Ankeny seniors Makenna Madetzke and Isaiah Smith closed out their high school cross country careers on Saturday in similar fashion.
They both competed in the Class 4A state meet at Lakeside Golf Course in Fort Dodge as individuals after their respective teams failed to qualify.
“It was a little different, but I train a lot alone in the winter time,” said Smith. “It wasn’t too much different there, but it was different not having the team behind me.”
Madetzke earned a spot on the awards podium by placing among the top 15 finishers in the girls’ 5K race. She placed 13th in a time of 18 minutes 12.7 seconds.
Piper Messerly of Dallas Center-Grimes won the race in 17:42 to defend her title. She finished 7 seconds ahead of Laney Sundet of Waukee Northwest, who led the second-ranked Wolves to the team crown.
“I knew it was going to be a fast race with so many good runners in the field, so I tried not to go out too fast at the start,” Madetzke said. “I’m really happy to finish my season on the podium for the first time.”
Madetzke had placed 49th as a sophomore and 21st last year. She finished less than a second ahead of Ankeny Centennial’s Rebecca Flick, who placed 14th and joined teammate Ellie Blevins (8th) on the awards podium as well.
“I had a pretty good sense I was sitting around the 10–15 place range for most of the race,” Madetzke said.
Ankeny girls’ coach TJ Jumper wasn’t surprised by Madetzke’s performance.
“Makenna has the dedication, discipline and drive of an elite athlete and her actions/habits really showed through this year,” Jumper said. “We are super happy with her effort and the result she had today. We talked about her goal being top 15 at state, and that was accomplished. She showed great heart and determination this year as she had to overcome some situations.”
Smith was hoping to get on the podium for the second time in his career after placing 15th as a sophomore. He ran with the leaders early in the boys’ race, but eventually dropped back and finished 27th in 16:01.5.
Jaden Merrick of Cedar Falls won the race in 14:55. Three other runners also broke the 15-minute barrier.
“It wasn’t great,” Smith said of his race. “I was planning on top 15. The first part of the race I got out how I wanted to, and I felt good. I was trying to do something different than last year. I was 10 places better than last year, but I’m not really happy with it.
“It’s kind of disappointing, but you just have to look past it,” he added.
Smith was a four-time state qualifier who helped the Hawks to a pair of third-place finishes in 2022-23.
“I know the term ‘really proud’ is thrown around a lot, but man it has been an absolute joy coaching Ike,” said Ankeny boys’ coach Jon Lindaman. “He has had a remarkable career and does things the right way. I know he was zeroed in on a top 15 finish today and falling short of that was a little disappointing, but it was not from lack of effort. He got out aggressively, gave himself a chance, and put everything he had into this race.”
Smith overcame a bad case of mononucleosis that kept him out of action in September.
“He missed over a month of training, but refused to ever use that as an excuse,” Lindaman said. “That’s just the kind of kid he is, and I have the utmost respect for him. He has a very bright future ahead of him.”
