Gosch-to-Josh: A winning combo

DES MOINES -- The Gosch-and-Josh combination is a fleeting one. Dalton Gosch is just getting his feet wet. Josh Evans is putting his final touches on a masterpiece of a high school distance-running career.

Friday, their paths intersected. It was memorable.

Gosch put Linn-Mar into contention, then Evans ran a gasp-inducing 1:51.0 split that lifted the Lions to a meet-record 1,600-meter medley relay effort at the Drake Relays.

"I heard Josh's split, and my mouth just dropped," said leadoff man Tristan Freese. "You can always count on Josh. He can come back from anything."

Freese, Daniel Gorsich, Gosch and Evans finished in 3 minutes, 26.89 seconds, eclipsing Iowa City High's 2004 standard of 3:27.18.

Evans was nosed out Thursday in the 3,200 by Boone's Albert Meier -- the fastest 3,200 in Drake history. He wasn't going to be denied again.

"I was praying the whole time," Evans said. "I was thinking, 'I can stay at this pace. It's an 800, it's supposed to hurt.'"

Gosch, a freshman, got his first whiff of big-meet experience, and aced his initial exam. The rookie received the baton off the lead pace, but gained ground and made it manageable for Evans.

"I just tried to think of it as a very, very competitive practice," Gosch said. "I was a little intimidated, but for the most part, I was just excited to be here."

Evans was on the shoulder of West Des Moines Dowling's Ryan Schweizer with 400 meters to go, then won going away. Dowling was second in 3:28.08.

Dalton Ferguson completed a Solon shot put sweep, tossing it 55 feet, 4 1/2 inches. His triumph came a day after schoolmate Shelby Gunnells captured the girls' title.

"It's great," Ferguson said. "First in both, it's pretty special. Having a (throws coach) like (Brad Wymer), it helps us a lot. He puts in the work, and so do we."

Ferguson took the lead with an opening throw of 53-11 1/4, then improved it to 54-9, then 55-4 1/2, in this next two attempts.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson's male sprinters have lived in the long shadow of their female counterparts recently, but dashed out and felt the sunlight Friday.

Jacob Beaton, Nate Karlan, Dan Larson and Dylan Chittick ran 1:28.56 in the 800 relay, finishing second to Waukee's 1:27.81.

"We've always been decent, but this year, we've really pulled ahead," Karlan said. "Our Performance PE and lifting program in the offseason has made a big difference."

Iowa City High's Bryson Runge was second in the 100, in 10.84 seconds. Dowling's Rico Gafford won it in 10.62, just one-hundredth of a second off the Drake record.

Sioux City East's Carter Lilly broke a Drake record in the boys' 800, finishing in 1:54.62. Other boys' winners were Jeff Giannettino of West Burlington-Notre Dame (7 feet in the high jump) and Sydne Davis of Des Moines Roosevelt (14.40 in the 110 hurdles). 

DRAKE RELAYS: BOYS' FRIDAY RESULTS

Shot put -- 1. Dalton Ferguson (Solon), 55-4 1/2; 2. Jacob Barents (Lewis Central), 54-11 3/4; 3. Zach Samson (Baxter CMB), 53-5 1/2; 4. Seth Snitker (Waukon), 53-2 3/4; 5. Keegan Tritle (Lisbon), 52-2 3/4; 6. Daniel Pike (Monticello), 52-1 1/4; 7. Clay Meinders (Ackley AGWSR), 51-11 3/4; 8. Nathan Harden (Clinton), 51-3 3/4.

High jump -- 1. Jeff Giannettino (West Burlington-Notre Dame), 7-0; 2. Jared Seay (Johnston), 6-8; 3. Xavior Williams (West Burlington-Notre Dame), 6-8; 4. Cody Jamison (Monticello), 6-5; 5. Willie Rhoads (Cedar Rapids Kennedy), 6-5; 6. Reese Iverson (Dallas Center-Grimes), 6-5; 7. (tie) Marquise Busch (Cedar Falls) and Will Moore (Mason City Newman), 6-5.

1,600 medley relay -- 1. Linn-Mar (Freese, Gorsich, Gosch, Evans), 3:26.89 (Drake record); 2. West Des Moines Dowling, 3:28.08; 3. Algona, 3:29.98; 4. Johnston, 3:31.97; 5. Pleasant Valley, 3:32.08; 6. Iowa City West, 3:32.39; 7. Fort Madison, 3:32.67; 8. Ames, 3:34.03.

110 hurdles -- 1. Sydne Davis (Des Moines Roosevelt), 14.20; 2. Elijah Young (Des Moines Lincoln), 14.28; 3. Jared Brdicko (Waukee), 14.51; 4. Deonne Harris (Newton), 14.55; 5. Cole Phillips (Mount Pleasant), 14.57; 6. Jayvon Matthews (Davenport Central), 14.78; 7. Kole Butler (Iowa City High), 14.92; 8. Josh Brdicko (Waukee), 15.03.

100 -- 1. Rico Gafford (West Des Moines Dowling), 10.62; 2. Bryson Runge (Iowa City High), 10.84; 3. Meliek Meyer (Lynnville-Sully) 10.84; 4. Tate Christensen (Southeast Polk), 11.02; 5. Tanner Dunkin (Knoxville), 11.02; 6. Ronald Nash (Sioux City East), 11.93; 7. Lance Dunn (Waterloo West), 11.05; 8. Cray Washington (Fort Dodge), 11.48.

800 relay -- 1. Waukee (Ejubovic, Allen, Allen, Lowe), 1:27.81; 2. Cedar Rapids Jefferson, 1:28.56; 3. West Des Moines Dowling, 1:28.65; 4. Cedar Rapids Kennedy, 1:29.46; 5. Albia, 1:29.52; 6. Iowa City High, 1:30.25; 7. Johnston, 1:30.26; 8. Cedar Rapids Prairie, 1:30.51.

800 -- 1. Carter Lilly (Sioux City East), 1:54.62 (Drake record); 2. Jay Wolfe (Creston), 1:55.05; 3. Daniel Chan (Ames), 1:55.94; 4. Tysen Van Draska (Cedar Rapids Prairie), 1:56.17; 5. Austin Krohnke (Waukee), 1:56.40; 6. Daniel Lee (Ames), 1:57.10; 7. Bo Hjelle (Algona), 1:57.26; 8. Bennett Luedtke (Muscatine), 1:57.55.