(Glenwood) The Atlantic girl’s Track Team is sending seven events to the State Meet with several other events on the bubble. The top two finishers automatically qualify, and the next eight top performances across the state round out the 24-participants in each event.
The Trojans won three races and finished second in four others. Atlantic Head Coach Matt Mullenix says three other events have a chance to get in.
“This is a resilient group,” said Coach Matt Mullenix. “We ask a lot out of them, and every time they come out and respond.
“Tonight, it started with our seniors,” stated Mullenix. “Lauren Nicholas PR’d by eight-foot and scored one point for us in the discus. It continued on the track with the seniors in the Sprint Medley group. Taylor McCreedy in the 3,000 and the 4×800 Relay group with seniors Madison Botos and Kennedy Goergen. They had to bring things down where they needed to be, and they responded, along with fellow seniors Alyssa Derby, Caroline Pellett, and Haley Rasmussen. The seniors anchor this group, and rally these young kids, and show them the way. We’re built to peak at this time of year, and we did that.”
Haley Rasmussen won the 200 meters (26.88) and anchored the winning Sprint Medley Relay and teammates Caroline Pellett, Alyssa Derby, and Chloe Mullenix (1:53.73). Sophomore Ava Rush rounded out the three victories with an impressive 2:21.09 victory in the 800 meters.
Taylor McCreedy finished runner-up in the 3,000 meters (11:21.46), Rasmussen finished second in the 400 Meters (1:01.58), Mullenix was second in the 400-meter hurdles (1:09.02), and the 4×800 meter relay team of Maddie Botos, Claire Pellett, Kennedy Goergen, and Rush qualified for the state meet with a runner-up finish with a time of 10:14.77.
Atlantic finished third as team. Glenwood won the team title with 157-points, Harlan second, 132, Atlantic, third, 107, Carroll, fourth, 88, Bishop-Heelan, fifth, 77, Clarke, sixth, 70, Denison-Schleswig, seventh, 62, and Creston, eighth, 38.
The State Track Meet starts May 20 and runs through the 22nd at Drake Stadium in Des Moines.
