Murphy gets his moment

FORT DODGE - Redemption was his. The championship was theirs.

Daniel Murphy let loose the frustration of last year's misfortune, leading Linn-Mar to the Class 4A boys' title at the state cross country meet Saturday morning at Lakeside Golf Course.

'I'm speechless,” he said. 'It's an amazing feeling, absolutely incredible.”

Linn-Mar had three runners in the top 10 - Murphy was sixth, Michael Mather was eighth, Ryan Murphy was 10th - and unseated last year's champion, Cedar Rapids Prairie, by an 85-98 margin for a 1-2 Metro finish. Johnston (111 points) was third.

The title was Linn-Mar's first.

'It feels great to get the job done,” said Lions Coach Todd Goodell. 'The kids deserve so much credit. Even after what happened last year, they stayed positive, kept working and believed in themselves.”

The elder Murphy embodied that belief. Last year, he succumbed to dehydration and/or illness in the final half mile and finished last. More than an hour after Saturday's race, he was spotted on the Lakeside course, still beaming.

'We did it,” he said. 'That's all that matters.”

Prairie's Jake Moore, Tysen VanDraska was Matt Lorenz were fourth, seventh and 15th. All three will return next year.

'We ran great,” Prairie Coach Bill Schwarz said. 'We were hoping to take home a trophy.”

After a brief interview, Schwarz sought out Goodell and bear-hugged him. The Lions and the Hawks met outside the clubhouse, trophies in tow, for a group picture of Metro running greatness.

Moore charged late to match last year's finish.

'I heard people yelling that I could catch Murphy, so I kind of went after him,” Moore said.

Daniel Soto of West Des Moines Valley outran Ryan Schweizer of West Des Moines Dowling in the final stretch to win the boys' title in 15:24. Schweizer was next in 15:27.

The girls' race had a similar finish, with Megan Schott of Des Moines Roosevelt (14:11) surging past Jordyn Kleve of Johnston (14:14).

Iowa City West freshman Bailey Nock was third, in 14:19.

'I just prayed that I would do my best,” Nock said. 'I tried not to think about it too much. I shouldn't worry as much as I do. I have wonderful coaches that helped me so much. Going from junior high to high school, it's not an easy thing.”

Johnston won the girls' crown with 64 points. Urbandale was second with 82. West was fourth.

Pleasant Valley's Mckenzie Yanek, the defending girls' champion, did not compete Saturday because of illness. The entire Pleasant Valley team withdrew because of what was believed to be a food-poisoning epidemic that ravaged the team overnight.

Akash Borde of West was ninth in the boys' race. West's Emmie Skopec was 13th in the girls' competition, and Mary Arch of Iowa City High was 16th. Amber Decker of Linn-Mar was the top Metro girl in 21st, leading the Lions to sixth in the girls' team race.

STATE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Saturday, at Lakeside Golf Course, Fort Dodge

CLASS 4A GIRLS

Teams - 1. Johnston 64, 2. Urbandale 82, 3. Ames 102, 4. Iowa City West 165, 5. West Des Moines Dowling 175, 6. Linn-Mar 176, 7. Waukee 184, 8. Des Moines Roosevelt 199, 9. Ankeny Centennial 218, 10. Iowa City High 223, 11. Muscatine 224, 12. Bettendorf 252, 13. Dubuque Hempstead 310, 14. Southeast Polk 324.

Individuals - 1. Megan Schott (DM Roosevelt), 14:11; 2. Jordyn Kleve (Johnston), 14:14; 3. Bailey Nock (IC West), 14:19; 4. Brina Kraft (Muscatine), 14:31; 5. Elyse Prescott (Urbandale), 14:33; 6. Caroline Marnin (Ames), 14:36; 7. Jessica McKee (Johnston), 14:39; 8. Trina Moreno (Urbandale), 14:39; 9. Grace Coen (Newton), 14:42; 10. Rachel Brush (Waukee), 14:44; 11. Kate Smith (Ankeny Centennial), 14:45; 12. Julia Noah (Urbandale), 14:48; 13. Emmie Skopec (IC West), 14:51; 14. Katelyn Moore (Ames), 14:57; 15. Vivian Broderick (WDM Dowling), 15:01.

CLASS 4A BOYS

Teams - 1. Linn-Mar 85, 2. Cedar Rapids Prairie 98, 3. Johnston 111, 4. Cedar Falls 119, 5. Pleasant Valley 127, 6. West Des Moines Valley 159, 7. West Des Moines Dowling 179, 8. Ames 210, 9. Iowa City West 219, 10. Bettendorf 276, 11. Fort Dodge 279, 12. Dubuque Senior 282, 13. Dubuque Hempstead 287, 14. Waukee 290, 15. Urbandale 335.

Individuals - 1. Daniel Solo (WDM Valley), 15:24; 2. Ryan Schweizer (WDM Dowling), 15:27; 3. Patrick Bose (Johnston), 15:41; 4. Jake Moore (CR Prairie), 15:42; 5. Alex Jackson (Fort Dodge), 15:45; 6. Daniel Murphy (Linn-Mar), 15:45; 7. Tysen VanDraska (CR Prairie), 15:54; 8. Michael Mather (Linn-Mar), 15:58; 9. Akash Borde (IC West), 15:59; 10. Ryan Murphy (Linn-Mar), 16:00; 11. Sam Schillinger (Cedar Falls), 16:01; 12. Drew Hershey (Johnston), 16:08; 13. Atem Akok (Ames), 16:09; 14. Brandon Cooley (Bettendorf), 16:09; 15. Matt Lorenz (CR Prairie), 16:09.

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com