(Elk Horn, IA) – The Exira-EHK Spartans got in early meet action this week to get a few more reps in before Thursday’s state-qualifying meet. It was a meet where the Spartans just focused on their handoffs, block starts, and getting the other technical aspects down to be ready to compete against some of the region’s best athletes.
Head Coach Kevin Brown has organized the practices to be more relaxed so that his athletes can come out explosively later this week. This is essential to giving the body a rest in order for athletes to perform at their peak. With it being so late in the season, it is all about mental confidence as they’ve already prepared themselves and their bodies to compete at the top of their level.
One thing about Exira-EHK is that they’ve worked with such a small team of 13 boys this season. With their small numbers, these boys have surpassed expectations and have continued to not work on their team scores, but break their personal bests night in and night out. While they’ve seen that success, Coach Brown knows that there is still more work to be done. He is looking for Cash Emgarten and Jonas LaCanne to be running at the blue oval next week and to see some personal best times broken at Thursday’s meet.
While both Cash and Jonas have made headlines all season long, Exira-EHK features a few other runners who have continued to throw their names into the mix. Austin Rasmussen, Bryce Brabham, and Alex Hansen have come out of nowhere and pushed themselves above the limit with some top finishes.
Coach Brown has trained his athletes all season long in both the physical and the mental game. All the work has already been done throughout the regular season, and now it is just time to go out to the track and utilize what they’ve learned throughout the year.
Exira-EHK will be running at Fremont-Mills High School this Thursday for the state-qualifier meet that will start at 4:00 p.m.
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