(Story by Stephen McDaniel)
Noah Ross, Robert McGhee, Caleb Reed and Braeden Jackson got their all-time state record, but just not the one they were on the hunt for.
The Ankeny Centennial quartet was on the cusp of setting the all-time record in the 4×200 relay after becoming the second team in Iowa high school history to run a time that was sub-1:26 when they clocked in at 1:25.95 during the CIML Conference meet earlier in May.
But then they went ahead and broke the Iowa all-time record in the 4×100 relay during their preliminaries and overshadowed their state-title defending run that fell just shy of the mark in the 4×200.
“I would say it feels amazing,” Jackson said after anchoring the 4×200 to the victory. “We’ve been working all year for this. Obviously, we won (the 4×200) last year, but it’s been in the back of our minds the whole year to come out and reassert ourselves as the top 4×200 team.”
They were just fractions of a second away from dethroning ADM’s 4×200 relay team of Aiden Flora, Grant Rychnovsky, Zach Lohmann and Brevin Doll, who set the all-time record of 1:25.55 to capture the Class 3A crown during the 2024 state meet.
Ross, McGhee, Reed and Jackson were so close they could taste it as they returned to Drake Stadium in Des Moines for the 4×200 finals on Friday.
It was right in front of them, but they were a mere .08 seconds away from the all-time record as they successfully defended their Class 4A crown with a new 4A meet record of 1:25.63.
“If I give it my all, I know we have the team to win,” said Ross, the leadoff runner. “Also getting the handoff right because handoffs mean so much and we practice them all the time.”
“I saw two guys in front of me, and I tried to catch them,” said Reed, who ran the third leg. “I knew if I gave Braeden the baton close to first or second, he’d take it home.”
There was no doubt that the team itself was feeling good after defending their crown, although wishing they would’ve knocked off ADM’s squad for the all-time best.
But their victory seamlessly transitioned into the 4×100, where the same team in the same order ended up getting an all-time best.
They entered seeded ninth with a time of 42.27 seconds, which was still a tick slower than their previous season best of 41.63 seconds.
In the blink of an eye, they became the potential favorites to win another state title as they clocked in at 41.18 seconds to break Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s former all-time best of 41.27 set last season.
“I think all records were meant to be broken,” McGhee said after the 4×200. “No matter what record it is, it’ll eventually get broken. I don’t think there’s such a thing as records ever stopping.”
Ankeny also found much success in both events.
While Tyler Sickerson, Treyton Grossman, Sam Madsen and Logan Fairchild weren’t able to knock off their crosstown rivals in the 4×200, they clocked in at 1:27.24 to set a new season best while earning a fifth-place finish.
Later, Grossman and Sickerson teamed up with Caden Henkes and Alexander Zuber to qualify for the 4×100 final as well. The Hawks posted the seventh-fastest time of 41.85.
“I think we qualified 21st out of 24 teams,” Sickerson said on behalf of the Ankeny 4×100 team. “We weren’t a very high seed and we made the finals, so we can get some points out of that and that’s all we need.”
Cael Woods nearly gave Centennial two state titles in one day, but had his potential 400 hurdles title stolen away at the very end.
Woods led the pack despite entering as the fourth seed. But after clearing the final hurdle, Cedar Falls’ Jaxon Schreiber was able to make up just enough ground to edge Woods by the slimmest of margins.
It was a photo finish that put Schreiber on top as the new Class 4A 400 hurdles state champion with a time of 52.53 seconds. Woods placed as the runner-up in 52.54.
“I had no one in front of me, and it’s hard to gauge how fast you’re going,” Woods said. “I was just going way too fast the first half of my race, and it caught me in the butt at the end. Thought I had him, but obviously not. It’s good though, I’ll get to race (Schreiber) in college and I’ll get him then.”
The hurdling isn’t over for Woods, who also qualified for the finals in the 110 hurdles, but there will be more obstacles in the way than just the hurdles themselves.
Ankeny’s Hayden Carlson and Landon Pote will join him as three of the eight finalists. Carlson posted the second-fastest qualifying time of 14.29 seconds, Woods was fourth at 14.47, and Pote was fifth at 14.53.
Not only will Carlson and Pote contend for an individual hurdle title, but they’re also a part of Ankeny’s shuttle hurdle relay team looking to avenge a fall at the Drake Relays and a second-place finish at the CIML meet that saw them finish behind Waukee Northwest.
In terms of team points, the Hawks were on top of the 4A boys’ standings going into Friday’s session, but they ultimately dropped down into fourth with 32 points. Meanwhile, the Jaguars went from no points to fifth overall with 22 points after their great Friday showing.
Cedar Falls leads the way with 49 points. Iowa City West is in second with 43, followed by Dowling Catholic with 38.5.
Senior Max Dickinson also helped the Jaguars leap up the standings going into Saturday. Dickinson reached the finals in the shot put, where he ultimately placed fifth overall following his best and last throw of 53 feet 1.75 inches.
Centennial also qualified for the final in the 4×400 relay. Woods, Caleb and Jackson Reed, and Corbin Vander Weerdt posted the seventh-fastest qualifying time of 3:19.03.
With multiple Hawks and Jaguars slated to compete in Saturday’s finals, both squads have a great chance of climbing up toward the top of the team standings.
“I don’t think points mattered today,” Sickerson said for the Hawks. “I think we’re a Saturday team. I think we got more depth (on Saturday) than any other team here. Whether it’s the sprints, the hurdles or distance, I know we got the guys to get some points and win (the team title).”
“Saturday is always a fun day,” Woods said. “I haven’t ran on a Saturday my whole high school career. So it’ll be cool to get a shot.”
Here are the other boys’ results from Friday:
Distance medley relay: Joel Neith, Sam Heither, J. Reed and Cohen Moll (AC), 3:29.29 (9th); Samuel Sandvig, A. Zuber, Isaiah Smith and Nicholas Robie (A), 3:29.71 (10th).
Shot put: Ryan Tomlinson (A), 46-9 (21st).
400 hurdles: Mark Nelson (AC), 55.90 (18th).