VAN METER — The unkind spring weather finally cooperated for the Nodaway Valley middle school girls to get some track meets under their belts.
The girls finished third at their first track meet of the season at Van Meter.
“We had some triumphs and defeats, made mistakes and learned some lessons,” said coach Gary Thompson. “We are coming together as a team and learning to care for and respect each other.”
Maddax DeVault garnered individual gold in both the long jump and the 100m. DeVault also took second in the 400m and fourth in the 200m. Whitney Lamb took first in the shot put, while the sprint medley team of Alexis Williams, Lamb, Shyan Castillo and Abby Engles earned another gold.
Third place finishes went to Skylah LaChance in the 100 meter, the 4x200 team of Madison Long, Lamb, Engles and Aubrey Van Otterloo and the 4x800 foursome of Lily Day, Erin Ford, Hope Kading and Delanie Brown.
Fifth place finishes went to LaChance in the 200, Day in the 1500, Lamb in the discus, the 4x100 team of Castillo, Engles, Long and Madison Fry and the distance medley team of Williams, Castillo, Fry and Van Otterloo.
Garnering sixth place finishes were the 4x400m team of Emma Leigh Diaguez, Williams, Ford and Brown, LaChance in the high jump and Day in the 800.
The girls picked up a meet at West Central Valley, April 17. NV finished third out of eight teams with 95 points. Winterset was first with 126 points, followed by ADM with 123 points.
“There were no throwing events, so we lost more than 20 points there,” Thompson said. “We would have been right there for the win if we had a chance to throw.”
DeVault had three gold medal performances, winning all three events with new personal times. DeVault captured the 100m in 14.13, the 200m in 28.85 and the 200m hurdles in 32.48.
Second place honors went to Lily Day in the 1500m (5:57.7, a personal record), Skylah LaChance in the high jump (4’6”) and the shuttle hurdle team of Madison Fry, Rose Lonsdale, Shelbee Woosley and EmmaLeigh Diaguez (1:26.28).
Third place finishes went to LaChance in the 200m (31.48-personal record), Abby Engles in the 400m (1:07.37-personal record), Madison Fry in the 100m hurdles (20.38-personal record) and DeVault in the long jump (14’ 9.5”-personal record).
Fourth place honors went to Madison Long in the 100m hurdles (20.68) and the sprint medley team of Alexis Williams, Lonsdale, Whitney Lamb and Engles (2:14.52).
Fifth place finishes went to Day in the 800m (2:54.91-personal record), the 4x200m team of Williams, Lonsdale, Shan Castillo and LaChance (2:13.07) and the 4x800m team of Delanie Brown, Day, Erin Ford and Hope Kading (12:24.26).
Sixth place went to LaChance in the 100m (15.05), Castillo in the high jump (4’3”) and the 4x100m team of Long, Lamb, Castillo and Engles (time not available).
On April 19, the middle school girls traveled to Audubon to run against some top teams in the area. NV placed third with 91 points. Audubon was first with 105 points, followed by Treynor with 93 points.
“I’m a pretty proud coach,” Thompson said. “The kids are still learning and getting better. Lots of things to improve on, but lots of great achievements and perseverance.”
Gold came from Skylah LaChance in the high jump (4’6”), Whitney Lamb in the shot put (28’2”-personal record), the distance medley team of Maddax DeVault, LaChance, Abby Engles and Lily Day (4:59.91) and the sprint medley team of Madison Fry, Aubrey Van Otterloo, DeVault and Engles (2:09.04).
Second place finishes went to DeVault in the long jump (14’ 1.5”), the 4x200m team of Fry, Madison Long, Engles and LaChance (2:05.21) and the 4x100m unit of Fry, Long, Shyan Castillo and Van Otterloo (1:01).
Fourth place went to Sophia Chafa in the discus (65’7”-personal record), Castillo in the high jump (4’4”-personal record).
Fifth place went to Whitney Lamb in the discus (64’5”), the 4x800m team of Hope Kading, Van Otterloo, Delanie Brown and Erin Ford (no time), the shuttle hurdle team of Madison Long, Rose Lonsdale, Shelbee Woosley and EmmaLeigh Diaguez (1:27.47) and Diaguez in the 200 hurdles (no time).
A sixth-place finish went to Day in the 800m in 2:57.58.