Drake Relays 2024: 5 Iowa high school things to watch

DES MOINES — Five things to watch in the high school portion of the Drake Relays, which runs Thursday through Saturday at Drake Stadium.

Gazette-area title hopefuls

Four different area boys, from four different area schools, are seeded No. 1 in four different events.

* Solon’s Ben Kampman led the discus field at the conclusion of qualifying anyway, then opened eyes further with an effort of 200 feet, 5 inches Tuesday at Stanwood, which ranks No. 5 statewide all-time.

* Cedar Rapids Prairie’s T.Y. Pour is tops in the long jump (23 feet, 1 inch).

* Iowa City West’s Aidan Jacobsen is the favorite in the 400-meter hurdles at 52.52 seconds.

* South Tama’s Tommy Tyynismaa has run a state-leading 1:54.12 in the 800 meters.

* Western Dubuque owns the top-seeded boys’ shuttle hurdle relay; the Bobcats have run 59.23 seconds.

If an area girls’ champion arises, it’s most likely to come in a field event. Linn-Mar’s Abby Mecklenburg is seeded second in the long jump; HLV’s Ema Roberts is No. 2 in the high jump.

Speed to burn at Ankeny

Ankeny High School enjoys an embarrassment of riches in boys’ sprinting.

The Hawks have two of the top three times in the 100 meters and are ranked 1-2-3 in the 200 (an event which isn’t contested at Drake, but still ... ).

No wonder they already have posted an all-time Iowa best in the 800-meter relay — 1:26.12 on April 9.

They’ll also pursue the Iowa all-time record in the 400-meter relay (41.33) this weekend. They have run 41.76 this season.

Reese is the word

There’s a good chance that the girls’ star of the weekend won’t hail from a big-city school.

Clear Lake junior Reese Brownlee is the top seed in three events — the 400 meters (56.60 seconds), 400-meter hurdles (1:01.95) and long jump (19 feet, 0 1/4 inches).

Only one Iowa girl — the great Debbie Esser of Woodbine (57.30 in 1975) — has broken the 60-second barrier in the 400 hurdles.

Old faces, new places

Three high-profile juniors have transferred, and each make their new teams substantially stronger.

* Ani Wedemeyer (formerly of Iowa City High) helps fortify the Pleasant Valley girls’ middle-distance events, while Noelle Steines (she led Calamus-Wheatland to the Class 1A state title last year) does the same for Tipton.

* Logan Fairchild was a sprint star at Winterset, and now is part of Ankeny’s speedy crew.

The weather

It’s going to be warmer than usual, but Friday could be a problem.

The Friday forecast calls for wind (20-30 mph, out of the southeast) and a virtual 100-percent chance of rain with a potential for severe thunderstorms.

High temperatures are expected to be in the 70s all three days.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com