SIOUX FALLS – The race for the Class B Boys State Track and Field team championship was expected to be close, and it turned out to be a dead heat.

The Ipswich Tigers finished in a tie with Gregory for the team title, with each team scoring 54 points at Howard Wood Field on Saturday afternoon. Ipswich coach Todd Thorson knew it would be a tall task to come away with the title.

“I knew Gregory had a lot of people that were there, and I kind of thought we were going to be the odd man out thinking in the back of my head,” Thorson said. “But I knew our kids would step up. If you went by rankings, they had us beat, but when our 4×2 goes from seventh to third, and then our 4×1 moves up as well, you know, we had a lot of things that just really went well today.”

The team title came down to the final race, with both teams participating in the 1,600-meter relay. With the race going back-and-forth, Thorson’s mind was racing with thoughts on how the meet to turn out.

“It was kind of mixed emotions. I saw them up in third and I was like good for them, they’re going to earn it, and then I saw them move back to sixth, and I’m like wow, we might actually win this,” Thorson said. “When I knew we tied, I saw them get fifth right at the very end, and I’m like that’s kind of a fitting way because there were so many close calls.”

When the race ended, Gregory had placed fifth, while Ipswich finished in eighth place, resulting in a tie for the team championship. Thorson was proud of the way the seniors went out in their final meet.

“It’s a great group of seniors. They’re going to be irreplaceable,” Thorson said. “I say that every year, but this is a special group of athletes that worked super hard. We weathered the storm. We had lots of injuries this year. We didn’t have very good weather. They learned the most important lesson in life, and that’s to work hard to achieve and to keep pushing no matter what’s thrown your way., and that’s way more important than track and field.”

When asked what it means to bring another state track and field title back to Ipswich, Thorson said the journey is what it is all about.

“It means a lot. Each one has its own journey, and that’s the fun part to be honest,” Thorson said. “The trophy itself is just a product of championship character. One of my favorite quotes is championships aren’t won on the event itself, but they’re earned through the seconds, the hours, the days, the months, the years that you prepared for that championship, and that’s where they’re won. So, the journey itself is pretty cool. It means a lot.”

The Tigers will have a welcome home celebration at 6:30 tonight at the Ipswich Theater.

One athlete that helped in the Tigers’ championship efforts is senior Tyler Hettich, who capped off his career with a fifth-place finish in the high jump. Hettich posted a leap of 6 feet. He was pleased with how he continued to improve throughout the event.

“I thought I did pretty good. I got 5-8 on my first try, 5-10 on my second try, 6 foot on my first try again, and then 6-2, that’s my PR indoor. I haven’t jumped it outdoor,” Hettich said. “I wished I could’ve jumped 6-2 today.”

Hettich admitted that he was tired before the event as he had run in the 400-meter and 800-meter relays before and during the high jump. Although it was a busy day for the senior, Hettich was glad to finish his career at the state meet.

“I feel good about it. I gave it everything I had. Coach always talks about giving it everything you got so you don’t regret anything,” Hettich said. “I can say I don’t regret anything.”

Another championship on the boys’ side came from Faulkton’s 800-meter relay team. The squad, which consisted of Cade Schick, Roman DiMaria, Garrett Cramer, and Daniel Stoll, outlasted Viborg-Hurley in a thrilling back-and-forth race, winning the title with a time of 1:31.57.

Stoll, who anchored the relay, said the team had a focus entering the event.

“We just went there together, and we just wanted to focus on our handoffs and make sure those were clean, because we had the speed throughout the rest of us to win it,” Stoll said. “It just came down to the handoffs that we had to fix.”

The entire race was close, and once the baton was coming towards Stoll, he knew he had to make his move as soon as possible.

“There was a guy in lane two that just scared me because he stayed with me through the whole corner. I could just hear him running right next to me,” Stoll said. “But, then, as soon as I heard his footsteps getting quieter and quieter, then I knew that I had it. But I just wanted to finish through the race like I was taught.”

Stoll said once he got the baton he ran for his life, bringing the 800-meter relay title back to the town of Faulkton.

“It’s something really special because I’m new to the town, but it’s great that we broke school records this year, as well as we come back state champs,” Stoll said. “It’s kind of like a thank you to all the parents out there and the coaches and teachers who’ve helped us through the rest of the school year to get to this point.”

Northwestern’s Ella Haven placed second in the triple jump with a leap of 34 feet, 5.25 inches. She was excited about her performance.

“I guess coming out, I knew I was ranked pretty high, which I was glad to go in like that,” Haven said. “Then my first jump, I hit 34 feet, which I haven’t done ever, so that was exciting to see.”

Haven said doing her best throughout the season helped her get to the state meet.

“Just competing at every meet the best I can,” Haven said, “and trying to take what I can get to just use that to do better at every meet.”

Aberdeen Christian‘s Shawnteah La Croix capped off an impressive freshman season by placing third in the 200-meter dash and fourth in the 100-meter dash. La Croix described her thoughts on each event.

“For my 100, for the prelims of course, my blocks weren’t as good. Today I came in a little early and got my blocks figured out, and so good blocks, and then I got out good, and so I’m happy with how that went,” La Croix said. “And then in the 200, once again, I was a little nervous for that one. I was honestly kind of done for the day and I still had to run the 200. I did pretty good in that, I feel like, and I was happy with what I got.”

While she says she does not know exactly what causes her to be nervous for the 200, La Croix says she does understand what causes her to calm down and relax.

“When I’m done with the race and just knowing I did good,” La Croix said.

Christian coach Sam Bjorkman was glad to see La Croix run well on the final day of the meet.

“Awesome day for Shawnteah. She ran what she had hoped. She ran a little bit above the field, comparatively, in the 200, and basically, right where she came in in the 100,” Bjorkman said. “She’s working on her start a lot and she finally put that together this morning in the 100, and that’s what made the difference. That was really fun to see.”

Bjorkman also noted that senior Rachel Beaner finished off her career in the 1,600-meter run, and although she did not place, he was glad to see her improvement through the years.

“She’s one of the only seniors out there in the distance these days, and she got better every year,” Bjorkman said. “Really cool to see the hard work pay off for her.”

Beaner and a trio of senior boys will be missed by Bjorkman and the Aberdeen Christian program.

“The leadership has been indispensable,” Bjorkman said. “I’ll miss every one of those guys and so it’ll leave a big hole for the underclassmen to step into, so hopefully we can raise up some more leaders.”

Overall, Bjorkman took several things away from the state meet that can be used to build the future.

“Just having those kids here, even the kids that just came as alternates, is just huge, so they don’t walk in like a deer in the headlights. Hopefully, we’ll bring a group of them next year,” Bjorkman said. “And then just to have them see what excellence looks like, and what the results of excellence looks like when you have national level competitors (like) Simeon Birnbaum and Gracelyn Leiseth. I think that’s just such a good thing to set their eyes on. This is the excellence that we’re pursuing.”

The Class B Girls Field MVP was Trinity Bietz of Scotland and the Running MVP was Daniela Lee of Viborg-Hurley. The Class B Boys Field MVP was Rylan McDonnell of Wall and the Running MVP was Jovi Wolf of Chester Area.

For complete results, click on the following link:

https://results.dakotatiming.com/display.html?event_id=1245