Des Moines, IA- Day two of the 2026 Iowa State Track and Field Championships has been wrapped up for Classes 1A and 4A and the New London and Van Buren County boys’ team are striding towards a possible team championship run after each team earned their second state championship of the three-day event.
Class 1A Field Events (Time: 9 am)
Last year, Pekin’s Anna Hadley set a state meet record with her championship throw of 150 feet and 9 inches. In her claim to defend the title, she took an early lead with a throw of 142 feet and 10 inches on her first throw of the day. She would add on by hitting 144 feet and 6 inches before the finals.
However, Lindsay Kruse of Saint Ansgar would tab a throw of 148 feet and 6 inches to take control of the standings and one final heave of 145 feet and 7 inches was not enough to overcome the deficit for Hadley as she ended up with the silver medal. The finish added eight points to the team’s total.
Class 1A Field Events (Time: 11:30 am)
In the boys’ discus, Colin Anderson of Winfield-Mt. Union took 24th place with a toss of 126 feet and 9 inches.
For the girls’ high jump, Kinzie Ruess of Highland claimed 17th place with a leap of 4 feet and 10 inches. Winfield-Mt. Union’s Quin Smith could not quite match her school record, but still finished on the podium with a bronze medal leap of 5 feet and 4 inches. The finish gave her six points.
Class 1A Running Events
The WACO girls’ team started the morning off well, tabbing a season best time of 4 minutes and 16 seconds with the team of Ryen Pepper, Taelyn Egli, Carlee Lunsford, and Josie Dykstra to finish in 4th place for the distance medley relay. The Warriors earned five points for the finish.
Pekin’s team of Brin Lauderman, Addison Smith, Maddy Petrehn, and Chloe Glosser claimed 10th place with a time of 4 minutes and 24 seconds.
The Southeast Iowa Super Conference (SEISC) was ready to compete in the boys’ distance medley with WACO and Van Buren County finding a spot inside the top eight. The WACO team of Hayden Shelman, Bryson Waterhouse, Locken Henderson, and Jude Dykstra nabbed two points with a 7th place time of 3 minutes and 39 seconds.
The squad of Jace Duncan, Jaren Troxel, Kayden Simmons, and Lincoln Bainbridge already entered as the favorite and in doing so knew they had something to prove. The Warriors did that and then some, as they chopped six seconds off their state qualifying time, setting a season-best and a state meet record time of 3 minutes and 30 seconds for the championship. Marking the second for Bainbridge and another 10 points for Van Buren County.
In the girls’ 100-meter hurdles prelims, Paislee Coleman of Pekin finished in 12th place with a time of 16.38 seconds.
Congruently, Cruz Hagmeier of Winfield-Mt. Union took 12th place in the boys’ 110-meter hurdle prelims.
A pair of teams from the SEISC met in the girls’ 4×200 meter relay and Danville’s team of Macie Wagner, Alivia Bauer, Violette Sowell, and Delaney Newberry edged past Van Buren County’s crew of Emma Coffin, Aubrey Loeffler, Aida Troutman, and Ava Loeffler by three-tenths of a second (1 minute and 49 seconds) as the finished in 19th and 20th place, respectively.
New London did not enter as the favorite for the boys’ 4×200 meter relay, but they certainly raced like they were. The team of Brigham Porter, London Franklin, Cale Westerbeck, and Gavin Strawhacker clocked a season best time of 1 minute and 28 seconds for the state championship. The crew will look to repeat in the 4×100 meter relay.
Pekin’s quad of Aliyas Brock, Nolan Glick, Riley Smith, and Alijah Brock would normally have run away with the title with a time of 1 minute and 29 seconds, but this time the Panthers will have to be content with the silver medal and eight points.
A pair from Van Buren County competed in the boys’ 400-meter hurdles and one managed to grab some points. Jace Duncan finished in 16th place with a time of 56.19 seconds, while Kayden Simmons logged the 6th place time of 55.16 seconds. The finish gave him three points.
In the girls’ 4×100 meter relay prelims, Van Buren County’s crew of Emma Coffin, Aida Troutman, Daphny Wells, and Ava Loeffler took 17th place with a time of 51.46 seconds. WACO’s team of Pepper, Natalie Wagler, Bren Graber, and Egli finished right outside qualifying with a 9th place time of 50.82 seconds.
Moving on to the finals will be Highland’s group of Haily Brun, Kamryn Fink, Kinzie Ruess, and Alexa Hahn, who took 8th place, and Hillcrest Academy’s squad of Karina Bourha, Adia Scott, Niva Helmuth, and Rya Scott, who nabbed 2nd place. The two teams will run on Saturday at 3:45 pm.
New London kept their status quo in the boys’ 4×100 meter relay prelims by posting the fastest time of 42.92 seconds with the team of Westerbeck, Strawhacker, Porter, and Franklin. Pekin’s group of both Brocks, Smith, and Glick will challenge them in the finals after finishing in 7th place. The pair will run at 3:55 pm on Saturday.
Danville’s quartet of Newberry, Bauer, Wagner, and Alaina Gourely grabbed 4th place in the girls’ 4×400 meter prelims with a time of 4 minutes and 7 seconds. The Bears will compete at 4:05 pm on Saturday.
In the boys’ 4×400 meter relay prelims, Pekin’s team of Glick, Smith, Alijah Brock, and Lane Fariss snatched 3rd place with a time of 3 minutes and 25.4 seconds, while Simmons, Troxel, Duncan, and Bainbridge took 5th place with a mark of 3 minutes and 25.9 seconds. Both will race at 4:30 pm on Saturday for the finals.
Wapello’s crew of Justyn Faulkner, Rowen Atkinson, Garrett Cooley, and Kendyn Lanz finished in 15th place with a time of 3 minutes and 29.8 seconds.
Team Standings
Boys’ Class 1A
- Iowa Valley: 25.5, 2. Lisbon: 25, 3. Riverside and Van Buren County: 23, 5. New London: 20, … 14. WACO: 10, … 16. Pekin: 8
Girls’ Class 1A
- Edgewood-Colesburg: 39, 2. Pekin: 28, 3. CAM: 25, … 13. WACO: 10, … 20. Winfield-Mt. Union: 6
Boys’ Class 4A
- Bettendorf: 47, 2. Cedar Falls: 36, 3. Indianola: 28
Girls’ Class 4A
- Waukee Northwest: 63.5, 2. Cedar Fall: 38.5, 3. Iowa City High: 38
More
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