Starting today, the Washington Demon track & field team will be going for the gold when they hit the famed blue oval of Drake Stadium in Des Moines for this year’s Class 3A state championships. Washington will bring 30 athletes to state this weekend that will compete for the Demons in 20 different events.
On the boys’ side, if Washington is going to duplicate last year’s fourth-place finish in team scoring or do even better, junior Micah Rees is likely to have his fingerprints-or, more aptly, footprints-all over the leaderboard. Rees will compete in both the 1,600 and 3,200-meter runs and is slated to run the anchor leg on the Demons’ four-by-800-meter relay team.
Senior Brayden Hartman also has his eye on multiple state medals, as he’ll take part in both the discus toss and the shot put. Washington senior Elijah Morris is not going to get to defend his state title in the 400 meters, but, if he can overcome a recent injury, he will be able to run down a top finish in the 100-meter dash. Morris is also eligible to run in the sprint medley relay and serve as an alternate for the Demons’ 4-by-400.
Freshman Josh Anderson will have a crack at a state medal in all four wheelchair races. Sophomore Logan McDole will look to build on his district championship in the 800, while junior Alec Ulin looks to add more hardware in the 400. Both runners will also be part of relay teams. McDole is set to run both the 4-by-400 and 4-by-800, while Ulin is part of the first-string for both the 4-by-400 and the sprint medley.
Senior Drew Horak and freshman Andrew Rees make up the rest of the Demons’ 4-by-800, with junior Kael Malichky, freshman Sawyer Tschantz and sophomores Dirk Rothe and Tyler Alderton serving as alternates. Seniors Ethan Patterson and Cameron Vongpanya are first up to run Washington’s 4-by-400, with Horak, senior Jack Kleese and sophomore Seth Shepherd as alternates. Patterson and fellow senior Aidan Ulin are due in the sprint medley as well, with the alternates being Vongpanya, Kleese and senior Clayton Streeter.
For the Washington girls, the busiest schedules belong to senior Grace Voss and freshman Iris Dahl. Voss tries to follow up a district title in the high jump, while Dahl looks to bring home the hardware in the 800 and the 1,500. Both are also expected to run the 4-by-400 and 4-by-800.
Demon freshman Leighton Messinger will take part in the 100-meter hurdles and is part of the 4-by-400. Fellow freshman Eden Levetzow rounds out that relay team, with sophomores Lauren Horak and Kendall Hinrichsen filling out the planned starters for the 4-by-800. Alternates for the Washington girls’ relays include freshman Taylor Miksch and sophomore Taylor Moore.
The Demons’ first event will be the girls’ 4-by-800 later tonight. Be listening for updates from the state track meet all today and tomorrow on KCII.