Success at the State Track Meet

(Above) Clear Lake’s Tracy Mixdorf competed in both the shuttle hurdle relay and the 400 meter hurdles.  The shuttle hurdle team, also including Olivia Amos, Ashley Archer and Makia Fessler, placed 18th.  Mixdorf placed 21st in the 400 hurdles.

The blue oval was good to Clear Lake and GHV runners, as personal best times were used for placements in several events at the State Track Meet in Des Moines.

Clear Lake

A single miss at 6’1” took Zach Lester out of medal contention, but the senior placed 12th in the Class 3A high jump.  Lester had one miss at 6’1”before clearing it, then continued without fail until bowing out at 6’3”.

The Lions’ Distance Medley team of seniors Speed Toyne, Luke Eggers, Karter Anderson and Zach Lester placed 17th in a time of 3:41.83.

“We went in with the 24th time out of 24 teams, so we improved seven spots,” said Coach AJ Feuerbach.  “We were happy with our season best time of 3:41.83, which was the second best time in the history of our school in that event.  Nick Danielson and Justin Wright were our alternates and did great being ready if needed. I am very proud of all of seniors representing Clear Lake at the big blue oval in Des Moines.  They were great leaders on our team and set the tone for our underclassmen to get the baton and carry on with success.”

The Clear Lake girls qualified for two events and the State Track Meet.

The shuttle hurdle team of Olivia Amos, Macy Mixdorf, Ashley Archer and Makia Fessler finished 18th out of the 24 teams.  The group was clocked in 1:10.71.

Mixdorf concluded her high school track career by competing in the 400 meter hurdles.  The senior used her best time of the year, 1:10.46, to place 21st.

“This is always a great experience for the girls to participate in.  I believe we will be ready for next year,” said Coach Shawn Puttmann.

GHV

GHV boys qualified for State in four events and medaled in each of them.

Reece Smith started things off for the Cardinals on Thursday and placed second in the 3200 in a time of 9:50.11.  The winner in the race was Floyd Evans, from Mid-Prairie, in 9:42.34.

On Friday, Smith anchored the Distance Medley team to a seventh place finish in a season-best time of 3:39.93.  The relay also included Devion Moore, Jace Pringnitz and Ray Cataldo.

“We were in sixth place in our heat and Reece got the baton in sixth place.  He ran a 1:58 leg and picked off people starting with 200 meters to go and win the heat for us.  It was good enough to beat two teams in the fast heat and take seventh place,” said Coach Kelsey Edwards.

Smith was back in action Saturday, competing in the 1600 meters.  His time of 4:29.37 was good for third place.  Cataldo ran the 800-meters Saturday and posted the fourth best time in GHV history to place fourth in 1:58.80.

“The boys are already talking about possibilities for next year,” said Coach Edwards.  “It’s fun to see that excitement for the sport and for each other, not only any the State meet, but throughout the season.  The finishes left the boys hungry for a return next year.  That’s pretty neat.”

      The GHV boys finished 14th as a team with 18 points.

      The GHV girls qualified two events for the State Meet and both made improvements to their times.

      The shuttle hurdle team of Madeline Hinz, Mara Anderson, Rachel Hejlik and Jillian Heitland qualified for State with the 17th best time in their class and improved to 14th with a time of 1:10.39

      Hinz also ran the 100 hurdles and used a personal record to advance to the finals with the eighth best time overall.  In the finals, she ran under 16-seconds for the first time this season and was able to achieve a sixth place finish.

     “She is a confident runner and was so excited to run against the fastest,” said Coach Dyan Childress.  “We are all so proud of her and shuttle team.  As we left the track, dreams and goals of next year were already excitedly discussed.”