The Le Mars Community boys track team hosted the 2026 Don Shilling Memorial Invitational and finished in sixth place amongst the seven-team field.
While the finish does not look stellar on the outside, the Bulldog boys still had a strong night in their eyes. Head coach Caleb Van Otterloo says just about every event made positive strides, and that is what he wants to see at this point in the year.
Le Mars’ only event wins came in relay races with victories in the Shuttle Hurdle and the 4x400m and a second-place finish in the Distance Medley. Coach Van Otterloo says the relays are a great way to show off the depth of his team since they may not have a superstar runner like they have had in years past.
Another strong event for the Bulldogs this year once again comes in the high jump. While it may not be the record-setting marks the Bulldogs have been used to, McNaughton continues to finish high on the leaderboard and finished second in his home meet. Coach Van Otterloo says McNaughton is putting himself in great spots to be successful.
After a good step in the right direction, the Bulldogs will be looking to turn that into multiple positive steps as the season goes along. Coach Van Otterloo hopes that this fuels a great drive in his team to get better throughout the season.
Le Mars gets back to work ahead of a meet on Thursday in Sioux City hosted by East High School.
