After playing in a girls’ soccer game on Friday night at Cedar Rapids Prairie, Ankeny runner Alli Macke didn’t have much time to get ready for the Jim Duncan Invitational on Saturday at Drake Stadium.
The dual-sport athlete anchored the Hawkettes to a fifth-place finish in the sprint medley relay in the morning, then later anchored her team to a victory in the 4×400 relay.
“It was a quick turnaround from our game (on Friday) to running the sprint med this morning, but thankfully we played really well so I only played about 50 minutes, which helped a lot,” Macke said of Ankeny’s 7-1 win on the pitch, where she contributed a pair of goals.
Macke teamed up with Sophie Loeffler, Morgan Johnson and Lillian Buckley to win the 4×400 relay in a time of 4:02.55. Loeffler also plays on the soccer team.
Ankeny was in third place midway through the race, but then passed Southeast Polk and Johnston on the final two legs.
“As a coaching staff, we were very excited with the team’s performance,” said Ankeny coach TJ Jumper.
Buckley also joined Macke on two other relays. They combined with Jayla Williams and Lillian Smith to post a time of 1:50.07 in the sprint medley relay.
Smith, Loeffler, Macke and Buckley also teamed up for a fifth-place finish in the 4×200 relay. Ankeny was clocked in a time of 1:45.15.
“I’m super proud of (Buckley) and all that she has brought to this team,” Macke said. “She works super hard and is going to have a big impact this season and in our 4×400!”
Williams placed second in the 200 in 26.71 seconds and fifth in the 100 hurdles in 15.92. She finished eighth in the long jump with a leap of 16 feet 4.5 inches.
Reagan Hanfelt was the runner-up in the high jump. She cleared the bar at 5 feet 6 inches, but was edged for the title by ADM’s London Warmuth based on fewer misses.
Ankeny’s Drew Beason placed third in the 1,500 in a time of 4:47.73. She also teamed up with Ainsley Kiene, Gwen Briggs and Makenna Madetzke to place fourth in the 4×800 relay in 9:34.02.
The Hawkettes met the Drake Relays Blue Oval standard in the 4×800, 4×400 and 4×200 relays.
“We had two focuses for this meet,” Jumper said. “The first was to take our best shot at securing spots for the Drake Relays. The second was for our up-and-comers to gain experience at Drake Stadium. We accomplished both of those things.”
Briggs also ran on the eighth-place distance medley relay. She teamed up with Kaitlyn Braun, Alice Oleson and Gracie Lindaman to post a time of 4:30.26.
Sophia Graber took eighth in the 3,000 in 10:44.02. Smith added a 10th-place finish in the 400 hurdles, posting a time of 1:09.72.
Ankeny Centennial also competed at the Duncan Invitational and had several strong performances as well. Anika Mohrhauser posted the highest finish, placing fourth in the 3,000 in a time of 10:19.36, which met the Drake Relays Blue Oval standard.
“It was a great day to compete with a lot of great programs,” said Centennial coach Tyler Asbe. “It was our first hot weather meet of the season which can be a big adjustment, but our girls handled it well and had some nice performances. Anika continues to drop time in the 3,000 and is looking so strong.”
Anna Woods placed fifth in the high jump (5-4) and seventh in the 100 hurdles (16.45). Teammate Kambria Leazer took seventh in the long jump (16-6) and ninth in the high jump (5-0).
Woods also teamed up with Kylin Smith, Ava Barten and Samantha Johansen for a fifth-place finish in the shuttle hurdle relay. The Jaguars were clocked in a season-best time of 1:07.18.
“That’s a young group, but they are showing improvement each week and are putting themselves in a position to hopefully qualify for the Relays,” Asbe said.
Smith placed fifth in the 400 hurdles in 1:08.34, while Julia Flick took 10th in the 800 in 2:24.54. Those two also combined with Teagan Jackson and Addie Pollock for a 10th-place finish in the 4×400 relay in 4:11.84.
Centennial’s Bella Hodges placed 10th in the 1,500. She was clocked in 4:59.65.
Hodges also teamed up with Piper Zeman, Ellie Blevins and Kylee Patterson to place seventh in the 4×800 relay in 9:38.36. All four runners set a personal record.
Both Ankeny and Centennial will compete in the Duea Invitational on Tuesday at Ames.
“We are excited for the rest of the season and to keep our progress going,” Jumper said.
