PULASKI, WI – After a season filled with standout performances the Pulaski track and field program is peaking at exactly the right time.
Head coach Richard Kamps said the program’s success is no accident. Pulaski’s training schedule is specifically designed to have athletes performing their best during the postseason.
“We gear everything to start peaking at the conference meet and then carry that out into regionals and sectionals,” Kamps said. “We’ve done that the last few years and it’s gotten more successful for us.”
That strategy was evident throughout the season. Pulaski opened the outdoor campaign with dominant boys and girls team victories at the Denmark Invitational and never looked back. Kamps said the early-season meets provide valuable opportunities to evaluate both veterans and newcomers under competitive conditions.
“It’s the first outdoor invite of the year, and it gives us a feel for how our incoming freshmen are going to handle those pressure situations,” Kamps said. “From there we can start to build on the season.”
The Red Raiders continued that momentum into the postseason, qualifying 11 athletes for state despite competing in one of the toughest Division 1 sectionals in Wisconsin.
Pulaski Girls Team
Among the state qualifiers on the girls side is Emerson Fabry, who captured the sectional title in the girls 800-meter run and finished second in the 1,600. Fabry, a Northern Illinois recruit, enters the state meet seeded second in the 800.
“She’s worked hard to get where she’s at,” Kamps said. “She actually has a great chance to win the 800 this weekend.”
Kamps also believes Fabry and teammate Maggie Girth have an opportunity to accomplish something special.
“I think both her and Maggie Girth have a chance to go sub-five minutes in the mile at state,” he said.
Talyn Pratt provided one of the biggest surprises of the sectional meet. After missing all of last season with a hip fracture, she earned a state berth by placing second in the 200-meter dash.
“Seeing her back on the track this spring and working hard and making it down there as a sophomore is a huge accomplishment,” Kamps said.
Pulaski Boys Team
On the boys side, junior Keaton Dauk enters the state meet as one of Pulaski’s top medal contenders after winning the 300-meter hurdles and placing second in the 110 hurdles at sectionals.
“He was second last year in the 300 hurdles at state,” Kamps said. “I think he goes down there as a semi-favorite to win that race.”
Junior Max Fredrickson also qualified after an impressive sectional championship performance in the 400-meter dash.
“That 400 time he ran at sectionals was blistering,” Kamps said. “We’re hoping he can keep it up.”
Other state qualifiers include Bohdan Schmidt, Mitchell Pilon and several relay team members, giving Pulaski representation across a wide variety of events.
As the season reaches its conclusion, Kamps reflected on a senior class that helped establish the foundation of the program’s current success.
“They’re easy kids to coach, they’re fun kids to coach, and they really set the tone and the expectations for where we wanted the program to go,” Kamps said. “That culture was born out of them.”
With 11 athletes competing at state and several legitimate medal contenders, the Red Raiders hope their season-long preparation will culminate with a memorable weekend in La Crosse.
“Our goal is to get some kids on the medal stand,” Kamps said. “We’re hopeful that we’ll do that this weekend.”
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