South Winneshiek takes inaugural Class 2A sprint medley

DES MOINES — South Winneshiek was far enough behind that no one considered it a factor.

Senior Nathan Ward saw jerseys in front of him and PA announcer Mike Jay hadn't called his school's name as teams rounded the final turn. Ward knew he had some work ahead of him.

'My guys got me in a great position and I just needed to work,' Ward said. 'I just needed to work and get these guys some medals and bring our school a championship home.'

Ward made up some ground with half the straightaway to go and surged toward the finish, snagging South Winneshiek the Class 2A sprint medley title.

The Warriors — Alex Holthaus, Matthew Holthaus, Rodney Schwartzhoff and Ward — clocked in at 1:35.44, edging North Fayette Valley (1:35.62). Ward's familiarity with North Fayette Valley and its anchor, senior Dylan Larson, made the moment stand out even more.

The boys sprint medley relay was implemented this year, giving South Winneshiek the state meet record.

'(Our coaches) put us in the events that they know we can succeed in,' Ward said. 'We just keep pushing and they push us. Every practice, every meet, we just try to get a little bit better every time. It works out for us in the end.'

Dyersville Beckman was fourth in the Class 2A team race with 34 points. The Blazers got a second-place finish in the 400-meter relay (43.66) and were third in the 1,600-meter relay (3:26.04).

Cascade's Will McAllister was second in the 110-meter hurdles (14.94). Anamosa was tied for fifth in the final team standings alongside Dike-New Hartford with 29 points.

STATE TRACK & FIELD MEET: CLASS 2A BOYS

Teams (top 10) — T-1. KP-WC, 61; T-1. Madrid, 61; 3. Albia, 52; 4. Dyersville Beckman, 34; T-5. Dike-New Hartford, 29; T-5. Anamosa, 29; T-7. Kuemper Catholic, 23; T-7. Northeast, 23; T-9. Aplington-Parkersburg, 22; T-9. Treynor, 22

Results (top 3, plus area)

Sprint medley relay — 1. South Winneshiek (Holthaus, Holthaus, Schwartzhoff, Ward), 1:35.44; 2. North Fayette Valley, 1:35.62; 3. Treynor, 1:36.04; 4. Anamosa, 1:36.22

800 — 1. Alec Still (KP-WC), 1:56.53; 2. Keagan John (New Hampton), 1:57.45; 3. Wyatt Schmidt (Northeast), 1:57.64

Shuttle hurdle relay — 1. Central Decatur (Davis, Pedersen, Spidle, Boothe), 59.22; 2. Cherokee, 59.31; 3. Cascade, 59.53; 7. Oelwein, 1:01.59

100 — 1. Michael Santi (Madrid), 10.91; 2. Gage Clay (AHSTW), 11.08; 3. Tony Leshen (Albia), 11.11

110 hurdles — 1. Michael Santi (Madrid), 14.76; 2. Will McAllister (Cascade), 14.94; 3. Riley Barrett (Aplington-Parkersburg), 15.21; 5. Jace Burrow (North Fayette Valley), 15.45

200 — 1. Gage Clay (AHSTW), 21.98; 2. Michael Santi (Madrid), 22.02; 3. Jacob Clouse (Albia), 22.22; 8. Ethan Wyant (Jesup), 23.02

1,600 — 1. Andrew Stumbo (Ogden), 4:25.26; 2. Eric Hoffman (KP-WC), 4:25.33; 3. Sean McDermott (Madrid), 4:26.84; 5. Aaron Loes (Monticello), 4:29.33

400-relay — 1. Albia (Leshen, Winke, Clouse, Sinnott), 42.67; 2. Dyersville Beckman, 43.66; 3. Boyden-Hull/Rock Valley, 44.37; 5. North Fayette Valley, 44.77; DQ North Cedar

1,600-relay — 1. Albia (Leshen, Sinnott, Winke, Clouse), 3:20.46; 2. Dike-New Hartford, 3:24.92; 3. Dyersville Beckman, 3:26.04; 4. Anamosa, 3:27.24

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