State Track is upon us once again! The sun on the Blue Oval, Mike Jay announcing, and the dreams of hopeful high school athletes coming to fruition. Day 1 was full of great competing and a few upsets! Check out some highlights from Thursday and stay tuned for more action all weekend!
Jacee Clark - 4A Boys High Jump
The Waterloo East senior went into the State meet ranked at a 4th place tie with a jump of 6-5 but had the jump of his life when he cleared 6 feet, 8 inches to win the event in 4A. He won by an inch over Japannah Kellogg of Ames, who also had an excellent performance after going in ranked in a tie for 6th and a PR of 6-4.
Waukee Girls 4x800 Relay
The Waukee Girls 4x800 Relay team had a historic day when they ran the second fastest relay time in history for the state of Iowa. Going into the State meet the team had a collective PR of 9:15.60 which they achieved at the Drake Relays last month. They really put things together and made a huge jump by running an incredible time of 9:09.34. The relay team was comprised of senior Lily Campbell, sophomore Jessica Caraway, junior Megan Groathouse, and senior Logan Akason.
Gable Sieperda - 1A Boys 3200
Sieperda was the clear favorite, but he didn't rest on his laurels when he blazed the track and ran a PR of 9:09.60. It was the senior's first time breaking the 9:10 mark after a stellar season. He won by a 21-second margin and ran the fastest 3200 time overall for the day. Sieperda also came back later to compete in the 400 where he placed 8th overall.
Sydney Milani - 4A Girls 400 Meter Dash
Sydney Milani got her first individual State title over Linn-Mar's Payton Wensel with the 5th fastest time in the country, running a 52.90. Milani has taken the track by storm this season with incredible improvements and an undefeated season.
Tyler Blaha - 1A Boys 400 Meter Dash
The senior from St. Albert went into the event ranked 3rd with a time of 50.28. He was able to hold off Alex Nation of Tripoli and win by nearly half a second. The big upset was Blaha winning over Riley Bauer who ended up placing 6th with a 51.60.
Check out tons of coverage, including photos, video interviews, and race videos at our Iowa State High School State Championships Results Hub!