(KMAland) -- The Martin Blog Spring Sports Preview series continues on with a look at Hawkeye Ten Conference Boys Track & Field.
PREVIOUS SPRING SPORTS PREVIEWS
3/9: KMAland Boys Golf
3/8: KMAland Boys Tennis
3/8: Rolling Valley Conference Boys Track & Field
3/7: KMAland Girls Golf
3/7: Hawkeye Ten Conference Boys Soccer
3/5: Western Iowa Conference Boys Soccer
3/3: Corner Conference Girls Track & Field
3/2: Missouri River Conference Girls Soccer
2/28: KMAland Girls Tennis
2/24: Hawkeye Ten Conference Girls Soccer
2/23: Missouri River Conference Boys Soccer
2023 HAWKEYE TEN CONFERENCE BOYS TRACK & FIELD PREVEW
The Lewis Central boys claimed a second straight Hawkeye Ten Conference title last season, scoring 144 points to edge out Glenwood’s 134. Nobody else scored more than 88. Here’s how it lined up:
1. Lewis Central Titans — 144 points
2. Glenwood Rams — 134 points
3. Clarinda Cardinals — 88 points
4. Harlan Cyclones — 69 points
5. Red Oak Tigers — 62 points
6. Atlantic Trojans — 57 points
7. Kuemper Catholic Knights — 56 points
8. St. Albert Falcons — 45 points
9. Denison-Schleswig Monarchs — 39 points
10. Shenandoah Mustangs — 26 points
11. Creston Panthers — 18 points
COACHES
•Atlantic: Abby Becker
•Clarinda: Chad Blank
•Creston: Clay Arnold
•Denison-Schleswig: Willie Baughman
•Glenwood: Mark Starner
•Harlan: Sam Brummer
•Kuemper Catholic: Ryan Steinkamp
•Lewis Central: Matt Argotsinger
•Red Oak: Sueann French
•Shenandoah: Ty Ratliff
•St. Albert: Russ Sindelar
RETURNING STATE MEDALISTS
•Tadyn Brown, Senior, Clarinda: Brown was sixth in last year’s long jump.
•Ethan Eichhorn, Junior, Lewis Central: Eichhorn took eighth in last year’s 3200 meter run.
•Luciano Fidone, Senior, Lewis Central: Fidone was on last year’s state champion 4x200 meter relay team.
•Aidan Hall, Senior, Harlan (3): Hall has three medals from 2021, finishing sixth in the 100 and eighth in the 200 and also ran for the fifth-place sprint medley relay.
•Jonathan Humpal, Senior, Lewis Central: Humpal was also on the state champion 4x200 meter relay team.
•Isaac Jones, Senior, Clarinda (2): Jones won the high jump state championship in 2021 and finished second in the long jump in 2022.
•Braylon Kammrad, Senior, Lewis Central: Another member of the state champion 4x200 meter relay from last year.
•Jack Kling, Senior, Red Oak: Kling placed eighth in last year’s 400 meter dash.
•Tyler Laughlin, Senior, Shenandoah: The Mustangs standout ended up with a fifth-place finish in the discus last season.
•Colin Lillie, Senior, St. Albert (3): Lillie was sixth in the 3200 and seventh in the 1600 last year. He also placed seventh in the two-mile in 2021.
•Brendan Monahan, Senior, St. Albert (6): Monahan was a three-time medalist (3rd 200, 5th 100, 6th 400) last season and also grabbed three medals in 2021 (3rd 4x400, 6th 4x200, 6th SMR).
•Wil Neuharth, Senior, Harlan (2): Neuharth took fourth in the 100 last season and was on the fifth-place sprint medley in 2021.
RETURNING INDIVIDUAL STATE QUALIFIERS (FROM 2022 STATE TRACK)
•Evan Adams, Junior, Kuemper Catholic — discus throw
•Cole Baumgart, Junior, Clarinda — high jump
•Tadyn Brown, Senior, Clarinda — long jump
•Brody Cullin, Junior, Shenandoah — 400 meter hurdles
•Anthony Driscoll-Lee, Senior, Glenwood — 110 meter hurdles, long jump
•Ethan Eichhorn, Junior, Lewis Central — 1600 meter run, 3200 meter run
•Jake Fink, Junior, Denison-Schleswig — 400 meter hurdles
•Leo Flores, Senior, Denison-Schleswig — 800 meter run
•Benjamin Gerken, Junior, Kuemper Catholic — long jump
•Isaac Jones, Senior, Clarinda — long jump
•Braylon Kammrad, Senior, Lewis Central — 400 meter hurdles
•Bryant Keller, Junior, Glenwood — 1600 meter run, 3200 meter run
•Jack Kling, Senior, Red Oak — 400 meter dash
•Cody Krause, Senior, Glenwood — high jump, long jump
•Tyler Laughlin, Senior, Shenandoah — discus throw
•Karson Lea, Senior, Lewis Central — 400 meter dash
•Colin Lillie, Senior, St. Albert — 1600 meter run, 3200 meter run
•Parker Matiyow, Senior, Lewis Central — shot put
•Brandon McCall, Junior, St. Albert — shot put
•Jackson McLaren, Senior, Atlantic — 110 meter hurdles
•Brendan Monahan, Senior, St. Albert — 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash, 400 meter dash
•Wil Neuharth, Senior, Harlan — 100 meter dash, 200 meter dash
•Jayden Prowl, Senior, Atlantic — high jump
•Colton Rasmussen, Junior, Atlantic — high jump
•Alex Razee, Junior, Shenandoah — 400 meter dash
•Treyton Schaapherder, Junior, Clarinda — 3200 meter run
•Gunner Schmitz, Senior, Harlan — discus throw
•Andrew Smith, Junior, Glenwood — 800 meter run
•Kyle Wagoner, Sophomore, Clarinda — 1600 meter run
INDIVIDUAL EVENT-BY-EVENT BREAKDOWN
100: The top three in the event and four of the top five are coming back this season.
