Comet boys pace field at Osage T&F Meet; Staudt split-second winner at Lady Bulldog Invite

Press Staff Report

HAMPTON — By the slimmest of margins when going by hundredths of a second, Charles City senior Lauren Staudt edged Hampton-Dumont-CAL senior Teaghan Bird to win the 400-meter low hurdles event at last Thursday’s Lady Bulldog Track and Field Invitational.

Staudt’s time of 1 minute, 11.40 seconds nipped Bird by thisclose (1:11.41) at the finish.

Charles City freshman Edie Collins, who has become high jump’s answer to NBA Slam Dunk champion Spud Webb when it comes to attaining great heights from a much shorter starting point than her taller opponents, won the HJ at HCD with a personal-record clear of 5 feet, 1 inch.

Charles City’s returning junior state-qualifier Leah Stewart placed second in the shot put with a throw of 36 feet, 8.75 inches behind HDC junior Charlee Morton (38-10.75).

Comet freshman Sophia Calpito, who has recorded a PR flight of 16 feet, 7.5 inches in the long jump this season — a little more than a foot shy of Charles City’s all-time girls record in the event set by Dyan Flueher in 1989 — soared 15 feet, 00.75 inches at HDC for a third-place showing behind Denver senior Elaina Hildebrandt and HDC senior Tayla Wempen, who both jumped 15-07.

Saint Ansgar paced the 16-team field with 93 team points. Charles City placed eighth with 53 points, a half-point behind Nashua-Plainfield, paced by junior standout and multiple state champion Kadence Huck, who placed first in both the 400- (58.55) and 800-meter (2:27.41) dashes.

* Charles City’s boys team achieved a bevy of personal records while pacing the seven-team field with 153 team points at Friday’s Osage Invitational.

Comet senior Josiah Cunnings was one of those attaining a PR at Osage, though it wasn’t in the event he’s the defending state champion in — the long jump. Cunnings’s jump of 21 feet, 5.5 inches did garner invite gold, but it was more than a foot shorter than his PR achieved last spring at the same annual invite which set a meet record.

Cunnings got his PR in the 400-meter dash with a first-place time of 53.06 seconds. Comet senior Xander Graeser placed third in the 400 with a PR time of his own (54.73).

Charles City senior Isaac Thompson placed first in the 3200-meter run (10:50.75) and second in the 1600-meter run (5:02.42) while setting a PR in the latter race.

Comet junior Kaden Littleton had a top clear of 6 feet, even to win the high jump.

Charles City sophomore Victor Ward Jr. recorded a PR 200-meter time of 24.03 seconds to place second.

Comet sophomore Blake Dean’s personal-record throw of 121 feet, even was good enough for third place.

Charles City won three relays with its 800 sprint medley team of Terry Cooks, Jaylen Johnson, John Bruening and Graeser (1:41.05); its 1600 medley team of Keenan Wiley, Ward Jr., Zakey Johnson and Noah Morris (3:58.60); and its 4-by-400 team of Wiley, Graeser, Ward Jr. and Cunnings (3:39.26).