minot was second at 42-5 1/2. Sophomore Matt Johnson placed sixth in the triple, giving the Jays 13 points in the event with a leap of 41-5.
The Jays’ 4×800 relay team nearly pulled off a stunning upset. Justin Slusser, Ben Larson, Spencer Kamoni and Jordan Slusser shaved over 17 seconds off their previous best time in the race and were nipped at the line by Bismarck, 8:03.10 to 8:03.59. The foursome’s previous best time was 8:20.82. They came in seeded sixth behind Minot, West Fargo, Bismarck Century and Dickinson, but easily outran the third-place Magicians (8:08.40) by nearly five seconds.