(Des Moines) Rose Ripslinger of Davenport Assumption, Des Moines Roosevelt’s Jalynn Roberts-Lewis, and Whitney Westrum of Waukee are the 2022 inductees into the Iowa Girl High School Athletic Union’s Track and Field Hall of Fame. The trio will be honored at 1:35 p.m. Saturday, May 21 at the 2022 Iowa High School State Track and Field Meet at Drake Stadium.
Ripslinger accumulated eight state championships and six runner-up titles while competing at Davenport Assumption from 2010-to-2014. She participated in 4×100 relays that hold the fifth, sixth, and eighth places on Iowa’s all-time list. As a senior, she helped Davenport Assumption win the state team title by claiming championships in the 100 and 200 meters with runner-up finishes in the 4×100 relay and the open 400. That same year, the Assumption relay teams were named Outstanding Performers at the Drake Relays. An all-state soccer player, Ripslinger played soccer for the University of Iowa.
Roberts-Lewis was a key piece for Des Moines Roosevelt’s track and field team from 2010-to-2014. She helped the Roughrider 4×100 relay teams reach first, third, fourth, and ninth on Iowa’s all-time list. In her senior year, Roberts-Lewis captured the 100 and 200 meter championships with times that placed fastest overall. She is tied for 11th place on the all-time list in the 200 meters with a time of 24.45. She also ranks 11th all-time in the long jump, with the distance of 19-2. Roberts-Lewis continued her track and field career at Illinois State before transferring to the University of Iowa. As a Hawkeye, Roberts-Lewis claimed multiple top 25 Big Ten finishes in individual and team events.
Westrum ran for Waukee from 2006-to-2009. She claimed six state relay championships, one individual title, and was a 15-time state medalist overall. She was a member of the 2009 Warrior 4×400 relay team that ran a 3:49.72 time that ranks second on Iowa’s all-time list. Westrum also left her mark at the Drake Relays, claiming eight relay titles and being named the Outstanding Performer in the girls high school division in 2009. Westrum went on to play volleyball and run track at Drake University. In volleyball, she led the team in kills in 2011. She accumulated six top-10 finishes for the Bulldog track team at the Missouri Valley Conference meet. She holds the number three spot on Drake’s all-time list in the indoor 200 with a time of 24.88 and is tied for fifth all-time in the outdoor 400 with a 55.20 finish.
