MFL MarMac girls finding success in distance races with Koether, Ruff
Emma Koether, pictured here anchoring MFL MarMac’s distance medley relay, placed third in the 1500 and seventh in the 800 at the April 25 Clayton Ridge Co-Ed Invite. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
Maria Stavroplus has secured multiple top-five finishes in the high jump this season, including third place at Clayton Ridge on April 25.
Mel Ruff led the MFL MarMac sprinters with a ninth-place effort in the 100 at Clayton Ridge.
Ariana Fish goes airborne in the long jump competition at the Clayton Ridge Co-Ed Invite.
Evelyn Ruff chases down teammate Hannah Bogdonovich in the 800 sprint medley relay in Guttenberg on April 25.
Bayleigh Wood competes in the 400-meter dash at Clayton Ridge.
By Audrey Posten, Times-Register
Last week was a busy one for the MFL MarMac girls track and field team, who competed in three meets.
The Bulldogs opened the week at Wapsie Valley’s Warrior Relays on April 24, where Emma Koether continued to excel in the 800-meter run. The freshman placed fourth with a time of 3:04.58, not far ahead of teammate Evelyn Ruff, whose 3:10/14 was good for sixth.
Koether followed that up with a sixth-place effort in the 1500, an event fellow Bulldog Audrey Ruff also took eighth in.
The sprints were led by a 12th-place effort from Maria Stavroplus in the 200 and 13th for Bayleigh Wood in the 400. Audrey Ruff, Ariana Fish and Brooklyn Tonn finished a respective 18th through 20th in the 100.
Two MFL MarMac relays placed within the top five—one fourth and the other fifth—in the 4x100. The sprint medley relay placed seventh, and the distance medley turned in a strong time of 5:12.43.
Stavroplus claimed second in the high jump, which was the Bulldogs’ top result in the field events, while Wood and Fish landed seventh and ninth in the long jump. The shot put included Tonn, Fish and Audrey Ruff in a respective 16th, 17th and 19th, and Tonn was also 18th in the discus.
The April 25 Clayton Ridge Co-Ed Invite featured success in both individual events and relays for the Bulldogs.
Koether cruised to third in the 1500, while Audrey Ruff placed eighth in the event. Koether also turned in a seventh-place mark in the 800, just one spot behind Evelyn Ruff, who improved her time by roughly nine seconds.
Melanie Ruff led the MFL MarMac sprinters with a ninth-place effort in the 100, and Wood took 13th in the 400.
The top relay was the 800 sprint medley, in which Melanie Ruff, Stavroplus, Evelyn Ruff and Hannah Bogdonovich combined for fourth. The same group was fifth in the 4x100, while Melanie Ruff, Bogdonovich, Evelyn Ruff and Koether surged to fifth in the distance medley.
Stavroplus again highlighted the field events, this time finishing third in the high jump. Fish and Wood leapt to a respective eighth and 10th in the long jump, and Fish was 15th in the shot put.
The Bulldogs wrapped up the week April 27, in their own girls invitational. The meet included a pair of fourth-place times in the 4x100 and distance medley relays, as well as a fifth-place effort in the sprint medley.
Fourth- and fifth-place runs from Evelyn Ruff and Koether came in the 800, and Koether and Audrey Ruff worked to seventh and 11th in the 1500.
Wood’s seventh-place result in the 400 was the best among MFL MarMac sprinters. Melanie Ruff and Stavroplus were a respective 10th and 20th in the 200, while Wood and Audrey Ruff clinched 19th and 21st in the 200.
Stavroplus’ high jump success continued, with another third-place effort. Fish and Wood landed 14th and 15th in the long jump, and Fish was additionally 21st in the shot put. Tonn threw her way to 20th in the shot and 19th in the discus.
MFL MarMac wrapped up the regular season schedule at Ed-Co May 1, then will compete in the Upper Iowa Conference meet at Clayton Ridge May 4.
