Perry, W-G track teams ready for state qualifying meets

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Woodward-Granger's Ashlyn Soelberg takes off at the start of the shuttle hurdle relay at Ogden Friday. Third-leg runner Mary Hansen (behind) prepares to enter the blocks while injured Hawk teammate Alyssa Bice (far left) looks on. W-G will compete at Van Meter and Perry in Winterset Thursday in their respective state qualifying meet.

Perry will compete in the Class 3A District 8 meet in Winterset and Woodward-Granger in the Class 2A District 8 state qualifier in Van Meter when the tape and the clock Thursday determine who will be the 24 entrants in each event at the state meet. Both meets will begin at 4 p.m.

Classes 3A and 2A both send the top two placing individuals or relay teams in each event to the state meet from each of their eight districts. The remaining eight spots in each discipline are taken at-large from across the state regardless of district, in what is often referred to as “the next-best eight.”

While any individual or relay could suddenly rise up and steal a spot it rarely happens that anyone seeded outside the top-five at a qualifying meet advances.

The Perry boys will be led by Reece Dunlap, who is the two-seed in both the 100 and 200, in 11.05 and 22.86 seconds, respectively. Adan Medina is also a two-seed with his clocking of 51.53 in the 400.

The 4×800 team of Kaleb Olejniczak, Alex Long, Juma Bushiri and Jacob Thompson are seeded third (8 minutes, 34.32 seconds), with Dunlap, Medina, Alexis Garrido and Rashon Ivory seeded fourth in the 4×400 (3:34.08) while Nic Fellom, Eli Saemisch, Long and Thompson are a four-seed in the 1600 medley (3:54.83).

Fellom, Saemisch, Jose Castellanos and Gage Welch in the 4×100 (46.64) and Fellom, Saemisch, Dunlap and Brandon Kenyon in the 4×200 (1:34.77) are long shots as fifth-seeds.

Last season Sidney Vancil, Breanna Penenger, Mariah Duffy and Emma Olejniczak placed 21st at state in the 4×800. They enter Thursday’s qualifier as a three-seed in 10:18.3 and should make a strong push for at least an at-large bid.

Taylor Lathrum is seeded third in the shot put at 36 feet, one-quarter inch, just a half-inch from the two-seed, giving the senior a more than fair shot at earning the first Jayette thrower spot at state in many seasons.

Grace Stewart is seeded fifth in the 3000 (11:44.53), with the 4×400  unit of Vancil, Penenger, Olejniczak and Damaris Robles also seeded fifth at 4:34.25.

Johnnie Morgan is the lone senior for the W-G boys and will run Thursday as the three-seed in the 800 at 2:06.02, with Tanner Vermaas, J.P. Nixon, Chandler Cavanaugh and Ian Thompson seeded third in the 1600 medley (3:51.82).

The Hawk boys have a five-seed in the 4×800 in 8:50.23, with Thompson, Nixon, Morgan and Josh Saak the foursome running the event.

The W-G girls have one event with a top five seed, the 4×800. Seeded fifth with a clocking of 10:53.18 is the quartet of Kaitlyn Peters, Regan Kaufman, Mary Hansen and Riley Jamison.

Perry will be joined in Winterset by ADM, Carlisle, Chariton, DC-G, Greene County, Saydel and the host Huskies, with W-G competing against Clarke, CMB, Des Moines Christian, Earlham, Interstate-35, Madrid, Ogden, PCM, Pella Christian, Pleasantville and the host Bulldogs. Woodward Academy will also compete on the boys side.

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