Iowa City West’s Alex McKane runs 2nd in Class 4A state cross country

FORT DODGE — Since early summer, Alex McKane has had a one-track mind.

The senior from Iowa City West visualized big things. And Friday, he accomplished them.

McKane earned Class 4A runner-up honors at the state cross country championships Friday morning at Lakeside Golf Course.

“I wanted to shake it up a little,” McKane said. “I’ve been thinking about this since June.”

McKane ran with a crowded lead pack through the first mile, then the group of contenders gradually dwindled. By 2 1/2 miles, it was McKane and West Des Moines Dowling’s Jackson Heidesch, side by side, free from traffic.

Heidesch won the race in 15:24; McKane was next in 15:30.

“I’m not 100-percent pleased with the outcome, but I can walk away knowing I did everything I could,” McKane said.

Heidesch led Dowling to the team title, the Maroons unseating 2020 champion Sioux City North, 56 points to 62. Iowa City High was third with 72.

Ford Washburn paced the Little Hawks with a fourth-place finish. Ammon Smith was 11th, Elliot Dunnwald 16th.

Sixth last year, Washburn surprised himself by hanging with the lead pack for 2 miles.

“I didn’t think I’d be right at the front,” he said. “It was kind of crazy. I thought I would be at about 10th or 15th at 2 miles, but I ended up leading.”

Washburn and Smith are juniors, as are Noah Carey and Truman Thompson, who finished 28th and 29th.

“I definitely think we have a chance to win it next year,” Smith said.

The Little Hawks were at their best in the final 2 miles.

“We have a lot of guys who start slow, then pick it up and really attack the last part of the race,” Smith said.

Twenty-one competitors were within three seconds of the lead, all sub-5:00, at a mile.

Linn-Mar’s Hayden Kuhn finished ninth; Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Miles Wilson was 19th.

Iowa City Liberty’s Ashlyn Keeney was a top-10 girls’ finisher for the third time, finishing seventh.

Keeney was second as a sophomore, ninth as a junior.

“I was hoping to do quite a bit better,” Keeney said. “It was tough today. The wind was hard.

“I felt the pace was really hard, They pulled away from me at the beginning, then I was trying to pick off people.”

Keeney was 15th at a mile, then moved up gradually.

Addison Dorenkamp of West Des Moines Valley took the lead early and sustained control throughout. The sophomore finished in 17:55, 19 seconds ahead of teammate Kamryn Ensley.

Led by a 5-6 finish from Keelee Leitzen and Julia Gehl, Dubuque Hempstead captured the team title with 108 points. Pleasant Valley was second with 132, followed by Ames (141), Johnston (156) and Cedar Rapids Prairie (164).

Prairie was making its fourth straight state appearance; the Hawks were eighth, eighth and ninth in their other three visits. Keirra Hess and Gabby Cortez were 13th and 19th.

City High’s girls were 12th, Linn-Mar was 13th.

Iowa City West, Iowa City Liberty and Prairie were eighth, 12th and 15th in the boys competition.

CLASS 4A STATE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Fort Dodge (Lakeside Golf Course)

GIRLS RESULTS

Teams — 1. Dubuque Hempstead 108, 2. Pleasant Valley 132, 3. Ames 141, 4. Johnston 156, 5. Cedar Rapids Prairie 164, 6. Ankeny 166, 7. West Des Moines Valley 177, 8. Des Moines Roosevelt 182, 9. Dubuque Senior 184, 10. Ankeny Centennial 188, 11. West Des Moines Dowling 218, 12. Iowa City High 250, 13. Linn-Mar 288, 14. Urbandale 317, 15. Indianola 336.

Individuals — 1. Addison Dorenkamp (Valley), 17:55; 2. Kamryn Ensley (Valley), 18:14; 3. Kaia Downs (Sioux City East), 18:18; 4. Olivia Verde (Johnston), 18:23; 5. Keelee Leitzen (Hempstead), 18:24; 6. Julia Gehl (Hempstead), 18:30; 7. Ashlyn Keeney (Iowa City Liberty), 18:35; 8. Rondi Quass (Centennial), 18:44; 9. Abi Hahn (Roosevelt), 18:55; 10. Claire Helmers (Ames), 18:57; 11. Drew Beason (Ankeny), 18:59; 12. Adrienne Buettner-Cable (Roosevelt), 19:02; 13. Keirra Hess (Prairie), 19:03; 14. Josie Case (PV), 19:10; 15. Leah Kiapatauskas (Dbq Senior), 19:13; 16. Lizzie McVey (PV), 19:13; 17. Marley Tuek (Ames), 19:14; 18. Alli Macke (Ankeny), 19:17; 19. Gabby Cortez (Prairie), 19:19; 20. Faith Nead (North Scott), 19:19.

BOYS RESULTS

Teams — 1. West Des Moines Dowling 56, 2. Sioux City North 62, 3. Iowa City High 72, 4. Johnston 140, 5. Cedar Falls 158, 6. Norwalk 179, 7. Dubuque Hempstead 196, 8. Iowa City West 200, 9. Pleasant Valley 241, 10. Waukee Northwest 254, 11. Urbandale 282, 12. Iowa City Liberty 293, 13. Ankeny 299, 14. Ankeny Centennial 307, 15. Cedar Rapids Prairie 333.

Individuals — 1. Jackson Heidesch (Dowling), 15:24; 2. Alex McKane (I.C. West), 15:30; 3. Gabe Nash (S.C. North), 15:32; 4. Ford Washburn (City High), 15:32; 5. Will Lohr (S.C. North), 15:36; 6. Jaxson Plumb (Johnston), 15:55; 7. Will Ryan (Dowling), 15:57; 8. Natneal Kifle (S.C. North), 16:00; 9. Hayden Kuhn (Linn-Mar), 16:01; 10. Tyler Schweizer (Dowling), 16:06; 11. Ammon Smith (City High), 16:06; 12. Brayden Burnett (Cedar Falls), 16:10; 13. Ethan Eichhorn (Lewis Central), 16:10; 14. Carson Owens (Southeast Polk), 16:12; 15. Derek Leicht (Hempstead), 16:12; 16. Elliot Dunnwald (City High), 16:14; 17. Jacob Mumey (PV), 16:15; 18. Curtis Johnson (Indianola), 16:16; 19. Miles Wilson (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 16:17; 20. Yemane Kifle (S.C. North), 16:20.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com