Pribyl Wins State Championship for Meridian, Several Other High Places For Area Athletes

A large throng of athletes from the area participated in the 2022 track and field state meet with one coming home a champion. Meridian Mustangs had sent a dozen bound and determined athletes to state track and one of those efforts was not only good enough to break a school record, but an effort good enough to be crowned a champion. Kaylee Pribyl in one of the four events she qualified for state had broken her own school record again this year and set a new one en route to becoming the Class D Pole Vault champion.Reflecting on the past year long journey from placing fourth to first, increasing her vaulting height by a foot-and-a-half for Pribyl wasn’t lost on her as she said, “It’s amazing to be here, like last year I only got 9’06’’, to be improving thanks to my coaches as we don’t really have a pole vault coach, so our superintendent and my dad ended up helping me progress and it’s been going good, definitely looking forward to next year.” Last year she was finishing at 9’06’’, this year Pribyl would come in at the height not only clearing it, but doing so with ease and would soon after launch herself into reaching the new school record height of 11’00’’. Pribyl would also place in the top five of the long jump as well reaching a distance of 16.06 ¼ getting her fifth, and ran a time :13.40 in the 100m dash placing her among the top 20.Kimberly Schropfer was able to place among the top 10 of the Class D high jump getting ninth, reaching the height of 4’9’’. Brayden Rut was among the top 15 in the 300m hurdles running the time :43.47. Tyleiah Gooding was able to run among the top 25 in the 100m hurdles with a time :17.94. McKenzie Hofstetter was able to run among the top 25 in the 400m dash running 1:06.00, and jumped to be among the top 15 in the triple jump getting 32-00 ¾ along with Kailyn Paul who jumped 31-11 ½.Dylan Griggs due to wildcard points was able to qualify for the 1600m run and was able to place his time among the top 25 running to 5:20.93. The relays of Meridian were strong throughout the season and state was no different with each team placing among the top 15 with the 4x100m relay with Gooding, Saege Barnell, Braxtyn Rut, and Pribyl placing 13th running the time :53.65, the 4x400m relay with Schropfer, Paul, Alice Giussani, and McKenzie Hofstetter ran a time 4:32.36 getting them a place at 15th and the 4x800m relay with Schropfer, Emma Slopsema, Guissani, and Evelyn Woitalewicz running just under 11 minutes with the time 10:54.40.Diller-OdellThe Diller-Odell Griffins had sent a trio to state as Zeke Jones had qualified for the 400m dash and Mallory Denner in the 200m dash, along with Dorian Ficke in wildcard points was able to qualify in the 800m dash. Each Griffin had finished with a time placing them the top 25 in each event, as Ficke ran a 2:14.08 in the 800m run, Jones ran :54.57 in the 400m dash and Mallory Denner clocked in a time :28.67 in the 200m dash.Wymore SouthernA sole state qualifier with the junior Kale Maguire being able to run times within the top 25 as he did in the 800m run running a time 2:10.79, and ran a time in the 1600m run placing Maguire among the top 15 as he ran a time of 4:45.01.Thayer CentralA trio of Titans were state track bound with Grant Wiedel qualifying for the 100 and 200m dash along with Madelynn Wells in the 300m hurdles and Triston Wells in the pole vault. Despite some solid vaults Wells was unable to make opening height. Madelynn Wells ran :51.02 in the 300m hurdles and with the time was able to place among the top 20 in the state. Grant Wiedel in the 200m dash ran :24.21 placing him among the top 25 and in the 100m dash ran :11.68 placing him among the top 20 in Class C.Tri CountyA quartet of Trojans were off to state track with three members of the 4x400m relay having qualified for another event at state as well. The 4x400m relay of Grant Lewandowski, Carter Siems, Dustin Kapke, and Ben Holsing ran a 3:42.70 with was a time among the top 15 in Class C. Carter Siems in the 1600m run got the time 4:45.00 even placing him among the top ten with 10th place. Lewandowski in the 200m dash ran :23.63 placing him in the times of the top 20, and Ben Holsing in the 300m hurdles ran :43.76 and with that time was among the top 25.Wilber-ClatoniaThe Wolverines sent seven to state with each one placing themselves among the top 20 in each event.Ashton Pulliam was able to come away with the highest placing setting a new PR at the height of 14’00’’ even to place third in the pole vault.The 4x400m relay with Cash Keslar, Mason Combs, Jonathon Zoubek and Houston Broz ran a time 3:33.18 placing them in the top five (fourth), and the 4x800m relay with Broz, Quinn Palmer, Keslar and Zoubek placed among the top ten with seventh running a time 8:32.65.The duo of Mason Combs and Carter Skelba were able to place among the top 15 in both the long and triple jump as Combs with his best jump of 20’0” even placed him at 10th in the long jump and in the triple jump placed 11th with 42-03 ½. Skelba in the triple jump would place 10th jumping 42-04 ½ and in the long jump would get 15th jumping to 19-05 ¾. Combs would also place among the top 15 in the high jump clearing 5’10’’.The lone thrower for WC, Aspen Oliver, placed in the top 15 throwing 108’10” in the discus.Broz helping in the relays also ran in the 300m hurdles placing him among the top 20 running :42.78, and in the 400m dash ran :53.57 placing him among the top 15. Palmer had qualified for the 110m high hurdles running :16.57 and finished among the top 20 in that event.FairburyFour Jeffs from Fairbury were state bound and placed among the top 20 in each event.The dynamic hurdle duo of Jami Mans and Emily Huss had qualified for the 100m hurdles with Mans running a time :16.39 and Huss running :16.58. Alex Buxton also qualified in hurdles with the 110m high hurdles and ran a time :16.27.Devon Carel in the 400m dash ran just shy of 52 seconds with :51.76 which was one spot away from being among the top ten in Class B.

Frank and Darlene Novotny

Sheriffs Report

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