Cardinal girls run faster than seeds at state track meet

DES MOINES — Alyssa Shannon is still learning how to race.

Shannon competed in track and field for the first time this spring and if her progressions throughout the season are any indication, the 2022 season will be a big one for the Cardinal junior.

Shannon set two more personal-best times Saturday and led Newton’s girls track and field team at the Iowa High School State Track and Field Championships at Drake Stadium this weekend.

“I just try to give it my all. I started my kick earlier today in both races,” Shannon said. “I just feel confident. I know I can do it.”

Shannon came in seeded 19th in both the 800- and 1,500-meter runs but finished 11th and 12th, respectively. But she wasn’t the only Cardinal to perform above their seed at the state meet.

Addy Terpstra was part of two 12th-place finishes and two other relays were 16th overall in their Class 3A races.

Shannon hit the blue oval for the first time in her career in the 4x800 relay on Thursday. But her two individual races came in the first session on Saturday.

Shannon’s 12th-place finish in the 1,500 put an exclamation point on her weekend. She set a new personal-best time by nearly 15 seconds when she completed the race in 4 minutes, 57.33 seconds.

It was just the third time she ran the 1,500 this season. Her time got better with each run.

“When I do a good one, I think to myself that I’m capable to do it better,” Shannon said. “My main goals were to improve on my placings and times. I wanted to finish the season strong, and I was able to do that.

“I was so tired in the 1,500. I have shin splints, too. They hurt so bad when I was running. But I made it.”

Shannon was 11th in the 800 with a time of 2:19.88. That was a personal-best performance by 4 seconds.

“The 800 goal was 2:19. I tried to keep with that girl in front of me. That helped,” Shannon said. “I wanted to make sure I got out fast so I didn’t get boxed in. In the 800, I was in the first lane and you can get boxed in easily. I was able to start fast enough to avoid that.”

Shannon’s first event of the meet was the 4x800 relay on Thursday. She anchored the race and the Cardinals finished 16th with a time of 10:21.55. The foursome of Kate Muckler, Ashay Malow, Grace Benson and Shannon came into the event ranked 18th. Shannon’s anchor-leg split was 2:19.

Malow was the only senior on the 4x800 relay and ran at state earlier in her career. She at least knew what to expect running on the blue oval and came away very impressed with Shannon’s split.

“I am really proud of our team for making it because it’s always exciting to be a part of it. It’s good to be back,” Malow said. “Alyssa is so good. She always surprises us, too. She’s amazing.”

Muckler said, “I didn’t know what to expect, but I think it went really well for my first time. I’m proud of the girls, too. I think we did really well.”

After missing out on the state swim meet because of COVID-19, Benson was just thankful she got to compete on the state’s biggest stage this time around.

“When I was getting ready to run, I just kept thinking about how grateful I was to be here after swimming got shut down before state,” Benson said. “Our team is just happy with how we ran. It was a good day.”

Terpstra joined Shannon in three state events. She was 12th in the 100 hurdles with a time of 16.51 seconds. She also anchored the shuttle hurdle relay to 12th and ran the 200 leg of the sprint medley relay, which placed 16th.

She enjoyed competing on a state relay team with her older sister Kynnedei. A few tears were shed by both sisters.

“I missed last season with my sister, and I felt extremely lucky to be able to hand off to her today in that race,” said Kynnedei Terpstra, who ran on the Cardinals’ distance medley relay team as a sophomore. “It’s a different feeling. I’m also sad that it’s over. It was an honor to run with her and to run here.”

Addy Terpstra said she was not very good on the last couple of hurdles in the 100 hurdles but enjoyed the experience anyway.

The shuttle hurdle relay team features two sophomores and two freshmen. That foursome of Alyssa Beerends, JaQuay Priest, Chloe Rorabaugh and Addy Terpstra finished 12th in 1:10.5.

“We did well. We didn’t drop time but stayed in the same time frame as our best,” Addy Terpstra said. “It’s impressive how much time we’ve dropped with such a young team. We’ve all improved as the season has gone on.”

Priest, who also ran on Saturday’s sprint medley relay team, said she had to deal with nerves before the shuttle hurdle relay.

“It felt good. We got this far. That’s all that matters,” Priest said. “I was freaking out when I walked in. I actually cried about it in the bathroom. Sometimes you just have to cry it out and get over it.”

The sprint medley relay team came in 21st and finished 16th with Priest, Kynnedei Terpstra, Addy Terpstra and Chassidy Henwood. The quartet ran a season-best time of 1:54.45 and Henwood had a personal-best split on the 400 anchor leg.

“It was a great experience, but I was really nervous,” Henwood said.

Kynnedei Terpstra and Malow were the only Cardinals who had previously competed at the state meet. They tried to help their teammates with nerves before competing on the blue oval.

“I didn’t want their nerves to get in the way. I tried to relax them the best I could,” Kynnedei Terpstra said. “I told them to run their race and dig deep. It’s still nerve wracking for me, but it was easier because I have been here before.”

All but two members of Newton’s representatives at the state track meet are back next season. And Shannon already has a plan for 2022.

“I am going to start training next week. I plan to train with a running coach who has worked with a lot of runners,” Shannon said. “And I hope to train with (Newton junior) Jackson (Mace-Maynard). We’ll see how that goes.”