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The Creston boys track team gathered in the Creston High School commons Sunday afternoon for its postseason awards banquet, where it honored six senior leaders.
It was a strange season for the Panthers in the sense that overall, participation numbers were up with 24 total members on the team. But 11 of those 24 athletes were out for track and field for the first time.
Also, eight of the 24 athletes were throwers, giving the Panthers plenty of depth in the two throwing events.
With those 11 newcomers to the program, head coach Pat Schlapia and assistant coach Steve Birchard relied heavily on their experienced athletes to lead the way.
“We gave a lot of credit to all the seniors. Kyle Fenton came out for the first time. The other five (seniors) had the experience of 19 years,” Schlapia said. “We had a lot of experience. We knew at the start of the season we were going to need that because we had 11 guys running track for the first time. We really leaned on those seniors and upperclassmen who were out there to show the other boys what we expect out of them.”
Those six seniors provided the leadership Schlapia’s program needed. They set an example for the underclassmen and newcomers.
Schlapia said that senior Travis Purdy showed a lot of heart all throughout his career, working harder than anyone else. Seniors Seth Maitlen and Chris Foster showed versatility throughout their careers and were willing to step in and fill a role in any relay in order to help the team. Both are members of the school record distance medley relay team.
Nick Walsh shaved 7 seconds off his 800-meter time in a matter of just a couple of weeks, earning a state meet berth in an individual event in his career. Cooper McDermott came back from mononucleosis and an emergency appendectomy to run one last race at the Class 3A State Qualifying Meet.
“He was looking really good this year, had a top-five time in the state in the 1,600,” Schlapia said. “He could have packed it in then, too. Again, there’s the heart and determination. All six of those boys led by example for us. They left their mark. The torch has been passed and we’ll see who is going to pick the torch up.”
Schlapia said Walsh’s improvement throughout the season was indicative of the entire team, which improved its times and distances throughout the season, peaking at the right time.
That resulted in a state meet berth for Walsh, who qualified in the 800 meters.
“As the season went on, I think our times and our distances improved a lot,” Schlapia said. “This year, with the mixing our past experience with the newbies and young pups, it was going to be a long process. From March 1 to that state meet in May, we made a lot of progress. We always talk about train on black to run on blue, and we accomplished that this year.”
The Panthers earned the Distinguished Academic Achievement award from the Iowa High School Athletic Association after compiling a team GPA between 3.25 and 4.00.
Schlapia also thanked Birchard, who has been a co-coach or assistant coach with Schlapia for 25 years. Birchard was honored the 2016 Co-ed State Track Meet with a 25-year service award from the Iowa Association of Track Coaches.
Letterwinners
(Number of letters)
Seniors — Kyle Fenton (1), Chris Foster (4), Seth Maitlen (4), Cooper McDermott (3), Travis Purdy (2), Nick Walsh (4).
Juniors — Colton Bolinger (1), Brody Frain (2), Kadon Hulett (1), Chase Shiltz (1), Cody Tanner (3), Travontay Wright (1).
Sophomores — Dalten Bierle (2), Trevor Downing (2), Mitchel Swank (1), Cody Wagner (2).
Participation awards — Nathan Cox, Devon Peterson, Ben Bargstadt, Dylan Linch, Julien Niehl, Zac Hague, Trevor Kinyon, Hank Looney.
Hawkeye 10 Conference All-Academic — Cooper McDermott, Seth Maitlen, Nick Walsh.