CHADRON, Neb. -- March 18, 2021 -- High school track and field will return to western Nebraska on Saturday when Chadron State College will host its High School Indoor Meet in the Nelson Activity Center. The field events will begin at 9 a.m. and the running events at 11.

Riley Northrup, the Chadron State head coach and the meet director, said as of Monday morning 10 Panhandle schools had entered.  They are Alliance, Bayard, Chadron, Cody-Kilgore, Creek Valley, Gering, Hay Springs, Hemingford, Kimball and Scottsbluff. 

The first indoor meet in the long-awaited Activity Center took place on March 28, 1987, soon after the facility opened.  It had taken place 33 consecutive years until the COVID-19 invasion caused last year's meet to be cancelled just a week or so before the event was due to take place.             

Northrup said many high school coaches love to have an early-season meet they can count on having. It helps them learn a lot about their teams and it energizes the athletes, giving them the opportunity to compete. 

The meet will be open to the public.  Those attending will be required to wear masks.