Dissecting the 2024 area conference high school track and field meets: MVC, Wamac, River Valley and Tri-Rivers

UPDATED WITH TIME CHANGES:

MVC Mississippi Division G/B at Cedar Falls (4:30 p.m. Friday)

MVC Valley Division G/B at Iowa City West (noon Friday)

River Valley G/B at Monticello (11 a.m. Friday)

Tri-Rivers at Edgewood (4 p.m. Monday)

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The best girls’ track and field team in the Wamac Conference? The best girls’ track and field team in the area?

Thursday night, we’ll know the answer to both.

Solon is the incumbent. Mount Vernon is the challenger. They’ll collide at the Wamac meet at Wolves Stadium in Marion.

That riveting duel — the Spartans are No. 1, the Mustangs No. 2 in this week’s area girls’ Super Ten — is the top storyline as the majority of area conferences are scheduled to hold their league championships late this week.

Like the Wamac, the River Valley and Tri-Rivers will hold their boys’ and girls’ competitions together.

As for the Mississippi Valley Conference, that pie is split four ways. In the Mississippi Division, the girls are at Dalzell Field in Dubuque while the boys congregate at North Liberty. In the Valley Division, the girls are at Linn-Mar, the boys at Epworth.

Here is a form chart for each of Thursday’s area meets:

MVC Mississippi Division

GIRLS (4:30 p.m. Friday, at Cedar Falls)

It’s a three-team race with little margin for error. Cedar Rapids Prairie sprint ace Asia Russell is the favorite in the 100 and 200, and the Hawks have the top 400-meter relay. Cedar Falls is seeded to double-score in every individual event on the track, but the Tigers are vulnerable in the field events. Defending champion Iowa City Liberty has an opportunity to repeat behind distance runner Cori Mac, and the Lightning are favored in two field events.

Projected leaders: Cedar Rapids Prairie 158, Cedar Falls 149, Iowa City Liberty 147, Dubuque Senior 111.

BOYS (4:30 p.m. Friday, at Cedar Falls)

Led by Drake Relays 3,200-meter champion Jaden Merrick, Cedar Falls is seeded 1-2 in the 800-, 1,600- and 3,200-meter races, and that might be enough to separate the Tigers from 2023 champion Cedar Rapids Prairie. The Tigers are seeded to win 10 events. Prairie’s Jackson Johannes won the 400-meter title at Drake, and the Hawks are capable of winning three field events.

Projected leaders: Cedar Falls 206, Cedar Rapids Prairie 171, Dubuque Senior 108, Iowa City Liberty 101.

MVC Valley Division

GIRLS (Noon Friday, at Iowa City West)

This can be billed as Dubuque Hempstead’s elite distance runners against Linn-Mar’s lights-out field-event crew. The Lions’ Petra Sherman (long jump), Abby Mecklenburg (long jump) and Maia Denge-Hagen (high jump) were top-five finishers at Drake. Hempstead counters with the distance duo of Keelee Leitzen and Julia Gehl. Western Dubuque should dominate the sprints with the likes of Brynn Walters, Ava Ramler and others.

Projected leaders: Dubuque Hempstead 137, Linn-Mar 135, Iowa City High 103, Western Dubuque 102.

BOYS (Noon Friday, at Iowa City West)

Iowa City West is a state-championship contender in Class 4A; Western Dubuque is a 3A title hopeful. The Trojans and the Bobcats are the cream of the crop in this division. Must of West’s program will run through the star trio of Aidan Jacobsen, Izaiah Loveless and Moustafa Tiea. Western Dubuque has a budding distance star in sophomore Quentin Nauman, and is stacked in the hurdles. Depth could lift Cedar Rapids Kennedy into contention.

Projected leaders: Iowa City West 176, Western Dubuque 154, Cedar Rapids Kennedy 119, Iowa City High 83.

Wamac Conference

(4 p.m. Thursday, at Marion)

GIRLS

Solon scored 194 points on its way to the title last year, and the Spartans are going to have to approach that number again to hold off Mount Vernon. Both teams are stacked throughout their 19-event programs, and both should double-score in most individual events. Give the youthful Mustangs a slight edge in the field events and the distances; the veteran Spartans are a smidge better in the sprints. Expect Marion and Williamsburg to separate themselves from the rest of the pack.

Projected leaders: Mount Vernon 189, Solon 172, Marion 81, Williamsburg 67.

BOYS

Strength across the board makes Solon a solid favorite to retain its crown. The Spartans are projected to score in the top three in 14 events, six of which they have the top time/distance. That includes Ben Kampman, the all-class state leader in the discus at 200 feet, 5 inches. Center Point-Urbana and Clear Creek Amana are the Spartans’ main threats, along with 2023 runner-up Williamsburg. CPU sports a strong herd of long sprinters, CCA is hurdles-oriented and Williamsburg has sprint speed, plus versatile field-eventer Derek Weisskopf.

Projected leaders: Solon 145, Center Point-Urbana 105, Clear Creek Amana 102, Williamsburg 90.

River Valley Conference

(11 a.m. Friday, at Monticello)

GIRLS

A runaway league champion last year, Mid-Prairie will face a much stiffer challenge in what appears to be a three-team race. The arrival of Noelle Steines (from Calamus-Wheatland) makes Tipton — already stacked in the middle distances — a bona fide contender. Mid-Prairie has a complete lineup, and possesses a sprint star in Jovi Evans and a distance veteran in Danielle Hostetler. Taylor Wing headlines Maquoketa’s knockout sprint crew. Both Mid-Prairie and Tipton have an advantage on the Cardinals in the field events.

Projected leaders: Mid-Prairie 137, Tipton 129, Maquoketa 108, Cascade 49.

BOYS

Arrive early, because some of the best stuff will come from the field events. Camanche’s Tyson Seeser has cleared 6 feet, 10 inches in the high jump, and Monticello’s Zach Yates and Preston Ries make an unmatchable tandem in the throws. As for the team race ... Bellevue is — in terms of enrollment — the smallest school in the River Valley, but the Comets are projected to ride their relay prowess to the title. If Bellevue slides back to the pack, no fewer than six other teams (Mid-Prairie, Monticello, Durant, Maquoketa, Northeast and Tipton) are capable of taking the crown.

Projected leaders: Bellevue 109, Mid-Prairie 74, Monticello 68, Durant 66.

Tri-Rivers Conference

(4 p.m. Monday, at Edgewood)

GIRLS

For whatever reason, this race is generally tricky to predict. Defending-champion North Linn can never be overlooked. Host Edgewood-Colesburg has a pair of sprinting aces in Kaitlyn Hahn and Rylee Atkinson, and the distance duels between Starmont freshman Lauren Krogmann and North Linn veteran Meghan Wheatley will be must-see. Relay strength makes Lisbon the favorite; the Lions are projected to score more than 50 points in the four-legged events.

Projected leaders: Lisbon 119, Edgewood-Colesburg 92, Maquoketa Valley 90, North Linn 89.

BOYS

Lisbon won the title by 53 points in 2022, 60 last year. Expect more of the same from the loaded Lions, who are capable of approaching 200 points. Led by speedsters Baylor Speidel, Tiernan Boots and Dakota Clark, Lisbon is projected to monopolize the sprints, both individually and in relays. Maquoketa Valley has a quality, deep team in its own right, led by distance ace Matthew Schaul. North Cedar possesses a pair of Drake Relays field-event qualifiers in thrower Ethan Thimmes and high-jumper Johny Amina.

Projected leaders: Lisbon 189, Maquoketa Valley 129, Alburnett 97, North Cedar 60.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com