After just missing last year’s state meet, the Ankeny Centennial boys’ cross country team will be looking to return to Fort Dodge in 2025.
The Jaguars are seeking their fifth trip to the state meet in school history. They previously qualified in 2015, 2020, 2021 and 2023.
Centennial placed ninth in Class 4A in 2020, its highest finish ever. That started a stretch of three state-meet appearances in four years.
Last year’s team missed qualifying by seven points. The Jaguars placed fourth in a district meet at Marshalltown, where they finished just behind the host Bobcats.
However, Brayden Vander Wilt and Cohen Moll were individual qualifiers for Centennial. Moll placed fourth in the district meet with a time of 15 minutes 49 seconds, while Vander Wilt finished 12th in 16:14.
Vander Wilt went on to place 73rd at the state meet in 16:39.6. He graduated along with fellow varsity regulars Mark Nelson, Sean Thomas and Corbin Vander Weerdt.
“We were disappointed at the end of last season, but that is done and it really has motivated the guys throughout track and the summer,” said Centennial coach Chad Fickbohm, whose team is 17th in the Class 4A preseason rankings from the Iowa Association of Track Coaches..
Moll, a senior, is the team’s top returnee. He placed 75th at the state meet in 16:40.4.
Moll was ranked among the top 20 runners in Class 4A for most of the season. He posted six top-10 finishes, including a runner-up finish in the Bud Williams Invitational at Iowa City.
Moll later placed 10th in the CIML Conference meet at Southeast Polk in 16:06. He led the Jaguars to a sixth-place finish.
Moll continued his success on the track last spring. He placed 17th in the 1,600 at the state meet and also anchored Centennial’s ninth-place distance medley relay.
Seniors Jack Behrens, Davis Johnson and Ian Smith are the team’s other returning varsity regulars. They are among the 51 boys on the squad.
Johnson and Moll both ran on the Jaguars’ 14th-place team in 2023. Johnson then became the team’s No. 3 runner as a junior, when he placed 18th at the district meet in 16:30.
Behrens took 19th at the Indianola Invitational in 16:15, helping the Jaguars to a third-place finish. Last spring, Behrens joined Moll on Centennial’s ninth-place 4×800 relay at the state track meet.
Smith ran in five varsity meets in 2024. He placed 46th at the conference meet in 17:23.
“I think this team has a lot of potential,” Fickbohm said. “We have lost some of the best runners we have had over the past couple of years, but this team will be solid. We know we can not take anything for granted–we need to focus on ourselves and stay healthy. They have done a great job of setting the team culture throughout the summer and in the preseason.”
Among the other returnees are seniors Blake Bybee and Isaac Porter and juniors Max Curnyn and Levi Odson. Junior Jaxton Alverez is a newcomer who could make an impact as well.
“Those guys are all looking really strong,” Fickbohm said.
Centennial will open its season on Tuesday by hosting the Jaguar Invitational at DMACC.
“We had a good spring in track and a good summer,” Fickbohm said. “The key to reaching our goals will be to stay healthy, stay positive and enjoy the season.”