Beatty, Ryon show out at Drake

DES MOINES - The Drake Relays kicked off in Des Moines on Thursday, and while there weren't a lot of high school events going on in day one, Mt. Pleasant had a couple of big performances.

Sam Beatty finished top 10 in the high jump, leaping 6-5 for seventh place. After clearing 6-1 and 6-3 on his first attempts, it took Beatty until his third shot to get over 6-5, but he cleared it to move on to the 6-7 mark.

Beatty couldn't quite match his seasons best by clearing the bar at 6-7. He finished tied for seventh with Southeast Conference rival Landon Kooiker of Fairfield. Grant Brouwer of Sibley-Ocheyedan took the title at 6-9.

Abby Ryon broke a new school record in the 300-meter run, crossing the line in 10:33.03. She finished 17th in that race. Ashlyn Keeney of Iowa City Liberty cruised to victory in 9:39.64, winning the race by almost 16 seconds over second-place Marie Hostetler of Mid-Prarie.

As of press time, Friday's festivities have already begun, with Chase Lamm taking 30th in the 110-meter high hurdles with the time of 15.92 seconds.

Among those competing Friday are Lexie Magnani in the shot put, Zach Beason in the discus, Khang Truong and Rylan Seberg in the long jump and the Panther boys' distance medley team.

Full results from the full Drake Relays weekend can be found in Monday's edition of The Mt. Pleasnat News.