A pair of deuces: Panther boys earn 22nd straight trip to State; Kramer qualifies for girls

     Those “twos” the Monticello High School boys’ cross country team members were holding up while standing on the awards podium Oct. 18 behind the school weren’t some sort of secret code.

     It is no secret that the Panthers have now earned 22 consecutive trips to the State Cross Country Meet, as a result of a runner-up finish in the Class 2A State Qualifying Meet on the MHS course.

     Bellevue won the meet with 45 points, the Panthers scored 81, edging Camanche by three. Camanche also qualified individually.

     On the girls’ side, the Panthers wound up with a fourth place finish, missing out on a team berth at State, but freshman Karle Kramer qualified individually, placing 10^th overall.                  

     The boys were led by Cole Cruise, who was seventh overall in 17 minutes, 16 seconds; and Jasper Nietert, 12^th in 17:33. Both would have qualified individually had the team not made it.

     But the Panthers were also led by a solid lineup that contributed season and career best times from all seven runners.

     “The boys ran a perfect race,” Monticello coach Dan Sauser said. “In a meet like that, that’s what you’ve got to do. We knew we had our hands full, but we felt very good halfway through the race. We were in a very good position.”

     “We were trying to stay in a pack together,” senior David Titman said. “That was our main goal.”

     Senior Daltyn Kramer agreed: “Toward the end it was all coming together, for sure. I could see who was in front of me, and I knew (my other teammates) were right behind me. Everyone pulled through.”

     “I’m proud of Jasper and Cole and how well they did,” senior Austin Timm said.

     Titman ran 17^th in 17:43, and Kramer was 19^th in 17:51, giving the Panthers four runners under the 18-minute mark. Not far behind were Carter Kurt, 26^th in 18:11; Zach Chapman, 27^th in 18:12; and Timm, 38^th in 18:43.

     “All of them stood out,” Sauser said.

     Standing out for the Panthers in the girls’ race were the team’s three freshmen, who wound up with the team’s three best finishes. Karle Kramer finished in 20:34, beating her previous best by 35 seconds. Lydia Recker ran 16^th, missing a state meet spot by one place, in 21:13, but was 28 seconds better than she had run before. And Triniti Etzel, 21^st in 21:49, topped her previous fastest time by 1:45.

     “I thought the freshmen were exceptional,” Sauser said.

     As for qualifying for State, Karle Kramer said, “It feels great. I knew it was going to be tough. I just stopped thinking, and just ran.”

     Emily Schlarmann was 24^th in 22:00, and Dru Kramer had a personal record by 55 seconds, finishing 43^rd in 23:36. Two Panther runners were unable to finish the race.

     It wasn’t enough for the Panthers, whose fourth place finish missed a state spot by 15 points.

     “We didn’t have a complete race,” Sauser said. “We had pieces of it. But there were a lot of positives. And the teams that beat us (Jesup, Cascade, Dike-New Hartford) are all very good teams.

     “It’s good for the future.”

     “I think our team did really great,” Karle Kramer said. “We’re going to get it next year.”

     The state meet will be Saturday, Oct. 27 at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course in Fort Dodge. Karle Kramer will run in the girls’ 2A race at 1 p.m., and the boys’ 2A race is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

Parking issues

     Due to wet grounds and conditions at Kennedy Park and the Lakeside course in Fort Dodge, there will be no spectator parking at Kennedy Park Saturday.

     The City of Fort Dodge and the Fort Dodge Community School District have worked with the two state high school associations to develop a shuttle system for spectators from four parking locations around town.

     A shuttle map and other information are available through this link: http://www.iahsaa.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Parking-Updates-State-X...

Oct. 18

Class 2A State

Qualifying Meet

(at Monticello)

BOYS TEAM SCORES

(State qualifying teams in bold)

     1, Bellevue 45; 2, Monticello 81; 3, Camanche 84; 4, North Fayette Valley 106; 5, Dike-New Hartford 158; 6, Northeast 161; 7, Jesup 178; 8, Cascade 184; 9, Union 192; 10, Sumner-Fredericksburg 302; 11, Oelwein 325; 12, Dyersville Beckman 333; 13, Waterloo Columbus 367.

MONTICELLO RESULTS

(State qualifying individuals in bold)

     7, Cole Cruise, 17:16; 12, Jasper Nietert, 17:33; 17, David Titman, 17:43; 19, Daltyn Kramer, 17:51; 26, Carter Kurt, 18:11; 27, Zach Chapman, 18:12; 38, Austin Timm, 18:43.

GIRLS TEAM SCORES

(State qualifying teams in bold)

     1, Jesup 47; 2, Cascade 57; 3, Dike-New Hartford 86; 4, Monticello 101; 5, Sumner-Fredericksburg 146; 6, Dyersville Beckman 169; 7, North Fayette Valley 170; 8, Camanche 207; 9, Waterloo Columbus 208; 10, Union 232.

MONTICELLO RESULTS

(State qualifying individual in bold)

     10, Karle Kramer, 20:34; 16, Lydia Recker, 21:13; 21, Triniti Etzel, 21:49; 24, Emily Schlarmann, 22:00; 43, Dru Kramer, 23:36.