ALBIA — Prairie City-Monroe’s Mustang and Pella Christian’s Eagle girls opened the 2014 outdoor track season Tuesday at Albia’s Early Bird Invitational.
The Mustangs dominated, winning 13 events, amassing 189 points to win the meet. The Eagles 1-3-4-5 finish in the 100-meter dash helped them take second as a team with 112 points.
“We are very excited with our performances (Tuesday),” PCM girls’ head coach Bridget Martin said. “Our girls have great attitudes, are working hard to compete to the best of their ability and remembering to have fun. When you combine all of that, good things happen.”
PCM won the distance races led by Rachel Peter. Peter ran a winning time of 5 minutes, 42.47 seconds in the 1,500 meters, finishing just ahead of teammate Rachel Stafford in 5:42.66. Pella Christian’s Marina Shannon placed third in the race in 5:54.25 and Alyssa Starkey took fifth in 5:53.83.
Peter claimed first in the 3,000-meter run in 12:27.94. Damaris Washington of Pella Christian ran fifth in the race in 15:09.28.
Katie Vande Wall won the 800-meter run in 2:38.21. Pella Christian’s Cara Theune was third in 2:56.16 followed by Eagle teammates McKinley Zula in fifth at 2:56.89 and Courtney Nikkel in sixth at 2:59.48.
Vande Wall combined with Stafford, Ashley Van Gorp and Courtney Van Houweling to win the distance medley relay race in 4:33.52 for the Mustangs. The Eagles’ foursome of Starkey, Morgan Anderson, Sydney Faber and Kathryn Van Tuyl was third in 4:52.43.
The one distance race the Mustangs didn’t win the Eagles did. Nikkel, Theune, Zula and Shannon combined to win the 4x800-meter relay race in 11:37.34.
“It was a great start to our outdoor season,” said Kevin Herdegen, Eagle head coach.
Pella Christian’s Leah Breon won the shortest race of the meet, claiming first in the 100-meter dash in 13.43 seconds. Breon edged out PCM’s Mackenzie Clark, who was second in 13.44. The Eagles filled the next three spots — Sarah Meyer in third at 13.99, Taylor Bolt in fourth at 14.48 and Julia Dykstra in fifth at 14.58.
PCM’s Lexi Kain was the first to cross the finish line in the 200-meter dash in 27.31 seconds. The Eagles’ Breon was second in 28.28 seconds, with teammates Anderson in fourth at 30.00, Van Tuyl in seventh at 30.64 and Dykstra in eighth at 30.69.
The sprint medley relay top spot went to Pella Christian’s Bolt, Meyer, Breon and Christa Veenstra in 1:58.60. PCM’s sprint medley relay team of Clarke, Emily Hugen, Van Houweling and Van Gorp posted a second-place time of 2:00.8.
Veenstra gave the Eagles a fourth-place finish in the 400-meter dash in 1:03.78 with Shannon in fifth at 1:10.25.
Jayci Vos won the 400-meter hurdle race in 1:10.68 for the Mustangs. In the 100-meter hurdles, PCM’s Rachel Gulling was second in 17:70 seconds. In the shuttle hurdle relay, the Mustangs won the race in 1:10.92 with the team of Gulling, Tatum Schnug, Vos and Kain.
The Mustangs and Eagles battled on the track in the relays. The Mustangs won the 4x100-meter relay in 53.89 with the foursome of Clarke, Hugen, Gulling and Vos with the Eagles’ Bolt, Meyer, Dykstra and Breon combining for second place in 55.34 seconds.
PCM’s Clarke, Vos, Van Houweling and Kain rolled to a winning time of 1:52.09 in the 4x200-meter relay. The Pella Christian team of Dykstra, Faber, Bolt and Meyer finished second in 2:00.77.
Hugen, Van Houweling, Vande Wall and Kain combined to win the 4x400-meter relay race in 4:29. Taking third place in 4:54.36 was the Eagle team of Anderson, Van Tuyl, Nikkel and Starkey.
The Mustangs’ Abbi Gilson won the discus and shot put events. Gilson had a throw of 113 feet, 4 inches to win the discus. In the shot put, Gilson’s first-place toss was 35’4 3/4”. Pella Christian’s Miranda Nikkel was seventh at 28’ 1/4”.
Van Gorp of PCM won the long jump with a leap of 15’ 1/2”. Pella Christian’s Van Tuyl was second in the high jump, clearing the bar at 4’6”.
Pella Christian goes to Knoxville Saturday. PCM prepares to host its invitational Tuesday, April 8, in Monroe.