Multiple standout performances lead Comets to State Track and Field Meet

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

INDEPENDENCE — They don’t have the triple-jump in high school anymore.

Ian Collins probably wouldn’t enter the event, anyway.

The Charles City junior doesn’t need to jump three times, or not even twice. In fact, Collins can get to Des Moines in a single bound.

That’s essentially what he did in the long jump at Thursday’s Class 3A State Track and Field Qualifier at Independence High School.

In his first attempt, Collins recorded a small orbit of 22 feet, 5 inches. Then he flew away to somewhere else.

“He actually did have one another attempt,” Charles City assistant coach Eric Hoefer said, “but there was no need for him to get injured, and he had other events on the night.”

As it turned out, Collins’s first attempt was more than two feet better than runner-up Kyle Cole of West Delaware.

Collins had to work a little harder to win the subsequent high jump. After Collins and Vinton-Shellsburg’s CJ Rickels requested the bar to be moved up to 6 feet, 4 inches after both cleared 6-1, Collins was able to clear the height on his third attempt. Rickels, who just missed clearing the mark on his final two attempts, had to settle for second place — top two place winners in each event get automatic state berths.

Collins also qualified with a second-place finish in the 100-meter dash (11.50).

Charles City will be well-represented at the forthcoming State Track and Field Championships, especially among jumpers.

Collins’s younger sister, freshman Keely Collins, placed second in the girls high jump with a clear of 5 feet, 1 inch. That was the same top height of Vinton-Shellsburg senior Kayla Griffith, who was awarded the gold by way of fewer misses.

In the girls long jump, Charles City junior Lydia Staudt was leading through her fourth attempt before Center Point-

Urbana freshman Ava Maloney took the lead with a leap of 16 feet, 1 inch.

“I could tell by the way they were cheering that she was now ahead of me,” said Staudt, who was on the runway following Maloney. “I knew going in that she was the one to beat. I figured it would go down to the end.”

Staudt followed with a jump of 16 feet, 2 inches to retake the lead, and then to make sure, jumped 16 feet, 4 ½ inches on her final attempt to seal first place.

“I used to do this event in middle school, but injuries kept me from doing it in high school,” said Staudt, a state-qualifier as a freshman, but a first-time qualifier in the long jump. “It’s great to do this and be healthy again.”

Comet senior standout Kiki Connell resumed her rivalry with Waverly-Shell Rock senior Emma Hoins. Last week at the Northeast Iowa Conference Meet, Connell won three events — 800, 1500 and the 3000 (but not in that order) — with Hoins a close runner-up in all three.

Thursday played out much the same with Connell again winning the aforementioned races.

The 3000 and and subsequent 1500 seemed to be virtually the same race except with the former being twice as long. Connell and Hoins battled neck-and-neck with Connell holding the slight lead for most of the two races. In both events, Hoins challenged Connell down the homestretch while briefly moving ahead only to have Connell reach down for an extra gear and win with a pair of near-photo finishes.

Connell won the 3000 by a .03 of a second (10:32.95 to 10:32.98) and the 1500 by less than a second (4:54.63 to 4:55.55).

In the 800, Connell won with a time of 2:21.47 with runner-up Elly Burds of Western Dubuque right behind (2:21.56) and Hoins placing third (2:21.83).

Charles City senior Carly Stevenson will return as a state-qualifier in the girls discus after saving her best throws for her final two attempts while advancing with a second-place effort of 119 feet, 6 inches. Brylee Bruce of Vinton-Shellsburg placed first (124 feet, 4 inches).

Charles City senior Jeremiah Chapman, the Northeast Iowa Conference champion in the 110 high hurdles, placed second at Independence with a personal-record time of 15.26 seconds — Logan Brosius of Western Dubuque placed first (15.10).

Senior Zach Graeser will be another state hurdler next week for the Comets as his PR time of 57.02 seconds in the 400 low hurdles was good for second place. Graeser was leading most of the race before Waverly-Shell Rock junior Wesley Spears — who edged Graeser in the NEIC Meet — put on the afterburners during the final 50 yards and edged Graeser again (56.79).

The closest race of the evening was in the boys 800 meters.

Charles City junior Jacob Vais was leading going into the final turn before Waverly-Shell Rock’s Nick Kepford picked it up a notch to nip Vais at the wire (2:02.59 to 2:02.60) — for Vais, it’s a good thing second place qualifies because that especially would have been a tough race to lose.

To note, Hoins didn’t lose every race to Connell on Thursday. In the girls distance medley relay, Hoins was the final 800 leg for Waverly-Shell Rock and was able to maintain the lead given to her with her nemesis Connell on her tail. The Go-Hawks won (4:14.49), but the Comet foursome of Adison Kapping, Rachel Chambers, Staudt and Connell advanced to state with a team season-best second-place time of 4:16.55.

Charles City’s 4-by-100 boys relay also is advancing to state after Chapman, Mario Hoefer, Owen Weber and Collins combined efforts for a second-place time of 44.13 — a season-best for the Comets.

Four of Charles City 2021 Drake Relays qualifiers — Ian and Keely Collins, Connell and Stevenson — are among the aforementioned automatic state qualifiers.

The fifth Comet Drake qualifier, junior Tino Tamayo, may be among the at-large qualifiers after all the SQ results have been tabulated.

Tamayo’s third-place throw of 142 feet, 9 inches was less than 2 feet short of runner-up Dakota Hoffman of Western Dubuque for the automatic bid.