Clutch throw sends Kennedy's Dalles Jacobus out as a champ

DES MOINES — Baby Brother finally got his.

In his final act as a high-school athlete, Cedar Rapids Kennedy's Dalles Jacobus stepped out of a long family shadow and earned a state championship of his own.

Jacobus' last-chance heave of 60 feet, 6 inches vaulted him to the top of the leaderboard in the Class 4A boys' shot put Friday afternoon at Drake Stadium.

'I'm happy my brothers can't talk crap about me not having a ring any more,' a jubilant Jacobus said.

Eldest brother Devon was on a state baseball championship team. Middle bro Derek won a long jump crown. Dalles' last shot came down to his last throw.

And he nailed it.

'I had no doubt in myself,' Jacobus said. 'I knew I had a 60-footer in me.

'(Assistant coach Brian) White said, 'You're clutch. You're a Jacobus.' It's just a thing we have.'

Jacobus took the lead into the finals with a preliminary throw of 58-3, but William Blazek of Western Dubuque shot to the top with a 59-2 heave on his fifth throw, then extended the advantage with a 60-2 3/4 effort on his sixth.

It wasn't enough.

Jacobus got maximum effort into his final throw — 'I almost headbutted the toe board,' he said — and waited for the measurement, then galloped around the event site after it was announced.

• 4A GIRLS: Jefferson wins 4th straight 800 relay

Kennedy takes the team lead into the final day with 48 points. Cedar Falls is second with 41, followed by West Des Moines Dowling (30.5). Cedar Rapids Prairie is tied for fourth with 21.

The Cougars finished with 44 field-event points. Jackson Coker (Thursday's discus champion) was third in the shot, and Shaun Beyer and Malik Haynes went 2-6 in the long jump.

'I'm a little happy, a little not,' Beyer said after his leap of 22-10 1/4. 'It was a good day to PR, but I just fell a little short.'

Beyer's mood brightened after watching Jacobus' heroics.

'That's a competitor,' he said.

Cedar Rapids Washington's Isaiah Nimmers was a close second to Cedar Falls' Nathan Hoy in the 400-meter hurdles. Hoy surged down the stretch to take the gold in 52.92 seconds; Nimmers finished in 52.96.

'I think it's the best I've run by more than a second,' Nimmers said. 'He just finished a little harder.

'I knew he was coming. (Hoy) did that at districts, and he did it the meet before that.'

Linn-Mar was third in the 800-meter relay; Prairie was third in the 1,600-meter medley.

STATE TRACK & FIELD: CLASS 4A BOYS

Teams — 1. Cedar Rapids Kennedy 48, 2. Cedar Falls 41, 3. West Des Moines Dowling 30.5, 4. (tie) Bettendorf and Cedar Rapids Prairie 21, 6. West Des Moines Valley 19, 7. Dubuque Senior 18, 8. (tie) Ames and Pleasant Valley 17, 10. Cedar Rapids Washington 16.

Results (top 3, plus area)

Long jump — 1. DeAngelo Jackson (Dubuque Senior), 23-7; 2. Shaun Beyer (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 22-10 1/4; 3. Corey Lamonte (Davenport North), 22-3 1/4; 6. Malik Haynes (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 21-9 3/4.

Shot put — 1. Dalles Jacobus (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 60-6; 2. William Blaser (Western Dubuque), 60-2 3/4; 3. Jackson Coker (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 57-4; 4. Dallas Hobbs (Cedar Rapids Washington), 57-1.

800 relay — 1. Sioux City East (Flemister, Moon, Godfrey, Flemister), 1:28.28; 2. Pleasant Valley, 1:28.65; 3. Linn-Mar, 1:28.83l; 6. Cedar Rapids Washington, 1:29.29; 8. Cedar Rapids Jefferson, 1:29.68

400 hurdles — 1. Nathan Hoy (Cedar Falls), 52.92; 2. Isaiah Nimmers (Cedar Rapids Washington), 52.96; 3. Collin Seymour (Dubuque Senior), 53.34; 5. Austin Coates (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 53.89; 6. Shamari Scott (Iowa City High), 54.90; 7. Nick House (Linn-Mar), 54.92.

1,600 medley relay — 1. West Des Moines Dowling (Morse, Hummel, Johnson, Schweizer), 3:26.26; 2. Cedar Falls, 3:27.85; 3. Cedar Rapids Prairie, 3:28.95.

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