Lions off and running at Drake Relays

(Above) Lydia Brattrud is ready to go as Maddie Leisure hands off the baton in the 4x100 relay.  The Drake Relays were Thursday-Saturday, April 28-30, in Des Moines.

by Michelle Watson

It was a big weekend on the blue oval, with Clear Lake sending both girls and boys events to the Drake Relays, held Thursday-Saturday, April 28-30, in Des Moines.

The girls team sent a number of events.  Reese Brownlee qualified in the long jump, the 100 meter dash, the 400 meter dash and she was a member of the 4x100 relay.  Other members of the 4x100 relay were Maddie Leisure, Lydia Brattrud and Josie Lester.   Addison Doughan qualified in the 3000 meter run and the 400 meter run.

Doughan kicked off the relays, running her best time of 10:35 in the 3000.  She placed 19th out of 21 runners.  

Brownlee had a big day on Friday.  She started with the 100 meter dash, where she placed 27th.  Next came the long jump, where her leap of 17’3.5” earned her a fifth place finish.  She ran a personal record in the 400 with a time of 59.03, good for 14th place.

The 4x100 team ran on Saturday morning.  They placed 66th out of 96 teams.

“The hard work they’ve been putting in really showed,” said Coach Shawn Puttmann.  “It was fun for everyone to compete against the best in the state on this big of a stage.”

The team was seeded 86th coming into the relays and with their performances moved up 20 places.

“The experience that was gained over this weekend will hopefully carry over into the State meet in three weeks,” said Puttmann.

The boys sent two relays, the 4x200 and the 4x100.

The 4x200 relay team competed on Friday.  They came into the meet as the 24th seed and improved that standing to 18th overall.  Members of the team are Zeke Nelson, Alex Kerr, Jagger Schmitt and Tanner Reimann.

A bad handoff plagued the 4x100 team and they finished 85th overall.  Members of the relay are Titan Schmitt, Kerr, Jagger Schmitt and Tanner Reimann.

“We had one handoff that was less than ideal and in a race like that, it can make a big difference,” said Coach Troy Tysdahl.  “Being part of that incredible meet is an honor in itself.  Hopefully we’ll be back in three weeks for the State meet and the nerves and aura of that atmosphere and environment are gone and we can run our best at State.”

Tysdahl was happy that two of the freshman, Kerr and Titan Schmitt, gained valuable experience in their first outing at the Drake Stadium.