Solon, Mid-Prairie are girls’ state track and field champions

Spartans score big across the board in the relays for 3A title; Golden Hawks make it 4 in a row in 2A

May. 21, 2022 7:32 pm, Updated: May. 21, 2022 8:35 pm

Solon's Gracie Federspiel (right) talks to anchor runner Emma Bock and teammates Meghan O'Neill and Kaia Holtkamp after their Class 3A 1,600-meter relay win at the state track and field meet Saturday at Drake Stadium. The Spartans won the 3A team championship. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)

Reporters crouch as they interview Mid-Prairie's Mitzi Evans after she won the Class 2A 800-meter run Saturday. Evans led the Golden Hawks to their fourth straight girls’ 2A title. (Jim Slosiarek/The Gazette)

DES MOINES — They knew they had it wrapped up. But for the Solon Spartans, a championship just wouldn’t have been a championship without a proper capper.

“It wouldn’t have been as good without this last relay,” Emma Bock said after the Spartans put on a bow on the Class 3A girls’ state crown with a 1,600-meter relay title Saturday at Drake Stadium.

The Spartans scored in all seven relays and racked up 84 points to win their second title. Solon shared the 2A crown in 2010.

This championship thing is becoming routine for the Mid-Prairie girls, who won their fourth consecutive 2A title. The Golden Hawks got plenty of glory all weekend from Mitzi Evans and Danielle Hostetler and scored 65 points, 10 more than runner-up Van Meter.

“I’m so proud of our team as a whole,” said Evans, who won three events. “They stepped up to it.”

Western Dubuque’s Audrey Biermann duplicated her feat of perfection from a year ago, winning four Class 3A girls’ events — the 100-, 200- and 400-meter races and anchoring the Bobcats’ winning sprint medley relay.

“The emotions are hitting right now,” Biermann said after capping it with a 24.42-second effort in the 200. “I’m so happy with what I accomplied.”

West Des Moines Dowling (4A), Dallas Center-Grimes (3A), Spirit Lake (2A) and New London (1A) were the boys’ champions.

Iowa City High was the 4A runner-up. Williamsburg and Lisbon were third in 2A and 1A, respectively.

Waukee Northwest won the Class 4A girls’ title in its first year of existence. It’s the sixth straight big-school title for a team from Waukee. Nashua-Plainfield claimed the 1A girls’ crown.

City High earned a share of third place in 4A; Biermann led Western Dubuque to third in 3A.

A Saturday-record crowd of 9,712 viewed the meet. The three-day total attendance of 39,415 also was a record.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com