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9 qualifiers for Demon, Trojan boys and Panther girls
Big school track teams compete in Mt. Pleasant, Mount Vernon
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
MT. PLEASANT — It’s the most exciting time of the year if you’re an area track athlete, the week of the state tournament.
The Union area’s three big schools were all in competition to put as many names as they could onto the state list before the meet kicks off in Des Moines this Thursday.
Mt. Pleasant and Fairfield were both at Mapleleaf Athletic Complex, while Washington competed in Mount Vernon. The Panther girls earned nine spots at state, as did the Trojan and Demon boys.
In Mt. Pleasant, the Panther girls were making their mark in the sprints. Alex Scott and Kiyah Sanders both qualified in the 100-meter dash, running 12.31 seconds and 12.88 seconds respectively, and Scott earned a spot in the 200-meter dash, crossing the tape in 26.17 seconds.
“It’s amazing,” said Scott. “It’s just really fun to see how we placed.”
Scott’s 100-meter time puts her in the Top-5 heading into the state meet. The same can also be said for Mt. Pleasant’s 4X100 and 4X200-meter relay teams.
The 4X100 team of Kynlee White, Scott, Taylor Williamson and Kiyah Sanders won with the time of 49.31 seconds. The 4X200 squad of Ellie Freeman, White, Sanders and Scott took second to Clear Creek-Amana, but that was also the second-best time in 3A, at 1:43.42. That 4X200 time set a school record.
The foursome of Freeman, Izzy Sloat, Sanders and White also qualified in the sprint medley, finishing in 1:51.71.
Mt. Pleasant has three qualifiers in the field events. Izzy Sloat and Linzy Striegel jumped 16-09.25 and 16-09 in the long jump to earn the two tickets coming out of the Mt. Pleasant district. Ella Ensminger had the sixth-best shot put throw in 3A, qualifying with a hurl of 39-03.50.
The Panthers will have plenty of company from rival Washington at the state meet. The Demons qualified eight events in Mount Vernon, just one behind Mt. Pleasant.
Washington’s Jaedyn Moore put up a time of 26.47 seconds in the 200-meter dash, joining Scott in that event. Iris Dahl qualified in the 1500, running 4:59.62, to give the Demons some variety in the individual races.
Leighton Messinger will be representing the Demons in the hurdle events. Messinger ran the 100-meter hurdles in 15.91 seconds, breaking a school record in the process. She also qualified in the 400-meter hurdles, running a time of 1:08.11.
The Demon shuttle hurdle team finished with a 12th-best time of 1:08.16, setting themselves up for the state meet. That quartet was Leighton Salazar, Layla Green, Kendall Hinrichsen and Messinger.
Like Mt. Pleasant, Washington has a Top-5 time in the 4X100 relay. Green, Moore, Salazar and Messinger finished in 49.32, for the fifth-best time in 3A.
Washington’s 4X400 team of Lauren Drahota, Jaslyn Villa, Lauren Horak and Hinrichsen ran a 4:12.54 to get in. The 4X800 team of Hinrichsen, Emma Horak, Lauren Horak and Dahl ran a 10:12.01 to earn the last ticket in.
It was a big day for Fairfield’s Lilly Bergren, who will be competing in three of the Trojans’ four qualified events on the girls’ side.
This includes the 100-meter hurdles, after a final time of 15.47, eight in Class 3A, and the 400-meter hurdles, where she ran a 1:08.35. She will compete against Washington’s Messinger in both.
Also qualifying in the hurdles was the Trojan shuttle hurdle squad of Isabel McCready, Hayley Reinier, Ireland Cranston and Bergren, who ran a 1:07.64, the 10th-best time in 3A, and the third ticket out of the district.
“Going into tonight, I felt good,” said Bergren. “I was a little nervous with the pressure of where I was placed, but it pushed me and gave me some real confidence.”
The Trojans have one thrower going on the girls’ side. Elyse Setterstrom qualified in the discus throw, hurling it 113-03.
The Fairfield boys were set up well in the distance and field events, and the Trojans certainly answered the call, getting nine events through.
Gabe Tejada continued his great year in the 800-meter run, winning the event in 1:58.44. His time is the third-best time in all of 3A.
Dylan Adam will join teammate Bergren as a 400-meter hurdles qualifier. Adam finished just outside of the Top-10 in 3A, qualifying 11th, with a time of 55.68 seconds.
The Trojan boys’ distance medley team of Adam, Burnett, Ousman Saine and Tejada ran a 3:38.31 to get into state with the sixth-best time in Class 3A. The shuttle hurdle squad of Spencer McCready, Burnett, Adam and Ryan Giberson qualified, in 1:01.44, and the sprint medley squad of Dayson Workman, Voss Richardson, Ethan Bisgard and Tejada qualified in 1:35.07.
And then there’s the Fairfield jumpers, who once again have made the Trojan boys one of the teams to watch, qualifying four spots, including two Top-3 high jump times. Defending state champion Eli Zillman jumped 6-07, the second-best mark in 3A, and Giberson’s 6-05 leap qualified him in third.
The Trojan boys have two through in the long jump. Zillman qualified fifth, with a leap of 22-05.75, and McCready finished 19th, with a leap of 21-02.75.
Like the Trojans, the Washington boys finished with nine qualifying events, including a spot in the 800-meter run, courtesy of Tyler Alderton, who ran a 2:02.60.
Alderton also anchored home a strong 4X800 squad. The quartet of Logan McDole, Sawyer Tschantz, Carson Ryan and Alderton qualified third in 3A, finishing in 8:10.25.
Washington’s distance medley squad of Seth Shepherd, Keider Gomez Valdez, McDole and Alderton advanced to state with a time of 3:39.29, 10th best in Class 3A.
Greyson Hartman continued his tear through the throwing events, by qualifying in both. Hartman’s 173-01 in the discus pits him as fourth-best in Class 3A, and he’s one spot better in the shot put, qualifying third, with a throw of 55-04.50.
Washington’s Josh Anderson will once again represent the Demons in the wheelchair events. Anderson qualified in the 100, with a time of 19.78, the 200, with a time of 37.17, the 400, with a time of 1:08.81, and the 800, with a time of 2:41.09.
