Comet 4-by-400 relay ends NEIC meet with first-place photo finish

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

NEW HAMPTON — When it comes to making the right call these days, we rely more and more on electronics.

But long before replay challenges and reviews have made themselves “necessities” in all the major pro and college sports, the “photo finish” to determine a winner in track has been around since the Stockholm Olympics in 1912.

And it came into play at the end of the Northeast Iowa Conference Track and Field Meet, Thursday at New Hampton.

In the final event of the evening — the boys 4-by-400 relay — Charles City junior Josiah Cunnings took the outside lane along the homestretch of the race’s fourth leg and managed to pass two runners before nipping Decorah’s Cade Olson at the finish line to claim an NEIC title in the event

Or did he?

It was too close for human eyes to call, but the camera awarded the race to the Comet squad — also including Keenan Wiley, Xander Graeser and Reed Peters — whose first-place time of 3:31.32 was the fastest recorded by a Comet 4-by-400 relay by more than 6 seconds this season.

The same Comet foursome, with a little different leg ordering, recently was on a losing end of a photo finish during the end of the Osage Invitational last week.

With the Class 3A State Qualifier coming up next Thursday at Independence, the Comet squad may want to repeat its NEIC performance if not improve on it — the aforementioned winning time ranks in the Top 20 among Class 3A 4-by-400 relays.

For Cunnings, it was his third NEIC title of the evening. He had earlier won the long jump with a flight of 21 feet, 10 inches. And in the high jump, Cunnings matched sophomore teammate Zakey Johnson’s 6-feet-even clear as the Comet pair finished 1-2 in the event — Cunnings was awarded the title due to fewer misses.

Charles City junior Keely Collins won the girls high jump with a top clear of 5 feet, 6 inches. After New Hampton senior Carlee Rochford falled on her third attempt at 5-6 clinching the title for Collins, Collins was asked if she wanted to continue with the bar set at 5-8 — a successful clear at that height would have broken Collins’s school record of 5-7 she set earlier this season.

Due to compete in several other events later that evening, Collins declined to continue.

Rochford later won the long jump with a girls meet record of 18 feet, 6 1/2 inches. Collins placed third in the long jump.

Charles City sophomore Leah Stewart placed second in the girls shot put with a throw of 36 feet, 7 1/2 inches. Decorah senior Chloe Reiser won the shot put with a throw of 39 feet, 6 inches.

Team standings for the NEIC Boys Meet: Waverly-Shell Rock (146), Decorah (140), Waukon (109), Charles City (77), Crestwood (56), New Hampton (54).

Team standings for the NEIC Girls Meet: Decorah (187), New Hampton (122), Waverly-Shell Rock (76.5), Crestwood (74), Waukon (63), Charles City (59.5).