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Lisbon’s Kole Becker overcomes state track injury to repeat in 1A 110 hurdles
Lions take third in the team race
Lisbon's Kole Becker celebrates his 1A 110-meter hurdles win at the 2022 Iowa High School Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa, on Saturday, May 21, 2022. Becker finished in 14.45. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
DES MOINES — Kole Becker pushed through the pain.
The Lisbon star sustained an ankle injury early in the Class 1A boys’ state track and field meet, which hindered his performance, but didn’t diminish his drive to succeed.
Becker showed that trademark competitiveness Saturday, racing to a title in the 110-meter hurdles in a near-record time of 14.45 seconds. The future Iowa State decathlete won two championships in the state meet, bringing his overall haul of golds to six despite the injury.
"Pure joy after things didn’t go my way,” said Becker, who also earned second- and third-place finishes this weekend. “I’m just really happy.”
Lisbon's Kole Becker (right) clears a hurdle on his way to winning the 1A 110-meter hurdles at the 2022 Iowa High School Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa, on Saturday, May 21, 2022. Becker finished in 14.45. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)
Becker surged late in Saturday’s 110 hurdles to ensure another victory at Drake Stadium, even as the pain worsened with each step.
“I was like, ‘Two hurdles left, I’ve got to give it all I’ve got even though I’m hurting,’” Becker said. “Got it done.”
Lisbon finished third in the 1A team race with 61 points. New London won with 68 points and Earlham took second with 66.
“I think we’ll be happy with that,” Becker said of fishing top-three for the second year in a row. “We obviously wanted to win, but it doesn’t go our way sometimes.”
Iowa Valley’s sprint medley relay team of Clayton Kinzenbaw, Pierce Kienitz, Evan Kearney and Peyton Loffer found a way to churn up a second-place finish. Lawton-Bronson won the race in a 1A state meet record time of 1:33.15. The Tigers finished in 1:34.56.
“I got the baton and (Lawton-Bronson anchor Theo Moseman) was gone,” said Loffer, who also took fourth in the 400 and helped his team place with in the 800-meter relay. “I was trying my best to stay with him, but I’m proud of our team and what we’ve done this whole season. It’s just good things all around.”
Belle Plaine’s shuttle hurdle relay team of Ethan Hamilton, Connor Timm, Eli Ehlen and Ben DeMeulenaere finished second in the event for the second year in a row. The Plainsmen clocked in at 1:01.07.
“It’s been the same group ever since day one,” said Ehlen, one of three seniors in that group. “Last year was the first time I ever jumped over a hurdle for the first time, so it was pretty impressive just to be here. It sucks that we got second, but the work that we’ve all put in at practice and everything — at least we made it here.”
