Junior Kaley Ciluffo ran a blistering 800 anchor as the Pleasant Valley girls became the first team to run under 4:00 minutes in the distance medley relay and they smashed the Iowa all-time mark with a class 4A winning time of three minutes 57.59 seconds. “I love all these girls so much, and this is like the best relay I’ve ever been on,” Ciluffo says.

Pleasant Valley’s winning time is the fastest in the country this year. “It just makes it 10 times better,” Ciluffo says.

Nicole Miller ran the anchor leg as North Linn successfully defended its title in the class 1A girls distance medley relay. Miller feels the North Linn team is peaking at the right time. “We all have the same mindset and goals, so we’re really going for them,” she says. Junior Taylor Burke ran the third leg and saus the large crowds at the state meet make it an exciting atmosphere. “it’s crazy, you have everybody in here cheering you on, it’s so much different from a regular season meet,” she says.

After finishing seventh a year ago Gladbrook-Reinbeck sophomore Eric Stoakes used a strong finish to win the class 1A 400 meter hurdles. He says it was “amazing” to have another chance and to win the title. Stoakes was not sure if he won when he crossed the finish line as he knew a competitor in another section had a good time.

Des Moines Roosevelt senior Sydne Davis picked the right time to set a personal record. Davis won the class 4A 400 meter hurdles in a time of 51.52 seconds. “it feels really goo to finally beat my P-R by like two seconds. I was really hoping to run a 51,” he says. He had tied his personal record earlier in the season at the Drake Relays.

Griswold’s Rebekah Topham claimed the seventh state title of her career as she won the class 1A girls 400 hurdle title. Topham was even with Woodward-Granger’s Amber Musser down the stretch before Mussman struck and fell over the final hurdle. “I was feeling pretty good because I go out slower — honestly I though I was going to catch her — and then when she fell I knew I was going to win,” Topham says. Topham says she wishes Musser wouldn’t have fallen, because she thinks she would have beaten her anyway.

Iowa City High junior Sarah Plock outdueled Carly Donahue of Pleasant Valley to win the class 4A girls 400 hurdles. Plock says she likes running against the field.

It was similar to the Drake Relays when Plock edged Donahue for the win. “I could tell this time both of us were stronger than Drake…that last 100 we were both sprinting and were neck and neck,” Plock says.