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Comets’ Garber moves up another rung

BCLUW soph, a 1A qualifier last year, 4th in 2A

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD • BCLUW’s Jack Garber, the only sophomore in the 100-meter high hurdles final in Class 2A, clears the obstacle on his way to a fourth-place finish Saturday at the Iowa Co-Ed State Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium in Des Moines. Garber clocked in at 15.41 seconds.

DES MOINES — For Jack Garber, a weekend of celebration ended up at baseball practice.

The BCLUW sophomore took fourth place in the 110-meter hurdles Saturday during the Class 2A boys’ state track and field meet, with a time of 15.41 seconds.

He wrapped up his race at about 1:30 p.m., gathered his belongings and hopped on the bus back to Conrad. By 6 p.m., he was on the baseball field in Beaman for practice.

Garber showcased that kind of dedication in his hurdles finals event.

“I wanted to get second or third, but my time wasn’t good,” Garber said. “You can’t get a top place if your time isn’t good. I felt like I got out good, but hit a few [hurdles] early, and they started to pull ahead. And I couldn’t come back from that.”

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD • East Marshall’s Logan Nicholson, back left, passes the baton to Brandon Fogt for the final exchange during the Class 2A sprint medley relay finals Saturday at the Iowa Co-Ed State Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium in Des Moines. The Mustang foursome of Paden Lang, Zane Johnson, Nicholson and Fogt finished 10th in a combined time of 1 minute, 37.37 seconds.

The BCLUW hurdler was the only sophomore in the finals field, and just one of three to qualify for the event as a whole. Garber said the next step at chasing a state title is working on staying in his lane … mentally.

“The biggest thing is mentally I’ve got to be more ready,” Garber said. “And I felt there I was more ready than previous times, but that’s my biggest thing. I’ve got to worry about me and my lane and my hurdles.”

Garber said he had a lot more fun with the competition, as he saw some of them throughout the season. To see them lining up next to him in the blocks, that helped him find the silver lining in Saturday’s finals.

Michael Santi of Madrid won the event, running a 15.76. Will McAllister (Cascade) was second at 14.94 and Riley Barrett (Aplington-Parkersburg) was third (15.21).

Mustangs muster speed for final sprint medley

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD

In the newly founded sprint medley event on the boys’ side, Brandon Fogt said this season was a complete success for the East Marshall relay.

The Mustangs took 10th in Saturday’s finals, running a 1:37.37. Fogt said the firsts in the new event made the training worthwhile.

“This was our first [season] ever running it, and then making it down here was fun,” Fogt said. “And we set a school record that I hope no one touches for a long time.”

Zane Johnson anchored the 400 leg of the event, the final lap for the Mustangs. He said when he heard they were introducing the event on the boys’ side, he was ready to take the challenge.

“When I heard about it, I thought, ‘We’re going to be fast,'” Johnson said. “We’re going to be really fast, because we have the right personnel for it. It was perfect.”

T-R PHOTO BY STEPHEN KOENIGSFELD

The West Marshall boys’ sprint medley team of Josh Larsen, Ross Randall, Beau Coberley and Cameron Bannister were just behind the Mustangs in the sprint medley relay. The Trojans took 13th with a time of 1:54.36.

Nick Meling tacked on the success for the Mustangs, with a run in the 1,600 Saturday. Meling set the school record he had been chasing all season with a 4:31.77. The previous record stood at 4:33.35, and Meling said he was just shy, by 89-hundredths of a second of the 3,200 record on Thursday.

Getting the record in his last race as a Mustang was the perfect swan song.

“The first time being under [4:40] was last week at districts,” Meling said. “Getting over that hump and going nine seconds under that 40-mark, but just running here makes it so much easier to do.”

Meling capitalized on a storied career East Marshall, that saw him win a state title in cross country, as well as three state qualifying appearances at the wrestling meets during the winter.

“My favorite part about running is the team at East Marshall,” Meling said. “The four years I’ve been in high school, I’ve had success with my team in cross country and track. It’s been a great feeling to be on such successful programs, not just being along; to have people right there with you, pushing you to be better and also doing that for them.”

Team Standings

2A — 1. (tie) Kingsley-Pierson/Woodbury Central, Madrid 61; 3. Albia 52, 4. Dyersville Beckman 34, 5. Anamosa, Dike-New Hartford 29, 7. Carroll Kuemper Catholic, Northeast 23, 9. Aplington-Parkersburg, Treynor 22; 37. BCLUW 5; 52. East Marshall 2.

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