IOWA CITY — The Solon boys track team put up several strong showings Saturday, April 6, at the Gary Hollingsworth Relays hosted by Iowa City West. The shuttle hurdle relay team of seniors Nash Kotar, Ben Duckett and Charlie Brandt teamed with junior Cole Carney to lower their school record in the shuttle hurdle relay posting a time of 1:01.66. They finished second to ADM. The teams are ranked 3rd and 4th in class 3A.
Senior shot-put tandem Marcus Richard and Ben Kampman went first and second with throws of 51-9 1/2 (career best) and 49-8 3/4. Kampman also placed runner up in the discus throw with a 166-foot effort. Also placing second was freshman Kaden Hoeper in the high jump clearing 6-0 and junior Caleb Bock in the long jump leaping an even 21 feet.
The Spartans continued the runner up trend in the running events. Seniors Brick Kabela ran 9:43 in the 3200 and Rhett Mesch posted a season best 51.28 in the 400-meter dash. The 3200 relay of Spencer Michels, Wyatt Applegarth, Mike Yeomans and Grant Bumsted ran 8:23.2 placing second as did the 1600 relay (seniors Bumsted, Yeomans, Mesch and Grant Knipper) in a season best 3:26.10. A busy Yeomans also added a 5th place finish in the 800-meter run (2:00.54).
Kabela placed third in the 1600-meter run (4:38) and Michels was close behind in a career best 4:46.5 for 5th place. The sprint medley relay team of seniors Milo Ashbacker, Brayden Moore, Knipper and sophomore Eli Kampman placed third with a 1:38.91 clocking. The 400-meter relay also took third in 44.35 (senior Austin Knight, Carney, Moore, Ashbacker) as did the 800-relay team of Knight, Knipper, Carney and Ashbacker (1:32.77).
Solon’s distance medley relay of juniors Eddie Johnson, Tyler Bell and freshmen Hoeper and Simon Einwalter clocked a 3:59.39 to grab 5th place. Other top finishes for Solon were in the individual hurdling events. The shuttle hurdle trio of Kotar, Brandt and Duckett placed 3rd, 6th and 8th in the 110 high hurdles (15.79, 16.67 and 17.01). Senior Keenan Kruse was 7th in the 400-meter low hurdles (1:00:89) barely edging out Brandt in 8th (1:00.90).
The Spartans run at Iowa Valley April 9th and return to West High for another Saturday meet April 13. Solon hosts the Denny Gruber coed relays Tuesday, April 16