1. Aidan Hall, Senior, Harlan (10.99)
2. Brendan Monahan, Senior, St. Albert (11.12)
3. Wil Neuharth, Senior, Harlan (11.28)
5. Jonathan Humpal, Senior, Lewis Central (11.41)
7. Logan Sibenaller, Senior, Kuemper Catholic (11.76)
200: Monahan, Hall and Humpal were the top three in the event last season, although the rest of the top five graduated.
1. Brendan Monahan, Senior, St. Albert (22.28)
2. Aidan Hall, Senior, Harlan (22.44)
3. Jonathan Humpal, Senior, Lewis Central (22.84)
6. Payton Longmeyer, Junior, Glenwood (23.98)
7. Casen Dryden, Sophomore, Creston (24.29)
400: From last year’s conference meet, two of the top three will also return in this event, including champion Jack Kling of Red Oak.
1. Jack Kling, Senior, Red Oak (51.10)
3. Tadyn Brown, Senior, Clarinda (52.64)
5. Karson Lea, Senior, Lewis Central (54.55)
6. Tyson O’Brien, Sophomore, Atlantic (54.81)
7. Koby Lampman, Senior, Kuemper Catholic (55.36)
800: We’ve come to the first event where the champion from last year is not returning. However, the next four finishers will be back to make a run at the half-mile championship.
2. Andrew Smith, Junior, Glenwood (2:03.99)
3. Caden Andersen, Senior, Atlantic (2:04.82)
4. Brandon Briley, Junior, Creston (2:05.29)
5. Leo Flores, Senior, Denison-Schleswig (2:05.39)
7. Jake Shannon, Junior, Glenwood (2:11.57)
1600: Champion Colin Lillie is back to defend his championship, but he’s likely going to have a whole lot of competition with all but one player that scored in the event returning to the league.
1. Colin Lillie, Senior, St. Albert (4:37.27)
3. Bryant Keller, Junior, Glenwood (4:43.38)
4. Ethan Eichhorn, Junior, Lewis Central (4:45.41)
5. Andrew Smith, Junior, Glenwood (4:46.58)
6. Treyton Schaapherder, Junior, Clarinda (4:48.91)
3200: Different verse, same as the first. The distance events in the Hawkeye Ten are absolutely loaded this year. And hey, it’s worth noting that Eichhorn was not exactly running 100% at the conference, district and state meets.
1. Colin Lillie, Senior, St. Albert (9:45.05)
2. Bryant Keller, Junior, Glenwood (9:55.27)
4. Ethan Eichhorn, Junior, Lewis Central (10:01.66)
6. Treyton Schaapherder, Junior, Clarinda (10:25.45)
7. Jacob Greving, Junior, Kuemper Catholic (10:30.01)
110 hurdles: The top two hurdlers from last season’s conference meet have graduated. So, this one is up for grabs.
3. Anthony Driscoll-Lee, Senior, Glenwood (16.10)
4. Jackson McLaren, Senior, Atlantic (16.20)
5. Xavier DeGroot, Senior, Clarinda (16.31)
6. Lual Maker, Junior, Lewis Central (16.72)
7. Brian Ibarra, Senior, Denison-Schleswig (16.73)
400 hurdles: Defending champion Braylon Kammrad is back, and so are two of the next three finishers in last year’s conference race.
1. Braylon Kammrad, Senior, Lewis Central (57.92)
2. Brody Cullin, Junior, Shenandoah (57.96)
4. Jake Fink, Junior, Denison-Schleswig (59.27)
6. Trevor Rial, Senior, Kuemper Catholic (1:00.86)
7. Brian Ibarra, Senior, Denison-Schleswig (1:02.03)
High jump: Isaac Jones has a state championship in the high jump, and he also won last year’s conference title. He is joined by the rest of the top three finishers as potential returnees.
1. Isaac Jones, Senior, Clarinda (6-06.00)
2. Curtis Witte, Junior, Lewis Central (5-10.00)
3. Jayden Proehl, Senior, Atlantic (5-10.00)
4. Cody Krause, Senior, Glenwood (5-10.00)
6. Cole Baumgart, Junior, Clarinda (5-10.00)
Long jump: This was a young crew of long jumpers last season, and the top seven jumpers from the conference meet could be back this year. Here’s the top five:
1. Tadyn Brown, Senior, Clarinda (22-06.50)
2. Cody Krause, Senior, Glenwood (21-00.00)
3. Benjamin Gerken, Junior, Kuemper Catholic (20-10.00)
4. Jonathan Humpal, Senior, Lewis Central (20-09.00)
5. Isaac Jones, Senior, Clarinda (20-08.00)
Shot put: The conference champ (Hunter Deyo) is now at Iowa State, but three of the top five finishers at last year’s meet could be back.
