State Qualifying Track Preview
We’ve finally reached the track postseason. Teams will compete at state qualifying meets all across the state Thursday with all competitors looking to get into state meet in Des Moines next week.
The Red Oak track teams will be at Nodaway Valley High School for the 2A state qualifying meet. They will be competing against schools like Clarinda, Clarinda Academy, Shenandoah, Treynor, Tri-Center, St. Albert, Nodaway Valley, Clarke, I-35 and Mount Ayr (boys).
The 1A state qualifying meet for southwest Iowa will take place at Corning High School. Stanton, Griswold, Villisca, East Mills and Essex will be competing at the meet. Bedford, Fremont-Mills, Lenox, Nishnabotna, Sidney, South Page and Diagonal (girls) are among the teams that will be competing at Corning.
Red Oak in 2A
Multiple athletes could be making the trip to state in Des Moines next week. There are several athletes to watch for with Red Oak at Nodaway Valley Thursday. One likely state contender for Red Oak is distance runner Josh Sunberg.
Sunberg has the second best time this season in the 1,600. He ran 4:47.93 at Atlantic April 29. Some of the athletes Sunberg could be facing Thursday include Shenandoah’s Sean Skillern, Clarinda’s Justin Cabeen, St. Albert’s Josh Sindelar and Mount Ayr’s Noah Larsen. Gavin French, Sunberg’s teammate, is also a contender in the distance race field. French posted his best time of the year in the 1,6000 at the Hawkeye Ten meet when he ran a time of 4:57.12.
Sprinter Casey Dykes is another contender for Red Oak. He ran his best 100-meter dash time at the Hawkeye Ten meet when he ran a 11.49 seconds. Dykes will have to contend with Sam Kroepel and Joe Racine of Shenandoah, as well as Logan Weers of Clarke and Cody Stackhouse of Mount Ayr.
Additionally, Blake Bergren could be a contender for the girls. The junior has posted multiple top five finishes in the long jump this season and is tied for fifth in the long jump for the district. Bergren had a jump of 15’6” at Atlantic April 29.
Other individual contenders for the girls team includes Vanessa Pate and Nikki Graber. Graber and Bergren are also part of several relay teams that could go to state. Other contenders from the relay teams include Maddy Mann, Maysen Havener, Megan Sands and Angela Mahoney.
Class 1A girls
In 1A, Griswold is a likely favorite, particularly on the girls side. Griswold has athletes occupying the top spots in eight events. Rebekah Topham could be making a return to state in multiple events. Topham has the top times in the district in the 3,000, 1,500, 800, 400 open and 400 hurdles. Her teammate Jordyn Sindt has runner-up times in the 400-hurdles, 800 and 1,500, and is third in the 3,000. Larissa Backhaus has the runner-up time for Griswold in the 400-meter dash.
Additionally, Griswold has the best times in the 4x800, the distance medley and the 4x400.
For the Stanton girls, the shuttle hurdle relay team and 4x100 team could be making the trip to state. Both have the top times in the district. Individually, Carmen Subbert could possibly go to state in the 100 and 400 hurdles.
Avery Taylor has a chance to go to state in the 100-meter dash. Taylor has the top time in the district. However, Taylor will have to deal with Backhaus, Kayla Lindenmeyer of Bedford, Lexy Larsen of Sidney and Kelsey Hurley of Fremont-Mills.
Villisca could have a couple of qualifiers in the field events. Morganne Haer and Jill Vanderhoof have both led the way in the field events for the Bluejays.
Haer leads the long jump field. Her best jump was 16’10” at Griswold, which is also the fifth best jump in Class 1A.
Vanderhoof leads the field in discus. Her throw of 105’2” at the FM Last Chance Coed Relays is the best in the district. Vanderhoof also has a chance in the shot put, but will have to contend with Essex’s Regan Burns.
1A boys
In the 100-meter dash on the boys side, East Mills sprinter Nick Pittmon is a likely favorite, but he’ll have to contend with Griswold’s Taylor Briles. Pittmon could also go to state in the 200-meter dash, as well as the long jump.
The Griswold boys team could send a few relay teams to state. They have the top times in the shuttle hurdle and 4x200, as well as top three times in the 4x800 and distance medley.
Villisca has a couple of chances as well.
Travis Herzberg has a chance to return to state for Villisca in the 800-meter run. He’ll have to contend with Blake Harvey of South Page, as well as Noah McKeever of Sidney and Xavier Olivo of Griswold.
Austin Sorensen also has a chance for Villisca in the 1,600. Sorensen posted his best time of the season at Fremont-Mills Monday when he ran a time of 4:56.68. However, Sorensen will have to contend with McKeever and Harvey, as well as Griswold’s Zach Vance.
Both meets will start at 4 p.m. Thursday.