Track season has begun

Don’t look now but the 2022 Iowa high school track season is already underway. Local squads traveled to their first indoor meets on Tuesday night, and it only gets busier from here.

The Fairfield girls and boys’ teams kicked off the 2022 season at Wartburg, and the Trojans brought home a couple of wins.

Fairfield picked up two wins on the boys’ side. Aiden Lyons took the 55-meter dash, crossing the tape in 6.79 seconds. The 4X400 team of Lyons, Ryan Higgins, Ousman Saine and River Patterson also took first, crossing in 3:46.90.

The Trojan boys had two second-place finishes. River Patterson took second in the 400-meter dash, in 53.17 seconds, and Kaidyn Mickels was second in the 800-meter run, crossing in 2:16.09.

Gavin Van Veen took third in the boys’ 1600-meter run. He crossed the line in 4:52.24.

On the girls’ side, Kelsey Pacha made her triumphant return to the track with a dominant performance in the 55-meter hurdles, wiping out the field in 8.75 seconds for a Trojan victory. Hannah Bergren took third in the 55-meter dash, crossing in 7.93 seconds.

The Washington and Mt. Pleasant boys’ teams were in Cedar Falls for the University of Northern Iowa Indoors. Both teams picked up a pair of Top-20 finishes. Washington had two in the Top-6.

Washington’s Elijah Morris finished fifth place in the 200-meter dash, crossing the tape in 23.12 seconds. Lance Sobaski was sixth in the 800-meter run, finishing in 2:04.25.

Mt. Pleasant’s Will Davidson found himself in the Top-20 twice. Davidson finished 17th in the 60-meter hurdles, crossing in 8.95 seconds. He was 19th in the 200-meter dash, in 23.89 seconds.