Linquist sets sights on state track podium

Published 1:00 pm Sunday, March 8, 2026

By Patrick Webb/For the Observer

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Assistant Coach Sarah Taylor and Ilwaco runner Elsa Linquist share a fun moment during an early practice. Linquist has earned two state medals for cross country and has her sights set on qualifying in two distance events to vie for a podium place at the WIAA 2B state track meet in Yakima in May. (Patrick Webb)

Building continues for the Ilwaco High School track program, as promising youngsters mature.

Head coach Crystal Bell is enthused.

“Last season was so positive for our program,” she said. “We had a mix of experienced athletes and many young athletes who stepped into big roles, and we saw a lot of growth across the team.

“Track is great because improvement is so visible week to week, and it was rewarding to see them challenging themselves and supporting each other.”

Bell coaches with Sarah Taylor, Melissa Nesbitt and newly added Mike Koppang. “He brings years of experience and has already built a great rapport with our team,” she said.

As a freshman, Elsa Linquist carried the torch for the Fishermen girls at the 2B state track meet last year, but came home from Yakima expressing disappointment at her times in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters, events where she had excelled during earlier meets.

She had a stellar career in middle school and has enjoyed success during her club running. At the WIAA state cross country meets, she placed ninth last fall and eighth the prior year.

This season she will concentrate on working to qualify for state in the two longest track races, but doesn’t rule out trying the 800m and contributing to a relay team during the earlier portions of the season.

The sophomore said her lifelong joy at running is holding strong, in large part because of a change she made during cross country.

“I would say there have been patches where it has been, like, ‘Is this something that I love any more?’ and the answer is always, ‘Yes,’ and the only times I feel like, ‘What am I doing?’ is when I am focusing too much on the numbers,” she said.

“I stopped wearing my watches in the races and I have stopped checking the times religiously. When you pay too much attention to the numbers, you kind of forget you are on the track and you are actively running. It really helped me with cross country. I stopped wearing it for races and got really big improvements on it.”

Wade Smith, the lone Ilwaco boy who advanced to state last year, has graduated. His senior year haul included a fifth-place state medal in wrestling and fourth-place honors in pole vault. Smith was an all-round athlete who played an important leadership role encouraging other students; Bell is already seeing his example of helpfulness replicated by others this year.

Ilwaco returns just two seniors, Madison Key and Henry Hill. “Madison has competed in everything from the 100m to the 3,200m and showed strong growth in the distance races last season,” Bell said. “Henry brings versatility competing in both throws and sprints. A few juniors who show a lot of strength and promise in the throws include Ruary Schimelpfenig and Landyn Saltzman.”

Linquist isn’t alone in distance running. “She’s joined by sophomores Devin Day and Blake Eisbrenner and a junior, Druv Athmanathan, and they’ve already been pushing each other early this season,” said the coach.

In the throws, Chris Arnett returns in the shot put and javelin, while Michael Wright and Brexten Weidner contribute in the long and triple jumps, she said. “Connor Ryden competes in the high jump, sprints and relays, and Thendrix Besin is a strong sprinter and relay runner. We also have some strong freshman additions such as James Hamilton and Sunday Zinsli and many new athletes eager to learn and work hard.”

Bell sees challenges on the horizon. “Our league always brings tough competition; schools like Raymond-South Bend, Forks and North Beach consistently have talented athletes across multiple events. I enjoy seeing those competitive matchups to push our kids to keep improving.”

Linquist agrees with her coach that the future of Fishermen track is bright.

“I have hopes this year, honestly, with this group,” the sophomore said. “I think we have a lot of freshmen out that are looking very promising, if not this year then years to come. I feel really good about this.”

Ilwaco begins its season at the March 21 Bear Relays in Olympia. The Fishermen athletes will compete at Naselle April 2 and host a home meet May 5. Their goal will be qualifying for the WIAA 2B state meet in Yakima May 28-30.