CL boys track team firing on all cylinders

Umstead Relays

Clear Lake’s Chandler Diercks smashed a 50-year-old meet record at the Umstead Relays in Eagle Grove Tuesday, April 8.  Diercks, the reigning Class 2A long jump champion, went 22’ 7”, breaking the old record of 22’ 4.5” set at the meet in 1964.

Diercks, who was also a winner in the 100 meter dash in 11.10, helped the Lions to a second place finish among eight teams competing in Class A competition.  The Lions amassed 103 points.  Algona won the meet title with 138 points.

Providing the Lions with a powerful one-two punch in both the long jump and 100 meters was Jake Harle.  He jumped 19’9.5” and posted a time of 11.23 in the 100 to place as runner-up in each event.  Harle also finished first in the 200 meters, clocked in 23.54.  Teammate Zach Tatum was fourth in the event in 24.23.

Connor Nosbisch also placed first for the Lions in the 110 meter high hurdles.  The senior crossed the finish in 15.30.  Chase Bacon was sixth in 16.91.  The two were also part of the winning Shuttle Hurdle relay team which won in 1:03.75.  Alex Vander Ploeg and Tamarick Lee were the other members of the relay.

The Lions’ 4x100 relay with  Makean Bang, Harle, Tatum and Diercks finished just one-tenth of a second out of first.  

Other place winning individual performances were recorded by Dustin King, fourth in the 400 meter dash in 55.52; Spencer Orr, fifth in the 1600 in 5:24.52; and Vander Ploeg, sixth in the 400 meter hurdles in 1:03.93.

In field events, Vander Ploeg was fifth in the high jump, clearing 5’6”.  Pete Swenson and Mitchell Jordan placed fifth and sixth respectively in the shot put.  Swenson recorded a toss of 42’ 7” and Jordan had a mark of 42’ 2.25”.

The Distance Medley team of Nosbisch, Bang, King and Alex Webb finished third in a time of 3:57.74.  The 4x200 with Bang, Brock Adams, Nick Eggers and Tatum took fourth in 1:39.38 and the 4x400 with Bang, Adams, Parker Truesdell and King was fifth in 3:51.74.

Clarion-Goldfield Relays

The Clear Lake boys track team won their first meet in eight years on Friday night, April 12, as they took the Clarion-Goldfield Relays Class A title.  The Lions finished with 117 points and Clarion-Goldfield came in second with 116 points.  

The meet outcome came down to the final event.  Clear Lake took a five point lead into the 4 x 400 relay; they needed to at least finish third if Clarion won the event.  Clarion won and the Lions got third-- just enough for the overall win.

Chandler Diercks appears to be taking up right where he left off last season.  At Clarion he jumped a personal best, 23’ 3.25”, giving him a win and qualifying him for the Drake Relays this weekend.  Diercks, the defending State champion in the long jump, has the state’s best jump so far with his personal best.  Diercks was also a winner in the 100 meters at Clarion in a time of 11.04.

Jake Harle finished second in the long jump at 19’ 8” and crossed the finish line as the winner in the 200 meters in 23.0.  Harle and Diercks were also members of the winning 4x100 relay, joined by Zach Tatum and Makean Bang.  The quartet ran the oval in 44.77 and looks like a good bet to have qualified for the Drake Relays.

Connor Nosbisch is also a good bet to compete at Drake.  The senior won the 110 high hurdles in 14.94.  Nosbisch also anchored the winning Shuttle Hurdle relay team which won in 1:02.04.  Other members of the really included Chase Bacon, Diercks and Alex Vander Ploeg.  

The Medley Relay was also a winner, with Nosbisch, Bang, Dustin King and Alex Webb running a 3:49.22.

Other top performances were recorded by Bacon, third in the 110 high hurdles in 15.77; Harle, fourth in the 100 meters in 11.43; and Tatum, fifth in the 200 in 23.47.

In field events, Pete Swenson finished third in shot put with a throw of 43’ 2.25”.  Mitchell Jordan was fourth with a mark of 42’ 4.25”.  Swenson also placed sixth in the high jump, cleaning 5.’6”.

Clear Lake’s 4x400, which pulled out the third place finished to help the team to the overall win, included Bang, Brock Adams, King and Webb.