T-R PHOTO BY THORN COMPTON • South Hardin junior Brylie Zeisneiss, left, and West Marshall sophomore Renae Schaper pose with their medals won in the Class 2A girls’ shot put Thursday at the Iowa Co-Ed State Track and Field Championships. Zeisneiss won with a throw of 45 feet, 1 inch, while Schaper finished in fifth.

DES MOINES — With one last throw remaining in the finals of the Class 2A shot put competition at the Iowa Co-Ed State Track and Field Championships on Thursday, South Hardin junior Brylie Zeisneiss was in the lead, but not comfortably.

Less than a month prior back at Drake Stadium, Zeisneiss was sitting in second place after a great throw on her final attempt in the shot put at the Drake Relays, but Tipton’s Jamie Kofron launched a heave past Zeisneiss’ mark to take the lead and the win with her final attempt.

The two were at the top of the leaderboard again on Thursday, with Zeisneiss holding the top mark at 45 feet, 1 inch, which she had set in her last throw of the preliminaries.

Kofron stepped into the circle and once again launched a mammoth throw with her final attempt, and Zeisneiss and the rest of the Tiger faithful on hand held their breath as the measurement came in.

“44 feet, 1 1/4 inches,” the official called out, and before even having to launch her final throw Zeisneiss knew she had won the 3A shot put championship.

Until that final measurement came in though, she said she never doubted Kofron could beat it.

“One of Jamie’s throws was really out there so I knew I had to work for it because she was going to come up,” Zeisneiss said. “I couldn’t relax any, I had to stay on my toes because I knew that at any time Jamie could get in the circle and throw it way past my 45-1.”

For good measure, Zeisneiss hurled her last throw of the competition past Kofron’s with a 44-10, though her 45-1 in the prelims held up as the winner. She said she prefers to have such a good throw in the preliminary heat because it sets her up for a good finals charge.

“Prelims are definitely the ones that can make or break something, the prelims are where you need to throw your best and you still need to have some left in the tank to get a further throw out there and secure your spot wherever you want to place,” she said. “I definitely had to do that and I wanted to get a personal record and set the school record again at 46 feet, but it wasn’t there today but it is out there for next year.”

The rivalry between Zeisneiss and Kofron has pushed both girls to be better, but she said it has also brought them closer as competitors.

“We have become friends and it is always nice to have a little friendly competition, but a state title was on the line and Jamie made me work for it,” Zeisneiss said. “It’s fun competing against Jamie, the work never stops. She keeps me on my toes.”

There was another friendly rivalry for Zeisneiss to deal with as well, as West Marshall sophomore Renae Schaper also qualified for the finals and was looking to knock off her NICL West Division foe.

Schaper would place fifth with a throw of 38 feet, which was an improvement on her seventh-place finish from last season.

With this being her second time competing in the state meet, one would figure Schaper would be more prepared to deal with the experience, but she said the second time qualifying was actually more difficult.

“It was more stressful actually, I hit rock bottom pretty much and was throwing 36’s for like five meets,” Schaper said. “Then at districts I was really nervous thinking ‘I have to get to state because I did so well as a freshman,’ so I felt like I had to but I am here and I did better so I’m glad.”

Zeisneiss said having Schaper competing alongside her was a great experience.

“I know Renae wanted to throw a little further than she did but she still made it down here and finished in the top eight, so I couldn’t be happier for any of her,” Zeisneiss said.

Having a fellow conference competitor like Zeisneiss to chase after is something Schaper said she likes, because it gives her more motivation to get better.

“We have a good competition, especially last year when I improved a lot and was throwing right around the same as she was,” Schaper said. “We have pushed each other really well and I think we are going to continue to push each other really well I feel like.”

Zeisneiss now has a chance at making it two state titles in one meet, as she is the top seed in the discus competition, throwing today at 2 p.m.

In the Drake Relays, Zeisneiss didn’t place as well in the discus as she did the shot, taking 14th in the throw, but she said things will be different this time around.

“I am hoping to stay up in the finals, I have worked a ton on discus this preseason and during the season and it is starting to pay off but the work is never done,” she said. “If you want to be the best you have to keep working on it, you can’t just pick it up and think ‘oh I am going to just go out and win this.’ It takes months of work and dedication.”