HUMBOLDT — A pair of newcomers (sort of) will be counted on for big things this year for Humboldt High’s track and field team.

Seniors Karingten Hall and Tre Franklin will lace up their cleats, officially, for the first time this spring, although both are familiar with success on the track.

Hall qualified for the state meet in several sprint events as a freshman and sophomore at Iola High School.

After transferring to Humboldt for her junior year, Hall was ineligible to compete for the orange and black at the varsity level.

That meant a season filled with junior varsity meets — or if she ran in varsity — knowing her marks wouldn’t count.

“We took Karingten to the Tri-Valley League meet, where she won the 100 meters by about a full second,” Cub head coach Eric Carlson said. “But she couldn’t get anything out of it.”

That changes in 2025, with Hall champing at the bit for a return to state.

“It says a lot that she was willing to stick it out like that,” Carlson said. “We didn’t push her a lot in practice. We can do some things with her starts to make her times even faster. We’re looking forward to that.”

Franklin, too, is a transfer into the Humboldt school system, having qualified for state in the 200- and 400-meter dashes at El Dorado.

“Just the little I’ve seen Tre in practice, you can see how explosive he is,” Carlson said. “He’s got a motor. It’s gonna be a lot of fun.”

With a squad of 34, Carlson is eager to see what other talented performers are ready to rack up some medals.

Junior Laney Hull, who qualified for state high jump as a sophomore, while narrowly missing out on qualifying in hurdles races, looks to add to her medal haul.

“She’s our only returning state qualifier,” Carlson noted.

Incoming freshman Gabi Vargas-Garcia already excels in throwing events, Carlson noted, as does junior Savannah Koch, who competed in middle school, but had not yet dabbled in high school track until this spring.

“We talked her into it,” Carlson said.

Senior Anna Heisler, most definitely not a newcomer, has excelled in the 800 meters in years past.

“We’re gonna have a lot of young competitors,” Carlson noted. “If we can keep the mindset to stick it out, even if they’re competing against juniors and seniors who are bigger and faster than they are, we have a shot to build something. The key is keeping them positive with the understanding it might be a struggle early on. There are going to be growing pains, but our goal always is to peak at the last three meets of the season” at league, regional and state competitions.

“We tailor our workouts so we’re at our best in the middle of May,” he concluded. “It’ll be interesting to see how they grow and react to the competition.”