Jenks, Pollard break meet records

State Meet Highlights

The Iowa state championship meet at Drake Stadium is a three-day spectacle that rates at or near the top in attendance and enthusiasm among all of the state meets. Iowa contests shuttle hurdle relays, and two different sprint medley relays.

Top Performances:

- Stephanie Jenks of Linn-Mar was the dominant athlete in the Class 4A meet. She won the 3,000 meters in 9:34.55, the 800 in 2:11.09 and broke the state meet record in the 1,500 with 4:27.76. 

- Ryan Schweizer from Dowling Catholic, a junior, won the 4A titles in the 3,200 (9:17.53), the 800 meters (1:53.14) and the 1,500 meters (4:17.66). He also ran on the winning SMR.

- The boys from Ames broke the state meet record in the 4x800 relay with US#7 7:41.43. That quartet was Lee Grim, Kuol Chol, Atem Akok and Daniel Chan and they broke a 28-year-old all-time state best.

- The girls from Cedar Rapids Jefferson smashed the all-time state record in the 4x200 relay with US#32 1:39.24. That group included Abilene Ranschau, Jasmine Blue, Morgan Meese and Lucy Schneekloth and they also won the 4x100 relay. Ranschau also won the 100 hurdles.

- Freshman Payton Wensel of Linn-Mar won the Class 4A girls 400 meters in 55.96. She anchored the runner-up 4x400 relay team.

- Lexus Lovan, one of three triplets on the Urbandale track team, won the girls 4A long jump title with 19-1. Her sister Jamaica was second. They were also on two scoring relays together and Lexus was fifth in the 100.   

- In Class 3A, freshman Julia Schumacher of Assumption led a 1-2 finish in the 3,000 meters with teammate Joy Ripslinger, a sophomore. They ran 10:10.11 and 10:10.71. Schumacher was on the third place 4x800 relay squad. Ripslinger broke the meet record in the 800 on the way to victory in 2:10.38 and was also third in the 400 meters. In the 1,500 meters, the teammates went 2-3. Ripslinger (4:43.47) and Schumacher (4:45.81) both trailed Decorah senior Amanda Taylor (4:40.59).

- Thomas Pollard of Gilbert broke the Class 3A meet record in the 1,600 with 4:09.67 and he also won the 3,200 for the second straight year, running 9:07.41. He also anchored his team to the 4x800 relay title.

- Dianna Slight, a sophomore from Boone, won the 3A girls 400 meters in 56.30.

- Shelby Gunnells of Solon threw 45-3.50 to win the 3A girls shot put for the second year in a row and was also runner-up in the discus.

- Connor Ham from Solon won two events in the 3A boys meet -- the 110 hurdles (14.30, 14.03 prelim) and the 200 (22.35). It was his third straight hurdles title, second for the 200.

- Kiana Phelps of Kingsley-Pierson, the No. 2 discus thrower in the country, threw 166-4 at the 2A state meet to break the meet record by 15 feet. She also collected second place in the shot put with 42-8.50.

- Natalie Halfman from Saint Ansgar was the star of the Class 2A meet, winning the 100 (12.49), the 200 (24.59) and the 400 (54.65). She also anchored the winning 800 sprint medley relay. This is signficant because a year earlier Halfman placed second four times -- three times to Jasmine Staebler. But this time, Staebler defended her 800 meter title (2:14.07) but not the 200 or the 400.

- Weldon Hunter of Albia, a junior, won the Class 2A boys 400 meters in 48.61. He anchored his team to victory in the 4x400 (3:20.74) and the team also placed second in the 4x200.

- Jacob Smith, a junior from West Burlington, ran 52.64 to win the Class 2A 400 hurdles and also won the 110 hurdles in 14.86. He finished the season ranked US#11 in the 400 hurdles.

- Jeff Giannettino from West Burlington jumped 6-11 to win the Class 2A high jump for the third straight year. He also jumped 7-1 at the Drake Relays.

- Freshman Cori DeJong from Western Christian jumped 5-7 to win the Class 2A girls high jump.

- The Monticello boys put together a Class 2A meet record 7:50.39 to win the 4x800 relay. That happened only after Kingsley-Pierson, which ran 7:48.95, dropped the baton short of the finish line.

- Maddie Bell from Hudson won the 1A 400 with 57.75. She also ran on a record-breaking 800-meter sprint medley relay (1:28.00). She was also third in the 200 meters and ran a leg on the second place 4x400. 

- Sophomore Cole Moeller from Calamus-Wheatland won the 1A high jump with 6-9.

- Rebekah Topham from Griswold won the 1A 3,000 with 10:30.80 and the 1,500 in 4:45.76. She was also second in the 800 meters. 

Highs and Lows: Nic Scheelhaase of 2A Kingsley-Pierson had a sensational meet interrupted by a controversial ruling in the 4x800 relay. Scheelhaase made up 15 meters on the anchor leg and crossed the finish line in 7:48.95 for a new meet record. However, the baton slipped out of his hand before he crossed the line and the result was a disqualification. The Iowa State recruit came back the next day and won the 800 meters final in 1:53.32, anchored the winning sprint medley relay and also placed third in the 400 meters.