2. Parker Maityow, Senior, Lewis Central (48-07.50)
4. Logyn Eckheart, Senior, Glenwood (46-01.00)
5. Evan Adams, Junior, Kuemper Catholic (44-05.00)
7. Brandon McCall, Junior, St. Albert (43-01.50)
9. Gunner Schmitz, Senior, Harlan (40-00.00)
Discus throw: The champion (Deyo) is gone here, too, but the next four are returning to the fold to make a run at the conference title.
2. Tyler Laughlin, Senior, Shenandoah (139-01)
3. Logyn Eckheart, Senior, Glenwood (138-00)
4. Parker Matiyow, Senior, Lewis Central (135-00)
5. Christopher Mohr, Senior, Kuemper Catholic (133-08)
7. Gunner Schmitz, Senior, Harlan (127-02)
RELAYS EVENT-BY-EVENT BREAKDOWN
4x100: Harlan ran to the conference championship with a time of 43.38 last year at the Hawkeye Ten meet. Jacob Birch, Wil Neuharth and Aidan Hall ran first, second and anchor and could be returning this year for this team. It’s worth noting that LC was second with a 44.35 and could also bring back three of those legs, although a couple of them might not be completely healthy.
4x200: Harlan also won the 4x200 with the same four and in the same order with a time of 1:31.78. The rest of the league was not very close with second-place Red Oak running a 1:35.62. The Tigers will have the entire team of Jack Kling, Landon Couse, Aiden Bruce and Riley Fouts returning.
4x400: Lewis Central was the 4x400 champion a year ago, winning a great race with a time of 3:33.94 to edge Atlantic (3:34.68) and Clarinda (3:34.71). Luciano Fidone, Gabriel Watson and Luke Woltmann were all underclassmen on that team. They’re not hurting for quarter-milers it appears. Atlantic, meanwhile, would bring back Carter Pellett, Tyson O’Brien and anchor Bennett Whetstone from their quartet. Clarinda’s Tadyn Brown, Wyatt Schmitt and Cooper Phillips could be back from their third-place team.
4x800: Glenwood was a winner by over three seconds here. They led with Andrew Smith, Jake Shannon and Nolan Mount, which could all be back for a Rams group that ran an 8:36.77. Clarinda’s 8:39.80 came behind three underclassmen in the last three legs — Alec Wyman, Kyle Wagoner and Treyton Schaapherder.
Sprint medley: Red Oak was the conference champion in the event last year with a time of 1:36.45, which narrowly edged Harlan’s 1:36.85. Luke Sayonkon, Landon Couse, Riley Fouts and Jack Kling made up the winning team and could all be back this season. Harlan ran a team with three potential returnees in Brenden Eggers, Wil Neuharth and Jacob Birch.
Distance medley: Red Oak also won this race and could bring back their first three legs of Couse, Fouts and Aiden Bruce. They will have to find someone to run that 800 on the anchor with the loss of Baylor Bergren. Their time of 3:45.33 was more than a second better better than second-place Denison-Schleswig, which could return the group of David Cardenas, Jake Fink, Luke Wiebers and Leo Flores in full.
Shuttle hurdle: Glenwood’s championship team ran a 1:02.41 to dominate the race, but they lost three seniors from that group. Anthony Driscoll-Lee led things off and could move to the anchor spot as they try to defend the title. LC’s second-place team ran a 1:03.32 with Braylon Kammrad, Aidan Bergman and Lual Maker potential returnees.
PROJECTIONS
I thought I would give a little projection system a look and see how things turn out. I took every individual race and gave a 5-4-3-2-1 score to the top fives printed above. In addition, I decided to give one-quarter of a point for every returning member of a relay champion. Might be silly, might also be just a fun thing to not get too emotional about. Here’s how the scores came out:
1. Glenwood (38)
2. Lewis Central (35.75)
3. Clarinda (22)
4. St. Albert (21)
5. Harlan (15.5)
6. Atlantic & Kuemper Catholic (13)
8. Shenandoah (9)
9. Denison-Schleswig (7)
10. Red Oak (6.75)
11. Creston (4)
Thoughts: You can do with this what you want, but I would say there’s probably a solid +/- of six or seven in how accurate these are going to be. So, the projections aren’t necessarily calling Glenwood the favorite to unseat Lewis Central. I would take my chances, though, on predicting these two teams to once again be the No. 1 and No. 2 teams, regardless of order. Harlan seems a little low on the projection list at this stage, but Clarinda and St. Albert figure to be able to score some big points with their jumpers and sprinters, respectively. In any event, this league returns a TON of talent that I can’t wait to see this year.
Send any questions, comments and/or concerns to dmartin@kmamail.com.
