SIOUX FALLS – Aberdeen Christian had a big day on the track and in the field during the Class B portion of the state meet Saturday at Howard Wood Field.
The Knights captured a state championship, finished runner-up in one event, and took third in another event on the day.
Junior Dylan Hofer won his second straight championship in the triple jump, with a personal best mark of 44-feet, 6-inches
“He’s so disciplined in his pursuit of excellence … it’s amazing to watch,” said Christian coach Sam Bjorkman. “He did everything he could think of to prep himself physically and mentally, and it came through in those jumps.”
Hofer edged Northwestern’s Ty Boekelheide for the second year in a row. Hofer said he enjoys competing against his Lake Region Conference foe.
“It’s amazing,” Hofer said. “He is super nice. We’re good friends. I feel bad. I wish he could have jumped better, but I’m just happy that I won.”
Hofer collected three places throughout the day, placing seventh in the 100-meter dash, and running a leg on Christian’s second-place 400-meter relay squad.
Hofer talked about his demanding schedule, which took a bit of twist when the start of the meet was delayed following rain showers.
“Everything got delayed by an hour, so that was good because I got more sleep,” Hofer said. “It was honestly good that my other two races were only 100 meters, so it wasn’t too tiring. I got a good amount of rest in.”
Hofer summed up his day by saying, “I honestly think it went perfect.”
Other members of the relay squad were Eben Wurgler, Luke Kaiser, and Ryder Shaving.
The squad made a slight adjustment heading into the finals.
“(Friday) night we talked to our coach about changing our steps,” Shaving said. “We talked over what we were going to do and making sure we didn’t leave early.”
Shaving also talked about the team’s bond and chemistry.
“Just being competitive every meet and winning a lot of meets got us closer as a team,” Shaving said. “It was a really fun and good experience to have together.”
Bjorkman was happy that the team had a strong finish to the season.
“The boys were able to put together a beautiful 4×100,” Bjorkman said. “Because of a poor call on my part, they almost didn’t make finals, but survived prelims and came back wanting to win it. Great performance by each of them and as a team. Big school record as well for them.”
Christian’s Shawnteah LaCroix finished third in the triple jump to cap off a stellar high school career.
“What a great way for Shawnteah to end six years of state level competition with her 13th top eight finish,” Bjorkman said. “She put together a good first jump with a quad that was giving her trouble, and that allowed her to really go for it on the next jumps and we just couldn’t quite get out into the lead. … She’s grown into a disciplined, tenacious competitor from a seventh grader with little competitive background.”
Northwestern’s Ella Boekelheide capped her prep career with yet another state championship with a dominating win in the 1,600-meter run.
It was her fourth state title on the weekend, which garnered her the Class B Girls Track MVP award. She also defended her championships in the 800-meter and 3,200-meter, as well anchoring a relay team to victory.
Boekelheide said a key is staying mentally focused.
“The longer the race is, the more focused you have to be,” Boekelheide said. “It’s definitely about staying focused and being mentally tough because most of the time, your fitness is there, your training has prepared you for it. You just have to go out there and actually run the race.”
Boekelheide’s final race left her with 10 individual state titles, and provided something new for her during her final state meet.
“It feels so good,” Boekelheide said. “I haven’t won four state titles in a single meet before, so I think that was a perfect way to end.”
Boekelheide, who will compete at South Dakota State next season, talked about her motivation to always improve.
“I mean, you can chase gold medals, but I think more importantly is chasing times and just trying to always better yourself,” Boekelheide said. “That’s definitely what motivates me.”
Ipswich senior Kyle Hettich ended his career by capturing a state championship in the 100-meter dash with a time of :10.94. It was his first state title after finishing third in the 100 last year and fourth in the 200.
“I’ve been looking forward to this since I started track,” Hettich said. “The last two years didn’t go at all like I wanted, but I was determined to run better this year.”
When asked what improvements he made in the off-season, Hettich replied, “Weight room, weight room, weight room. I was just constantly in the weight room all summer long.”
Brody Bass of Castlewood had a strong performance in the 110-meter hurdles despite being hampered by an injury. The senior finished second in the event with a time of :15.06, second only to Chester’s Zach Moyer.
“In javelin (Friday), I tweaked my hamstring, then, going over the second-to-last hurdle, it enhanced it,” Bass said. “But I couldn’t be happier right now. I came in third last year, so improving on that is great. I’m happy for Zach. He’s a really nice kid and I’m happy he can have all this glory. He’s a heck of a runner.”
Because of the injury, Bass did not compete in the 300-meter hurdles and talked about the challenges of competing with an injured leg.
“It was hard,” Bass said. “But I knew that I just had to finish and it’s only 15 more seconds and after that I could be done. Knowing that kind of sent me through the finish line.”
The Ipswich girls finished fourth in the 1,600-meter relay. The squad includes eighth-grader Shawna Henderson, who ran the second leg for the Tigers.
“It feels really good to end well,” Henderson said. “It’s just good to be with your team. It feels really accomplishing.”
The other members of the team were Marley Guthmiller, Kalynn Oban, and Sophie Knittel. Guthmiller and Oban also helped the Tigers capture the 3,200-meter relay state championship.
“We were positive and encouraged each other to get it done and finish well,” Henderson said.
Philip won the boys’ championship and Bennett County topped the girls’ division.
To see complete meet results, click on the following link:
