DES MOINES — The Panorama boys showed well in their three events at the State Track Meet Thursday-Saturday, with the Panther girls scoring the most team points at the penultimate gathering since moving up to Class 2A.
Field events took center stage for Panorama Friday, with Matthew Webner placing fourth in the discus with a spin of 165 feet, 2 inches while teammate Daniel Jensen finished 21st at 125’8. Lydia Knapp added points to the girls tally after she preceded the Panther boys on the north field by placing seventh at 120’6.
Inside Drake Stadium sophomore Morgan Johnk qualified sixth for Saturday’s 100 hurdles finals with a 16.04 clocking before strolling over to the high jump, where she finished fifth after clearing 5’2.
Other Friday action saw Bailey Beckman, Brooke Halterman, Devyn Kemble and Johnk finish 15th overall in the 4×400 with a time of 4 minutes, 11.84 seconds.
Spencer Hunt had placed 16th in both the 200 and 400 Thursday, in personal-best times of 23.05 and 51.95, respectively, an effort noted by head coach Greg Thompson.
“Spencer ran very well and had a great attitude going into the state meet,” he said. “He was realistic with his expectations and that helped him perform and compete very well.”
“Matt had a state medal for a 4×100 relay, but this was his first individual medal,” Thompson said of senior weightman Webner. “This was the third year in a row that he qualified in the discus. His leadership the last two to three years with the throwers will be very difficult to replace — he was another coach for us and leaves with the school record (169’9-1/2).”
Noting Jensen is a junior, Thompson said he “gained valuable experience that should springboard him to great senior season next year.”
Saturday belonged to the Panther girls, with Beckman, Kemble, Carson Fisher and Kassidy Bremer running the sprint medley in 1:53.26, placing ninth and missing a medal by .07 seconds.
Kemble finished 10th in the 800 in 2:25.07, narrowly missing a medal. Stuck in traffic and pinned to the rail, the talented junior could not find open space to run in or use to pull away and force others to chase her, a strategy she used to blow away her heat in the 400 en route to a fourth-place finish Thursday.
Johnk provided the final event — and final points — by racing to fourth in the 100 hurdles in 16.17 seconds.
“The girls had five events seeded in the top seven and four placed in the top seven,” Thompson noted. “The shuttle hurdles missed the finals by .06 seconds, the sprint medley just missed a medal spot by .07 seconds and Devyn missed a medal by just over a second in the 800.”
“The girls performed very well,” he continued. “I was particularly impressed by the girls who hadn’t competed in the state meet before; they kept their composure and didn’t let the atmosphere affect their performances.”
Brianna Hoffman had two personal records in her two events to earn meet MVP from the coaches, with Webner named boys MVP.
“We will lose Matt, Bryce Halterman and Jeramy Randol to graduation,” Thompson said. “Bryce competed his freshman and senior years and he ran on the sprint medley team that set a school record at the state qualifying meet.”
“Jeramy competed for the first time, but he was a leader through example and hard work,” he added. “These seniors will be successful in their post-secondary education and work because of their attitude and work ethic. Saying good-bye to seniors is one of the harder things a coach must do. I wish them well as they take the next steps on their journey.”
The Panther boys had 24 performances this season (including eight in the new boys sprint medley) that made the school’s Top 10 list (2009-17) while the girls had 29 Top 10 spots. Five girls set a total of six personal records at the state meet, and with no seniors on the squad, the Panther girls are set for an even stronger 2018 season.
