Track teams shine at regionals
Middleton senior Jackson Meyer qualified for the WIAA state track and field meet in the triple jump as a sophomore two years ago.
But after losing a year of competition to the COVID-19 pandemic, Meyer made a unique decision this spring.
“I always wanted to do the triple and high jump,” said Meyer, who broke a 38-year school record in the triple jump this spring. “But the long jump, I’ve thought about it, but the coaches wanted me to save my legs.
“But my senior year, I said I wanted to do all three. I like it. It keeps me going. I have a lot of adrenaline the whole time. I’m always ready to do another. It’s usually triple jump first and then long jump and high jump at the same time. It works out well.”
So far, so good.
Meyer set a personal record with a leap of 22 feet, 7.75 inches in winning the long jump and tied a personal-best with a leap of 6-4 in winning the high jump at the WIAA Division 1 regional track and field meet hosted by Middleton on Monday night.
Meyer also recorded a second-place finish in the triple jump with a mighty leap of 44-5.5 to keep his dream alive of being a state qualifier in all three events.
The top four individual qualifiers and top four teams in each relay advanced to sectional competition at Mansfield Stadium on Thursday, where Meyer looks to add to his impressive resume this season.
“In 2009 I had a jumper who made it to state in all three,” said Middleton boys’ track and field coach Joe Line, who previously was a jumps coach at Janesville Craig. “Jackson’s a little different where he could score in all three. I haven’t seen that since I’ve been coaching. Some kids around Wisconsin have done it, of course, but never around here. It’s pretty special.”
It was a special night all around for Middleton’s girls and boys programs.
In the girls’ competition, senior thrower Kobi Davis swept the shot put and discus titles and junior distance runner Lauren Pansegrau won both the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs to lead the Cardinals to the regional championship with 152 points. Waunakee was runner-up with 131 points.
Middleton advanced 12 individuals and three relays — including the first-place 3,200-meter relay of Kiara Malloy-Salgado, Brielle McDonald, Kaitlyn Peters and Zaira Malloy-Salgado — to sectional competition.
“That was a very good night. It was spectacular,” said Middleton’s girls coach Jay Schweitzer. “First, it was great they got to run before a home crowd. It was a big crowd. It felt like it was a big meet, and I haven’t felt like that in a couple of years.
“Then, for the kids’ sake, that was really special. We’ve got an incredible senior crew. Most of those kids are going on (to sectionals), and I’m really proud for them that they get to enjoy their senior year after not having a junior season. To be able to have that success tonight was just great.”
Pansegrau, who won the alternative fall season state cross country meet individual title this spring, is looking to get back to state on the track after finishing runner-up in the 3,200 as a freshman in 2019.
She won the 1,600 in 5 minutes, 15.62 seconds and will be joined at sectionals by freshman teammate Tait Haag, who was fourth in 5:29.01. Pansegrau also easily won the 3,200 in 10:53.07 with teammate Zaira Malloy-Salgado taking second in 11:14.36.
Davis, who advanced to sectionals in the shot put in 2019, doubled her pleasure this time around, continuing her season-long unbeaten streak in the shot put with a winning throw of 39-6. She also won the discus title with a throw of 116-0.5.
“I’ve been working so hard for the past four years. I feel like it’s finally culminating and it’s finally paying off,” Davis said of her twin wins. “As a sophomore, I qualified for sectionals in the shot put, but not the discus. I just started throwing the discus seriously this year.”
Davis found unique ways to continue to train during the pandemic, including setting up a net in her basement and garage to throw into.
“I had to work doubly hard just to catch up,” she said. “That makes this feel that much more meaningful for me that I’ve been able to improve and meet my goals despite a missed season.”
Other sectional qualifiers for the Middleton girls included:
• Kenzie Nickels, who was second in the 200 (:26.99).
• Elle Seager, who was fourth in the 100-meter high hurdles (:17.56).
• Kiara Malloy-Salgado, who was third in the 300 low hurdles (:49.06).
• Marilyn Vander Sanden, who was second in the shot put (33-1).
• Allison Thomley, who was third in the high jump (4-10).
• and Sierra Pertzborn, who was fourth in the high jump (4-10).
The Cardinals’ 1,600 relay of Peters, McDonald, Kiara Malloy-Salgado and Nickels was second (4:07.03), while their 800 relay of Peters, Nickels, Molly Gaab and McDonald was third (1:49.60).
Peters, who qualified for state in 2019 in the 800 and 1,600 relays, was ecstatic with her team’s performance.
“I do love the relays. It’s fun to run with a team. It’s so much better,” she said. “I just feel so blessed that we got a season after missing my junior year. I feel blessed to run at all.
“I ran the three relays and I also pole vaulted. I could not have asked for a better meet. I tied my (personal record) in the pole vault, and I qualified for all of my relays. It was a super busy night, and I was running around like crazy.”
In the boys’ competition, Madison Memorial won the team title with 143 points. Middleton qualified nine individuals and three relays for sectionals to take second with 118 points.
