Warrior girls win three relay races, finish second at West Delaware meet

By Willis Patenaude, Times-Register

After a canceled meet on April 19, the Central girls track and field team returned to action on April 22 at West Delaware, putting in a solid second place effort with 55 points. The Warriors were led in scoring by Brandy Beatty with 10 points, followed by Delaney Scherf with 8.5, Hannah Asche with 7.5, Kaitlyn Wiley with 6.4 and Maddy Wille with 6. The rest of the team’s points were scored by 12 other athletes.

Central’s depth was on display throughout the meet, beginning with the 100 meter dash, where Wille and Grace Kuehl both finished in the top 10. Wille placed 6th, running the race in a personal record time of 13.56, while Kuehl was close behind in seventh with a time of 13.71. 

Two more Warriors competed in the 200 meter dash, as Gracie Cummer finished the race 15th, while teammate Alivia Keppler ran a personal best 31.16 to finish 19th. 

The 400 saw two more personal record times, when Mylee Wingert crossed the line in 1:18.87 to finish 18th, while Eva Embretson finished 19th in a time of 1:18.92.

The 800 meter run witnessed another Warrior reach a personal record time, as Delaney Scherf finished in third place with a final time of 2:34.16, two seconds off first place and earning the team six points. The other Central runner, Allie Mussman, finished 17th. 

In the 1500 meter run, the Warriors sent out Lizzie Royer, who gave the team a 10th place finish in a time of 6:01.07. Mussman secured ninth place in the 3000 meter run, finishing in 13:31.84. 

Beatty added to her growing list of personal record times in the 100 meter hurdles, where she finished a close third place with a time of 16.99, which was just .39 seconds away from race winner Libby Felton from Cascade. Beatty’s finish gave the team six points. Lexi Loan’s 14th-place finish in 18.83 was also a new personal record for her in the 100 hurdles. 

As for the 400 meter hurdles, Taylor Moser finished seventh in 1:24.46, a personal record time. Teammate Carly Kluesner ran the race in 1:31.27, a personal record time to finish in 11th place. 

During the field events, it was Abby Cummer and Aly Feickert leading the way in the discus and shot put. Cummer finished 16th in discus with a distance of 75 feet, 8 inches, while Feickert set a personal record with a distance of 78 feet, 2 inches, which earned her 13th place. The shot put had Cummer finishing ahead with a 10th place finish and a distance of 32 feet, 4 inches, while Feickert managed to place 22nd. Brittni Tieden continues to provide top-five results in the high jump, this time with a fourth place finish with a height of 4 feet, 6 inches, giving the team three points. 

But it was the relays where the Warriors really shined, winning the 4x100, 4x200 and 4x400. 

Starting with the 4x100, the group of Beatty, Kuehl, Asche and Wille finished the race in 53.26, defeating the team from Vinton-Shellsburg by .58 seconds. The win gave the Warriors 10 points. 

In the 4x200, Wille, Kuehl, Wiley and Asche dominated with a 1:52.50 time that was a full two seconds faster than the second-place team from Denver High School. The victory gave the Warriors another 10 points. 

The 4x400 meter relay had a new face, but the result remained the same, as the squad consisting of Asche, Scherf, Wiley and Jaydin Dettman crossed a full second ahead of second place in a time of 4:17.47, once again gaining 10 points for the team. All four runners in the 4x400 produced personal record split times as well. 

While they didn’t win any of the other relays, the Warriors continued to show results. They finished sixth in the 4x800 meter relay, as Royer, Moser, Katelyn Scherf and Carly Kluesner crossed the line in a time of 12:21.43. Then the team added another third place finish in the 400 meter shuttle hurdle relay, as Beatty, Wiley, Gracie Cummer and McKenna Jaster hit the line in a time of 1:13.16, gaining six points. The 1600 distance medley was also a top-five finish, as Loan, Ashlyn Scherf, Haley Mueller and Dettman ran a time of 4:57.64, adding two points for the team. In the 800 sprint medley, Central ran a time of 2:08.35, which was good for 11th place. 

“It was a fantastic meet for us. After getting Monday’s meet cancelled and the frigid weather we had for two weeks, it was so nice to be able to compete in mild conditions. The girls responded with a season-high 23 personal records and nine season bests,” said head coach Martha Bauder. “Probably one of the biggest highlights for me was the excitement that I watched from our team members who weren’t running during the 4x400. We were in first place the whole way, but it got close several times and our team members were screaming for their 4x400 runners. That brief moment of the thrill of victory, all four runners laying it all on the line for each other and the pride I felt in the team support is what keeps coaches coming back year after year.”

The Warriors return to action on April 27, at Waukon. They will then travel to MFL MarMac on April 29.