The 2009 season was a historic one for the Pocatello boys’ track team, which won its first team state title in several decades. But as nice as that memory was for the Indians, coach Rick Call wants it to be only that, a memory.

    After all, that memory’s not going to help the Indians repeat as state champions.

    “It’s a whole new year and we start all over as if nothing ever happened,” Call said. “Every year, you’re going to rebuild and have new kids coming in. It’d be nice to do it again. The kids who were there, they know what it’s like and want to do it again. But we haven’t talked about being state champions.”

    Although they aren’t talking about what could happen in May, the Indians have high expectations for themselves. That’s what happens when several contributors come back, such as 4A 400-meter state champion Sawyer Jeter.

    Jeter said that the experienced Indians have set the standard at Pocatello, and they have to make sure it doesn’t slip.

    “We’re the champions, so we’re the ones who have to set the bar,” Jeter said. “We had a lot of younger guys, including me, go to state multiple times in a row. Even though they’re not as old, they still have the experience an older person would have.”

    That kind of situation, a mix of experience and youth, is common among several teams in the Fifth District with high expectations

    According to Highland coach Darin White, that isn’t by accident.

    “By the time the kids get older, the only ones who stay in track are the really good ones,” White said. “The other ones lose interest. Your goal as a coach is to keep them out and get them all good.”

    One example of a team that’s managed to do that is the boys’ team at West Side. Like most of the school’s other athletic teams this year, the Pirates will feature very few seniors.

    But the Pirates aren’t lacking in either experience or talent. They were second in the state at the 2A level last year and have most of their team back, which has coach Tyson Moser hopeful that the Pirates can do what Pocatello did a season ago.

    “We’ve got high hopes for them,” Moser said. “The boys are expecting to compete for an overall team title and leave with a trophy.”

    Earning a trophy in Boise wouldn’t be unrealistic for Preston’s girls’ team either. Although they finished 12th at state last year, the Franklin County Indians return a wealth of talent, most of it because of the school’s success in cross country.

    “We have a pretty solid girls’ team that’s pretty well-rounded,” Preston coach Brandon Lyon said. “A lot of that carries over from the cross country teams we have. We also have a good group of 400 runners, and the 4x4 placed fifth at state. The majority of them are back.”

    Even the teams that aren’t as likely to be in the mix for a state title think they have something to look forward to, whether it’s a strong performance from some individual athletes or the beginning of what they hope will be a bright future for their program.

    The latter is the case at American Falls, where coach Roger Thomas will field a young team that he thinks could contend in years to come as it gains experience. Snake River will also be young, but the Panthers boast two-time hurdles state champion Eden VanOrden, who gives the younger Panthers a model to emulate.

    “We’re going to work on times, but she just does an extremely good job with that,” Snake River coach Shauna Matthews said. “She knows that she’s not perfect and there’s things she can improve on. She’s really good about that.”

    But from now until May, it’s the Gate City Indians who have the spotlight and the target that comes with it, and they want to keep it as long as they can.

    “It’s not really nerve-racking, but it puts some pressure on you to perform at your best to keep that title,” Pocatello jumper Ben Workman said. “It’s cool to know you’re the defending champion.”