That included senior Quinn Calvin, who won the 200-meter dash in 22.53 seconds, and junior Ethan Mladucky, who won the 800-meter run (2:01.53).
“Ethan did a good job,” Line said of Mladucky. “Not that we were surprised by any means, we didn’t know if he’d be the guy for us in the 800 and he was the guy for us in the 800. I’m really hoping he can get to state.”
Junior Griffin Ward also used a superior kick to pull out the 3,200 title (9:46.5) after finishing second in the 1,600 (4:30.91).
“Griffin’s a competitor. He wanted to win,” Line said of Ward’s fantastic finish in the 3,200. “Even if you tell these guys, all you need is fourth. There’s no fast heat at sectionals. That just drives them anyway.”
Line said he was pleased with the Cardinals’ runner-up finish.
“I thought we did great,” Line said. “We had to scratch out of the 100 and didn’t run the 400. We weren’t scoring in some events but did well in others.
“(Madison) Memorial has a really good team so to be second at regionals. I’m happy about that and the individuals and relay teams we advanced. The 4x400 was going to be close. The 4x200 was going to be close. Those guys pulled it out.”
Calvin was second in the long jump with a personal-best leap of 22-2.25. Calvin, who competed at state in the long jump as a sophomore, said he is eager to qualify for state his final prep season.
“There was a sense of urgency to get back to state, not to compete, because I’m going on to compete at UW-Stevens Point next year,” Calvin said. “This is just a stepping stone to the next level for me.
“My personal favorite is the open 200. I do best in that. Today, I ran a 22.53 which is pretty good. I’m still looking to break 21.”
Other sectional qualifiers for the Middleton boys included:
• Max Foland, who was third in the 200 (:22.87).
• the Cardinals’ 1,600-meter relay team of Blake Thor, Foland, Emre Gunay and Cam Swapsy, which was second (3:29.95).
• the 800-meter relay team of Elliott Gray Colin Krueger, Foland and Calvin, which was third (1:32.67).
• and the 3,200-meter relay team of Thor, Ian Bohachek, Harper Fahey and Mladucky that took third (8:21.15).
Line said the quick turnaround for sectionals is always a challenge.
“It’s such a fast meet,” he said. “We have guys in multiple events. We’ll try to take it easy and finetune everything and set what we can do on Thursday.”
BOYS
Team scores: Madison Memorial 143; Middleton 118; Verona 106; DeForest 89; Waunakee 80; Monona Grove 68; Madison West 44; Madison East 42.
Qualifiers
100 meters: 1, Ketarkus, MM, :10.89; 2, Magli, D, :11.13; 3, Curry, ME, :11.18; 4, Voss, MG, :11.24. 200: 1, Calvin, M, :22.53; 2, Regnier, W, :22.73; 3, Foland, M, :22.87; 4, Bowman, MW, :23.30. 400: 1, Regnier, W, :49.10; 2, Ekezie, D, :50.10; 3, Voss, MG, :51.60; 4, Bowman, MW, :52.20. 800: 1, Mladucky, M, 2:01.53, 2, Grabowski, D, 2:01.82; 3, Rafferty, MM, 2:01.94; 4, Hanson, ME, 2:04.31. 1,600: 1, Manning, V, 4:28.35; 2, Ward, Mid, 4:30.91; 3, Anthony, MM, 4:33.61; 4, Oser, ME, 4:33.87. 3,200: 1, Ward, Mid, 9:46.5; 2, Traeder, MG, 9:47.1; 3, Manning, V, 9:52.4; 4, Peppard, MM, 9:56.1. 110 hurdles: 1, Wolf, DF, :16.19; 2, Peterson, MW, :16.19; 3, Gonzalez, V, :17.0; 4, Mueller, MM, :17.17. 300 hurdles: 1, Stubitsch, V, :42.11; 2, Wolf, DF, :42.97; 3, Singh, ME, :43.36; 4, Ranum, W, :43.64. 400 relay: 1, Verona (Maradiaga, Valichka, Stier, Acker, Trabelsi, Poller), :43.68; 2, Madison Memorial, :43.76; 3, Waunakee, :44.29; 4, DeForest, :44.62. 800 relay: 1, Madison Memorial (Thomas, Ferry, Ward, Ketarkus, Lyons, Hendrickson), 1:31.52; 2, Waunakee, 1:32.51; 3, Middleton (Gray, Krueger, Foland, Calvin), 1:32.67; 4, DeForest, 1:32.77. 1,600 relay: 1, DeForest (Vandehey, Jacobsen, Grabowski, Ekezie, Eisler, King), 3:28.19; 2, Middleton, (Thor, Foland, Gunay, Swapsy) 3:29.95; 3, Madison Memorial, 3:31.09; 4, Verona, 3:32.98. 3,200 relay: 1, Madison Memorial (Rafferty, Zarov, Ketarkus, Wichmann, Anthony, Gammie), 8:15.17; 2, Madison East, 8:15.86; 3, Middleton (Thor, Bohachek, Fahey, Mladucky), 8:21.15; 4, DeForest, 8:32.88. High jump: 1, Meyer, Mid, 6-4; 2, Vakunta, MM, 5-10; 3, Patterson, MM, 5-8; 3, Peterson, MW, 5-8 (tie); 3, Van Handel, V, 5-8 (tie); 3, Fritz, MG, 5-8 (tie). Pole vault: 1, Klinkner, MG, 12-6; 2, Simmons, MG, 11-3; 2, Stevens-Werthman, MM, 11-3 (tie); 4, Pierick, D, 11-0; 4, Scott, MG, 11-0 (tie). Long jump: 1, Meyer, Mid, 22-7¾; 2, Calvin, Mid, 22-2¼; 3, Ward, MM, 22-0½; 4, Welsch, ME, 20-7¾. Triple jump: 1, Regnier, Wau, 44-10; 2, Meyer, Mid, 44-5½; 3, Ward, MM, 43-9¼; 4, Vandehey, D, 41-11. Shot put: 1, Acker, V, 58-5; 2, Amelinez-Robles, MM, 46-9½; 3, Phebus, Wau, 44-9½; 4, Spranger, MW, 43-6. Discus: 1, Acker, V, 207-6; 2, Amelinez-Robles, MM, 152-6; 3, Spranger, MW, 140-4; 4, Phebus, Wau, 136-1.
