Tipton sets Class 2A state track and field record in winning first distance medley title since 2007

DES MOINES — Seniors Addie Nerem and Alivia Edens are the rock-solid returning starters.

Emma Hein is the promising freshman. Noelle Steines is essentially the all-star free agent who came in to help Tipton’s distance medley relay team attain a state championship for the first time since 2007 — a feat they achieved Friday morning at the Class 2A state track and field meet at Drake Stadium.

“Ella’s crazy good,” said Nerem, whose four-year quest to earn gold in the event came to fruition. “And then having Noelle come as a junior, it wasn’t hard for us to click. We’re all talented runners, so our personalities just had to click with our running and it just did, I guess.”

No kidding.

The Tigers’ quartet finished the race in a 2A-record time of 4:06.37. Steines — who already won her fifth state title Thursday in the 3,000 — served as the anchor and needed to fend off a spirited charge from Chariton’s Ava Krutsinger entering the final turn on the 800 leg.

But Noelle said no — even though she wasn’t certain she would seal the triumph.

“I don’t think you ever really know,” Steines said. “Because around that corner, somebody was on my shoulder and you just don’t know.”

There’s usually little doubt, however, that Steines — a junior who previously ran for Calamus-Wheatland — will produce a winning kick when it matters. She’s now won nine combined state championships (three cross country, six track and field) and will seek to scoop up two more crowns in the 800 and 1,500 on Saturday to help the Tigers contend for their first 2A team title in 17 years.

“You can have really, really good girls on a team, but if there’s one little piece that’s missing it doesn’t click,” Steines said. “This was just like, click, click, click. We all wanted it and we know what we had to do to get it.

“It means so much more — I don’t know, we were so excited. I was so excited when I finished. They’re right there. This feeling, nothing tops it.”

Several other Gazette area 2A athletes experienced similar emotions on Friday, including North Fayette Valley’s Hannah Schroeder, who hurled the discus 136 feet and 9 inches to earn silver. Her best throw soared an astonishing 12 feet past her previous personal record.

“At first I didn’t even know I threw it,” the sophomore said. “I thought it was 126, so I was like, ‘Oh, whatever,’ and then I looked at the thing and it said 136. I was like, ‘Whoa!’”

Her coach, Mark Smith, was pleased, but not surprised when he saw Schroeder’s throw take flight.

“(I knew) right away,” he said. “Finally, she hit what she was supposed to do all season long. Finally, it was there. We videoed it. Beautiful. A sophomore, so we’ll see what happens.”

Iowa City Regina sophomore Reese Naeve saw a longstanding obstacle overcome in the 2A high jump. The sophomore cleared 5-4 for the first time and earned a second-place finish.

“At every prior meet I’ve always cleared 5-2 and gotten to 5-4 and always missed,” said Naeve, who also will compete in the 100 hurdles on Saturday. “So getting this 5-4 is definitely a big accomplishment.”

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Steines is no stranger to mammoth-sized accomplishments — and the nervous tension that accompanies them. She broke a two-year string of throwing up before winning the 3,000 on Thursday, but felt that same queasy sensation before anchoring Tipton’s historic distance relay medley win on Friday.

“I was just about to start and was just like, you knew,” Steines said. “I was just like, ‘Well, I can’t race like this,’ and there were girls on both sides of me and I was like, ‘Well, crap,’ and I threw up. And (Mid-Prairie standout) Danielle Hostetler was there and she was like, ‘It’s OK, take deep breaths. You’re OK.’ And then I kind of was just like, ‘I feel so much better.’”

The Tigers are third in the team standings, but just three points behind leader Van Meter.

Underwood leads the 2A boys’ team race with 28 points. Preston Ries of Monticello (discus) and the Regina boys’ 800-meter relay team placed fifth in their respective events.

State track and field: Class 2A girls

Top 10 teams (through 10 events) — 1. Van Meter, 34; 2. Spirit Lake, 32; 3. Tipton, 31; 4. Pella Christian, 20; 5. Emmetsburg, 19; 6. Forest City, 16; 7. tie, Hinton, West Lyon, Eddyville-Blakesburg, 15; 10. tie, Estherville-Lincoln Central, Albia, 14.

Distance medley relay — 1. Tipton (Nerem, Edens, Hein, Steines), 4:06.37; 2. Chariton, 4:08.27; 3. Forest City, 4:09.58; 4. Mid-Prairie, 4:09.79; 7. Jesup, 4:14.52.

Discus — 1. Fran Travis (Spirit Lake), 140-05; 2. Hannah Schroeder (North Fayette Valley), 136-09; 3. Maddie Fischer (Anamosa), 132-09; 6. Kloe Hemmersbach (Waukon), 127-08.

800 relay — 1. Pella Christian (Kacmarynski, Vos, Agre, Van Wyk), 1:39.72; 2. Roland-Story, 1:42.88; 3. Spirit Lake, 1:44.91.

High jump — 1. Rachel Schany (Emmetsburg), 5-04; 2. Reese Naeve (Iowa City Regina), 5-04; 3. Molly Shafer (Eddyville-Blakesburg), 5-2.

400 hurdles — 1. Eden Moore (Van Meter), 1:03.13; 2. Leah Bolluyt (Spirit Lake), 1:04.82; 3. Kate Shafer (Interstate 35), 1:05.18; 5. Addie Nerem (Tipton) 1:05.38.

State track and field: Class 2A boys

Top 10 teams (through 10 events) — 1. Underwood, 26; 2. tie, South Hamilton, Mediapolis, 24; 4. Des Moines Christian, 21; 5. tie, Pella Christian, Okoboji, Milford, Shenandoah, 18; 8. PCM, 13; 9. tie, Northeast Goose Lake, South Hardin, Spirit Lake 12.

Distance medley relay — 1. Des Moines Christian (Carlisle, Fadden, Osborne, Ten Pas), 3:31.05; 2. Okoboji, 3:31.41; 3. Mediapolis, 3:31.82.

High jump — 1. Ryan Little (Albia), 6-09; 2. Tyson Seeser (Camanche), 6-07; 3. Traven Wheeler (South Hardin), 6-05; 7. Ike Claussen-Tubbs (Anamosa), 6-03.

800 relay — 1. South Hamilton, 1:28.02; 2. Shenandoah, 1:28.82; 3. PCM, 1:29.66; 5. Iowa City Regina, 1:30.06.

Discus — 1. Maxwell Tiarks (Underwood), 181-04; 2. Trevor Veenstra (Pella Christian), 181-02; 3. Grant Gray (Northeast Goose Lake), 5. Preston Ries (Monticello), 160-09; 7. Zach Yates (Monticello), 156-03.

400 — 1. Jaden Damiano (Iowa Falls-Alden), 52.03; 2. Isaac Wenthe (Sheldon), 53.08; 3. Karson Elwood (Treynor), 54.75; 6. Garet Kiel (Oelwein), 55.31; 7. Ayden Burrow (North Fayette Valley), 55.45.