With great showings during the weekend, Solon’s girls saved the best for last, at the 2022 Drake Relays. Coming from behind Ames High School Saturday evening in the final event, they won the 4×400 meter relay to cap a huge team performance in the high school division.
Meghan O’Neill led off for the Lady Spartans, in the finals. She held close to the Waukee Northwest and Ames runners, coming around third or fourth, with her handoff to Kaia Holtkamp. “As Kaia came around to the break line (100 meters), she got us ahead, then outside of them” recalls Coach Brent Sands. “As Gracie (Federspiel) got the baton, she was able to cut to the front and reel in the Ames girl.”
Emma Bock took the baton for the anchor leg. “Coming around the curve (in the homestretch) Ames had pushed up five meters. Bock caught up with anchor Elly Lynch coming around the curve and passed her on the straight, for the win” said Sands. It was a 3:56.24 win, with Ames just an eyelash back (3:56.57) at the finish.
The Relays are billed as America’s Athletic Classic and are now in Year 112 of competition. They offer a combination of events and divisions for college/university, invitational level and Iowa high school competition. High schoolers must qualify and compete in just one class. There is no division by enrollment, as seen at state meet qualifiers in the next three weeks.
Besides the 4×400 title Saturday, the Lady Spartans just missed winning the newly minted ‘Drake Relays Cup’ with points coming from four events (4×100, 4×400, 4×800 and 800 sprint medley). Solon went to the start line with ten other events, though, breaking school records in three. Bock was responsible for the new mark in the 800 (2:14.33, seventh place) and the 400, breaking former teammate Erin Kerkhoff’s 2019 record, (57.31, for eighth). The shuttle hurdle relay foursome of Mia, Aly and Sophia Stahle…and Calla Foster broke that record, with 1:06.82; good for fifth place. “The shuttle was really good; I was really pleased with that, just 7/100ths of a second from making the finals, Drake only medals to 4th”, applauded Sands. The eight lane track accommodates only four shuttle teams.
With a familiar looking 4×800 crew (again, O’Neill, Holtkamp, Federspiel, Bock), 9:28.61 was good for third place, Saturday morning. “Beyond the 4×400, they had run really well in the prelims,” noted Sands. “I was not so sure what (Bock) would have ‘left in the tank’ running an 800, 400, 400, 800 and 400 through the weekend,” acknowledged Sands. “The 4×8 results turned out well, though. We all felt we could have gone lower, but (with wind, rain and low temperatures) we did not have perfect conditions, either.”
There were runners with Solon colors around the track most of the weekend. MaK Levin hit 20th in the long jump, at 16’0¼. Sophia Stahle’s 16.81 was 25th in the 100 hurdles. Aly Stahle, 12.88 in the 100, was 16th in a crowded field. Teammate Mia Duckett was 20th at 12.97. All would have placed or won at regular season high school meets. Mia Stahle, MaKinley Levin, Sophia Stahle, Gracie Federspiel finished 11th with 1:49.81, in the 800 sprint medley. In the 4×200, Solon went with MaK Levin, Sophia Stahle, Mia Duckett and Aly Stahle. That 1:42.18, was fifth of the 24 qualifiers. Solon’s 4×100 crew of Levin, Aly Stahle, Mia Duckett and Emma Wolff came out of prelims in sixth place, posting 49.85. A dropped baton in the finals, though, erased any chance of placing.
From here, it’s back to the business as the Lady Spartans look ahead to WaMaC conference meet, the state qualifier, and with a push, a return to State, where Solon finished as Class 3A runner-up a year ago.
Mia Stahle hands off to MaK Levin in the prelims of the Drake Relays sprint medley Apr 29.