GIRLS
Team scores: Middleton 152; Waunakee 131; Madison Memorial 121.5; DeForest 106.5; Monona Grove 83; Verona 71; Madison West 20.
Qualifiers
100 meters: 1, Grigg, W, :12.82, 2, Bailey, V, :12.96; 3, Wepking, V, :13.11; 4, Harden, MM, :13.27. 200: 1, Hogan, MG, :26.25; 2, Nickels, M, :26:99; 3, Bykowski, MG, :27.44; 4, Hahn, W, :27.62. 400: 1, Bova, W, :57.05; 2, Larsen, W, :58.59; 3, Hogan, MG, :59.53; 4, Grabarski, W, 1:00.84. 800: 1, Nelson, MG, 2:25.63; 2, Knueve, V, 2:29.63; 3, Yundt, MG, 2:30.47; 4, Roth, D, 2:31.35. 1,600: 1, Pansegrau, M, 5:15.62; 2, Rhodes, MM, 5:21.00; 3, Knueve, V, 5:22.03; 4, Haag, M, 5:29.01. 3,200: 1, Pansegrau, M, 10:53.07, 2, Malloy-Salgado, M, 11:14.36; 3, Nashold, MW, 11:20.92; 4, Vanderhoef, W, 12:13.14. 100 hurdles: 1, Ashworth, MM, :15.29; 2, Hogan, MG, :15.36; 3, Szepieniec, D, :15.46; 4, Seager, M, :17.56. 300 hurdles: 1, Szepieniec, D, :47.12; 2, Kipkoskei, D, :48.88; 3, Malloy-Salga, M, :49.06; 4, Braun, MM, :49.55. 400 relay: 1, Waunakee (Larsen, Grigg, Grabarski, Bova, Statz, Ronk), :50.44; 2, Madison Memorial, :50.93; 3, Verona, :51.47; 4, DeForest, :52.52. 800 relay: 1, Madison Memorial (Miller, Seet, Bissen, Ashworth, Braun, Harden), 1:47.17; 2, DeForest, 1:48.96; 3, Middleton (Peters, Nickels, Gaab, McDonald), 1:49.60; 4, Waunakee, 1:51.65. 1,600 relay: 1, Waunakee (Bova, Grabarski, Pronina, Larsen, Saleh, Vanderheof), 4:02.29; 2, Middleton (Peters, McDonald, K. Malloy-Salgado, Nickels), 4:07.03; 3, DeForest, 4:09.80; 4, Madison Memorial, 4:20.54. 3,200 relay: 1, Middleton (Peters, K. Malloy-Salgado, Z. Malloy-Salgado, McDonald), 10:11.78; 2, Madison Memorial, 10:12.30; 3, Waunakee, 10:14.07; 4, Madison West, 10:27.71. High jump: 1, Saleh, W, 5-6; 2, Cook, W, 5-0; 3, Thomley, M, 4-10; 4, Pertzborn, M, 4-10. Pole vault: 1, Sweet, MM, 12-3; 2, Jenks-Recker, MG, 10-6; 3, Snow, DF, 10-6; 4, Hershberger, MM, 10-0. Long jump: 1, Saleh, W, 17-¾; 2, Bova, W, 17-¼; 3, Slattery, MM, 16-1¾; 4, Compe, DF, 15-11. Triple jump: 1, Szepieniec, DF, 37-11; 2, Larsen, W, 35-1½; 3, Statz, W, 34-3¼; 4, Myers, MM, 33-5. Shot put: 1, Davis, M, 39-6; 2, Vander Sanden, M, 33-1; 3, Hahn, DF, 30-9½; 4, Bertrand, V, 30-7. Discus: 1, Davis, M, 116-6; 2, Manghera, DF, 114-11; 3, Bertrand, 96-4; 4, Hahn, DF, 95-4.
