Photo by Jenny Kirk LQPV/DB’s Julie Overton stands atop the podium after taking first in the discus at the Class A meet Friday at Hamline University in St. Paul.

ST. PAUL – The Marshall area has a new track and field champion as Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd’s Julie Overton won the discus competition at the 2018 Class A State Track and Field Championships on Friday.

“I’m excited and really happy,” Overton said.

Overton, a sophomore, came into the discus competition ranked third-highest with a section throw of 127-1. She said she’s grateful for hitting a personal record for the season – 130-8 – to help propel her to first place.

“My PR was that throw,” she said. “It feels great. It was going rough at first, but I pulled through.”

Overton attributes a few different factors for her success.

“My mom (Joan Longhenry) was a state champion also, so I guess it came from her. I really focused on being quick this season as well. And my family, my coaches and team helped me a lot, too.”

LQPV/D-B also had three other athletes compete on Friday. Senior Keiser Freetly qualified for the finals today by finishing third overall in the 800 meter run prelims. Freetly shaved nearly 3 seconds off his seed time, running the race in 1:56.96. Melrose Area’s Jesse Middendorf holds the top qualifying time (1:56.23).

Sophomore Mike Kvaal earned a sixth-place medal in the 3,200 meter run. Kvaal recorded a time of 9:52.41, shattering his seed time of 10:15.59. Matt Steiger of La Crescent won the competition with a 9:21.87.

Sophomore Avery Bartunek wasn’t able to replicate her impressive 17-1 section mark in the long jump. Bartunek finished in 20th place with a leap of 15-1.

Wabasso

The Wabasso Rabbits had four athletes take part in state competitions on Friday. Seniors Myles Zeug and Isaac Schmiesing competed in the shot put.

“It went pretty good,” Zeug said. “It was just another day competing. I was happy to be here, excited to be here, happy to compete.”

This year marked the second time Zeug qualified for the state shot put competition. He wasn’t quite able to medal last year, so it was definitely a goal this year.

“I wanted to get podium and I got podium, so I was pumped,” he said.

Zeug finished in eighth place after recording a throw of 49-10.75.

“I was a little short,” Zeug said of his personal goal. “I hit a 49-10, but I was hoping to get about a 50 to 52 or somewhere in that region. But that’s just how it goes.”

Schmiesing came in with the lowest seed in the field of competitors, but rose above that, finishing in 15th place with a put of 45-3.75.

“Isaac did great,” Zeug said. “He came in two years ago and he’d never thrown before. He worked hard and made it to state. And then he competed well at state. He beat a couple people, so he did very well. I’m very proud of him. I had a good time with him. We had a lot of fun.”

Zeug said he’s also excited to cheer on junior Carl Swedzinski today in the discus competition.

“This is the most (Wabasso athletes) we’ve brought up here for a long time,” Zeug said. “Last year, we brought five, but one of the events was a relay.”

The Rabbits had two athletes compete in the 400 meter dash. Senior Colton Taylor missed making the finals by the narrowest of margins. Taylor finished 10th with a 51.09. He came in with a section time of 51.42. Mora’s Cal Wright currently holds the No. 1 prelim time (49.37).

Senior Lindsey Bernardy ended up in 15th place, running the race in 1:01.51. Her seed time coming into the competition was 1:00.70. Robbie Grace from The Blake School ran the fastest qualifying time (56.60).

Canby/Minneota

Canby/Minneota fans had a busy day as several male and female athletes took part in the state competition on Day 1. Eighth-grader Grace Drietz ran a finals-qualifying time of 2:19.13 in the 800 meter run, good for seventh-place in the preliminaries. Her effort on Friday knocked more than 3 seconds off her seed time.

Senior Norah King just missed the awards stand, finishing in 11th place with a throw of 109-11. The 4×200 relay team of eighth grader RyAnn Hansen, sophomore Makenzie Hemish, senior Kalli Jelen and junior Lizzy Gillingham finished in 15th place with a time of 1:48.85.

On the boy’s side, two relay teams competed. Juniors Carter Wente and Jared Josephson, along with senior Isaac Hennen and sophomore Cameron Anderson teamed up for a 14th-place finish in the 4×200. Wente, Anderson, Hennen and Cole VanOverbeke joined forces in the 4×100 relay, finishing 15th overall.

Wente also competed in the 110 meter hurdles. He added on some time from his section finish (15.44), finishing in 17th place with a 16.60 on Friday. Reid Pierzinski of Pequot Lakes ran the fastest prelim time (15.00).

WWG/RRC

Westbrook-Walnut Grove/Red Rock Central’s Nathan Runck dropped more than 12 seconds off his seed time in the 3,200 meter run. Runck, a senior, finished 15th overall with a time of 10:07.17.

TMB

Tracy-Milroy-Balaton sent one relay team to the state track and field championships. For seniors Kaylee Kirk, Sarita Hook and Alecia Christian, it was the third straight time advancing to state in the 4×400.

“It was a good way to go out our senior year,” Christian said. “We’ve had a great weekend and it’s just fun finishing up with a great team. We had a really good time. People have so much talent up here. It’s amazing to see.”

Along with the seniors, seventh grader Jordan Munson earned a spot on the team, which finished 16th overall after recording a time of 4:13.15.

“Jordan did awesome this year,” Christian said. “The season went really well. The weather patterns in the beginning kind of threw us off, but it made for a fun experience. I had a great team, so that’s made it fun the whole year.”

Lakeview

Lakeview junior Sierra Plotz nearly put herself on the podium in the Class A high jump competition. Coming in with a section jump of 5-2, Plotz was hoping to match that or even get a PR. Our of 22 participants, Plotz ended up taking 18th place after clearing 5-0. Eleven jumpers cleared 5-2 and were then eliminated at the next height. Annandale’s Nyalaam Jok matched the Class A record with an impressive jump of 5-9.