Radtke earns All-Conference honors, four Grizzlies score in heptathlon

The rain, wind and cold that greeted the multi-athletes in Greeley on Thursday could not deter senior Morgan Radtke from a podium finish at the Big Sky Outdoor Championships. The Drummond native faced down the less than stellar conditions and came away with a new personal best score of 4,866. She earned All-Big Sky Conference honors for the second time in career in the process with a third-place finish.

As the results came in at the conclusion of the 800-meter race, and Radtke learned that she had jumped into third, her teammates swarmed her. They showered an emotional Radtke with hugs, celebrating the success of the veteran and leader of the group. The moment is something that will stick with Radtke forever.

"Track has been in my life for 13 years now, so it's definitely something that is hard for me to let go of and it was emotional being surrounded by my teammates that I train with every day," Radtke said of the finish. "They mean a lot to me and my coaches mean a lot to me, so it was really special for me to have all of them there with me. It was definitely bittersweet."

Gallery: (5-11-2023) TF: BSC Championship Day Two (5.11.23)

The moment may not have happened without some determination on the part of Radtke. She got on the plane to Greeley having not practiced in several weeks.

"I have some back issues going on so I took two weeks off prior to it and didn't really touch the track, tried not to think too much about it and distract myself as best as I could," Radtke said. "When I got in the blocks for the hurdles, I kind of had in the back of my mind that if I could make it through that event, the rest would be fine. I can gut out the rest of it."

She passed the test in the hurdles, recording a career best. It was the first of three for her on Wednesday, a performance that surprised even Radtke herself. As a fifth-year with plenty of meets under her belt, it took exceptional performances across the board to pull off the feat.

It gave her the confidence needed to come away from Thursday with All-Conference honors.

Montana performed well as a unit, placing all four competitors inside the top eight in the final standings. Brooke Stayner finished fifth with 4,673 points, Whitney Morrison seventh with 4,377 points, and Ainsley Shipman eighth with 4,317 points. The Grizzlies received 13 total points, putting them in a tie for first at the Championship with Idaho State.

"I want to talk about how great it is for us to have four women in the top eight in the league in the multi," head coach Doug Fraley said. "It is a testament to the quality of athlete that we have in the multi and it is a testament to what a great job Coach Hall has done in leading that group, especially with three underclassmen this year."

Lindsey Hall, a five-time Big Sky Champion as a Grizzly athlete during her career, is the multis coach for Montana. In an event with subpar conditions, the steady hand of Hall helped calm the Grizzly athletes and bring out the best in them.

"She's done a great job developing that group and did a really good job of keeping them focused and making sure they were in the right headspace going out into conditions like we had today," Fraley said. "Kudos to that whole group."

The day started early, and it started in an absolute downpour for the long jump event. The long jump provided a big boost for Stayner, who had the second-best mark of the 11 athletes at 17-8.25 to earn 668 points. It was a season-best for the Missoula native. Shipman also cleared 17 feet, while Morrison went 16-10.5.

Radtke maintained her positioning in fourth with a jump of 16-8.5.

The rain didn't clear for the javelin throw, which is an event that has generated the lowest scores for all four Grizzly participants this year. They stuck together through the difficult conditions, cheering each other on to good performances.

Morrison, who had to throw left-handed in the shot put on Wednesday because of an injury, had enough strength for one throw. She pulled off an incredible feat through the pain, crossing the 100-foot barrier to finish third in the event.

Radtke also had a big throw of 99-2, which was enough to keep her in fourth place heading into the final event. She made up ground in the javelin to trail Weber State's Payge Walz by just 31 points as they moved on to the 800.

Shipman had a throw of 89-4 for a PR while Stayner had a mark of 80-5.

The Grizzlies moved on from one of the toughest events for the group to one of the strongest. Radtke and Stayner set the tone early in the 800, jumping right to the front of the pack. They separated themselves in the first lap, building a cushion between them and the rest of the athletes.

It proved to be just enough down the stretch. Idaho State's Kylee Dimick, the overall champion, would make a push at the very end to win the race. Radtke held on for second, and Stayner came in third. Morrison placed fifth and Shipman seventh in the final event.

They all looked to the board after crossing the finish line and collapsing to the track. The times were tallied, and the total scores were added up. Radtke did more than enough, moving into third place with 746 points in the finale.

"I couldn't be prouder of Morgan in getting another All-Conference finish," Fraley said. "The fact that she didn't really get to do much the last couple of weeks but is able to pull from all of her experience in the last four years to be able to come out and put it together. It's a testament to her focus, and it's a testament to the kind of person and athlete that she is. She has represented our University so well. I'm just really proud of her in a lot of different ways."

Despite the conditions, all four Grizzlies ended the day with smiles on their face. The tight-knit group supported each other through all sorts of challenges across the two days. Fraley hoped for the best for his athletes, and knew the point-scoring potential of the group. For them to stick together and deliver 13 points was a testament to the unity of the quartet.

"That is a culture thing, and it's most evident on days like today when the conditions are really difficult. It's cold, it's rainy, it's slippery," Fraley said. "All these different things that could allow an athlete to say, you know I don't think I'm going to be at my best today. When you've got a group like that and there is that cohesion within the group, it keeps the level higher. Today was a perfect example of that, and it's a big reason why all four of those women ended up scoring points today."

Montana has long been a Big Sky power in the event. The Grizzlies have had 12 conference champions in the pentathlon or heptathlon since 2007, including Hall on five occasions. The past several years have seen Jansen Ziola win the indoor pentathlon and earn two-time All-Big Sky status in the heptathlon, and Jaree Mane consistently finish near the top of the league.

There is a long list of Grizzly greats. Radtke has cemented her place among them as a two-time All-Big Sky performer.

"I have got to watch so many great multis come through this program. Erica McLeod was a fifth-year when I was a freshman. Jansen Ziola and Jaree Mane were two that I looked up to," Radtke said "I think just continuing that legacy of Montana having great women's multis is something that's really special to me. I'll remember that forever."

Big Sky Outdoor Championship Heptathlon Results – Day Two
3.) Morgan Radtke (4,866 points*) – 16-8.5 (LJ), 99-2 (JT), 2:25.84 (800)
5.) Brooke Stayner (4,673 points) – 17-8.25* (LJ), 80-5 (JT), 2:27.44 (800)
7.) Whitney Morrison (4,377 points) – 16-10.5 (LJ), 103-2 (JT), 2:28.13 (800)
8.) Ainsley Shipman (4,317 points) – 17-0.75 (LJ), 89-4* (JT), 2:33.32 (800)

University of Montana Athletics

Radtke earns All-Conference honors, four Grizzlies score in heptathlon

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