Warrior boys track and field team puts in competitive week
By Willis Patenaude, Times-Register
It was a rather competitive start to last week for the Central boys track and field team, as the Warriors put up 13 top-10 finishes across 13 events and scored 19 total points to finish seventh at the Decorah Boys Relays.
The field events produced multiple successes for Central, starting with the long jump, where Collin Jaster finished eighth with a jump of 17-01.50. Isaac Loan continued the trend with an eighth-place effort in the high jump, clearing 5-02.00.
Then, it was a ninth-place finish in the shot put for Ryan Schroeder with a final distance of 38-01.75, while Max Fettkether finished the event 16th. Carson Ruegnitz and Schroeder finished 12th and 13th, respectively, in the discus.
The sprint races produced similar results, as Jaster came away with eighth in the 100, completing the race in 12.64 seconds. Carter Krugger put in a sixth-place performance in the 400, running the race in 1:01.95.
The Warriors’ highest finish of the meet came in the 800-meter run, where Gavin Holst placed second in a time of 2:12.58, just over two seconds behind the race winner. Krugger finished 13th in 2:33.69.
Holst added another runner up to his collection in the 3200, with his time of 11:10.13 less than seven seconds out of first place.
The hurdles saw another series of top 10s for Central, beginning in the 110-meter event, as Elliot Kelly finished seventh in 18.57, just three seconds away from the top spot.
In the 400-meter hurdles, Jaster was eighth in a time of 1:06.46, followed by Loan, who ran the race in ninth in 1:06.74.
Along with Kelly and Holst, Jaster and Loan were also part of the 4x400 relay that finished fifth with a time of 4:04.62.
In the 4x110-meter shuttle hurdle, Preston Kulper, Braxton Bormann, Ruegnitz and Kelly earned seventh after running a 1:22.35. Then, it was an eighth-place effort in the 800 sprint medley for Kelly, Loan, Tate Berns and Krugger, who crossed the line in 1:55.49.
The team’s best relay performance was in the 4x100.25-meter relay weight man, as Fettkether, Braden Taylor, Ruegnitz and Schroeder cruised to third in 55.99, less than a second out of the second slot.
Central next headed to the West Delaware Boys Invite in Manchester, putting up 10 finishes inside the top 10 across 17 events, while finishing the meet in sixth place with 17 points.
The Warriors competed in three field events, with the best finish coming from Jaster, who was eighth in the long jump with a mark of 17-10. Krugger placed 14th and Bryce Heller followed in 15th.
Schroeder was the top shot put finisher, after throwing for 35-08, which was good for 14th place. Leading the way in the discus was Ruegnitz, whose throw of 102-11, placed him 11. Schroeder was 12th in that event with a throw of 94-09.
The Warriors competed in each sprint race at the meet, with the best finish coming in the 200-meter dash, in a 13th-place time by Berns. The 100 featured Bormann and Kulper, who finished a respective 17th and 18th. Heller ran to 14th in the 400, Kulper was 16th and Krugger finished 17th.
The highest finish of the meet again came from Holst, who ran to third in the 800. His time of 2:13 was less than six seconds out of first.
In the other distance races, Vaughn Zittergruen was 12th in the 1600, followed by Heller in 13th. Three Warriors were in the top 10 in the 3200, including Holst in fifth with a time of 11:14.11. Michael White finished the race ninth and Declan Finley was 10th.
In the 110-meter hurdles, Kelly finished 12th, and Bormann was a close 13th. The 400-meter hurdles marked another top-10 for Jaster, who placed ninth with a time of 1:04.91.
The relays continued to be an area of overall success for the Warriors, as they finished inside the top 10 in all five they competed in.
The 4x400 team of Henry Reimer, Kyle Reinhart, Berns and Holst finished seventh in 4:15.89, and in the 4x800, Reimer, Heller, Krugger and Zittergruen turning in a 10:44.86 that was good enough for sixth. Central put in a fourth-place finish in the 4x100 weight man relay with Jacob Cook, Taylor, Ruegnitz and Schroeder, who ran the race in 55.63, less than five seconds out of first place.
The medleys were another source of racing success, as Central put up an eighth place effort in the 800 sprint medley with Jaster, Reinhart, Berns and Kelly, who ran a 1:55.17. The distance medley was a fifth place time of 4:37.16 for Kelly, Berns, Reimer and Zittergruen.
Up next for the Warriors is an April 18 meet at Oelwein. On April 21, they will compete at Waukon.