L-S girls win first-ever track state-qualifying meet title

Thirteen L-S athletes in 10 events are bound for the state track meet after a thrilling and challenging state-qualifying meet on Thursday, May 14. The qualifiers include seven girls events and three boys events.

The state-qualifying meet, held at BGM, will go down in L-S girls track history as their first ever state-qualifying meet champion-ship. The girls won their side of the meet with 126 team points, 13 points ahead of second-place BGM in the 11-team field.

Shelby Davis - shot put

Shelby Davis - shot put

“When you look in our gym and see all the banners from state-qualifying teams in basketball and softball, but you don’t see one for a team winning the state-qualifying track meet (formerly known as regional or district meet), you understand just how special their performance was,” said a proud L-S Coach Darin Arkema.

Those who placed first in their events at BGM were guaranteed a ticket to the state meet. For the Hawk girls, that meant they knew by the end of the night that four events were for sure going to state. Senior Shelby Davis won the shot put with a 34’9” throw, and sophomore Lizzy Van Manen claimed the discus with a 94’4” throw. Junior Marissa Vos clocked a 12:24 to win the 3000, and the 4x200 team (junior Kasiah Ehresman, senior Madison Rasmusson, and sophomores Makenzy Rozendaal and Brenna Lanser) finished first in 1:51.

On the boys’ side, junior Sage Ehresman in the shot put had the only for-sure ticket to state after the meet at BGM. His throw of 47’10” put him in first by 19”.

Cori Rice - 4x800

Cori Rice - 4x800

The Hawk boys and girls had to wait until the weekend to find out if any other events received at-large bids to state – and they weren’t disappointed.

  1. Ehresman secured another spot at state, this time in the 100-meter dash with his time of 11.64 after placing second at BGM. He’ll also run at state with 4x100 teammates sophomore Caden Dunsbergen, junior Noah Engle, and senior Noah Zylstra after their relay qualified with a time of 46.08 after taking third at BGM.

On the girls’ side, the 4x800 team (K. Ehresman, freshman Mariah Vos, senior Cori Rice, and Rasmusson) cut 20 seconds off their fastest time and earned a state trip with their time of 10:25 (second place). The same girls from the 4x200 team also qualified in the sprint medley relay with their time of 1:58 (second) and in the 4x100 with their time of 53.48 (second).

Sage Ehresman - open 100

Sage Ehresman - open 100

The meet – despite its sour weather – was the perfect culmination to the season for the L-S girls as a team.

“Everyone there was going to have to contend with the weather, but that is something out of our control, so I wanted the girls focusing on what they could control and approach the meet and each event with determination to go out and do their best and accomplish another goal they had set as a team early in the season,” Arkema said. “They knew the competition would be tough, but had no reason to doubt what they were capable of.”

Additional results for the girls are listed below:

  • 100-m dash: 5th, M. Rozendaal, 14.20
    Brenna Lanser and Makenzy Rozendaal

    Brenna Lanser and Makenzy Rozendaal

  • 200-m dash: 3rd, Lanser, 28.48
  • 400-m dash: 5th, Olivia Ritter, 1:12.37; 8th, Alexis Hardenbrook, 1:15.20
  • 800-m run: 5th, Marissa Vos, 2:51.32
  • 1500-m run: 5th, Marissa Vos, 5:53.49
  • 3000-m run: 4th, Haley James, 13:15.62
  • 400-m hurdles: 4th, Van Manen, 4th, 1:13.72; Mariah Vos, 7th, 1:14.69
  • 4x400: 4th, Mariah Vos, Rice, Van Manen, Hardenbrook, 4:41.61
  • Distance medley: 4th, Camryn Russell, Jataya Meyer, Mariah Vos, Rice, 4:52.20
  • High Jump: 3rd, Shelby Davis, 4’8”
  • Discus: 2nd, Shelby Davis, 91’6”
  • Shot Put: 5th, Jelissa Rozendaal, 30’3”

“I am so pleased by our team’s performance, in what really was an appropriate last meet for our entire team with how hard they’ve worked this season and all the many improvements and accomplishments they’ve had,” Arkema said.

Additional results for the boys are listed below:

  • 400-m dash: 8th, Sage Zylstra, 59.23
    Noah Zylstra and Noah Engle - 4x100

    Noah Zylstra and Noah Engle - 4x100

  • 1600-m run: 4th, Canyon Kuhlmann, 5:08
  • 3200-m run: 6th, Cody Gibbs, 11:42
  • 110-m hurdles: 6th, Colten Arment, 17.69
  • 400-m hurdles: 7th, Carson Dunsbergen, 1:03
  • 4x200: 5th, Engle, N. Zylstra, Corey McCoy, David Bastuck, 1:37
  • 4x400: 5th, Bastuck, Kuhlmann, Carson Dunsbergen, McCoy, 3:44
  • 4x800: 3rd, Carson Dunsbergen, Karl Recknagel, Luke Jones, Bastuck, 9:20
  • Distance medley: 5th, Recknagel, Arment, Bastuck, Kuhlmann, 4:05
  • Shuttle hurdle: 2nd, Caden Dunsbergen, Engle, Ryan Hofer, Arment, 1:04
  • High jump: 5th, Carson Dunsbergen, 5’8”
  • Discus: 2nd, S. Ehresman, 127’7”; 3rd, Engle, 126’1”
  • Shot put: 7th, Blake Wehrle, 40’9”

The state qualifiers will head to the blue track at Drake University in Des Moines this Thursday through Saturday, May 21-23. A full schedule of the L-S events is listed at the top of this page. Good luck to all Hawk participants!

Girls state qualifying meet champs

Girls state qualifying meet champs

 

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