Hosbond, C-M relay quartet compete at state track meet

DES MOINES — Ashlynn Hosbond sprung onto the scene in the fall when she qualified for the state cross country meet as a freshman.

She backed it up and proved it wasn’t a fluke this spring when she advanced to state in the 3,000-meter run.

But there’s still more to do in both sports after not finishing where she wanted to both times.

“I’m not extremely happy with my time because it’s not a PR, but I’m thankful I got to run here and now I just have to keep improving for next year,” Hosbond said. “It was nice to take it all in and see it all. It was a little scary so next year when I come back it won’t be as bad maybe.”

Hosbond and four Tigerhawks from the boys’ squad competed at the Iowa High School State Track and Field Championships inside Drake Stadium this past weekend.

And four of them have the chance to make a return trip next season.

“It was fun and crazy, but I’m so glad I made it to state after missing state cross country by one spot,” C-M junior Sullivan Wilkins said. “Three of the four guys are back. We definitely want to be back here and send more to state next year, too.”

The C-M boys qualified for the state meet in the distance medley relay. And the foursome of Tony Buenrostro, Wyatt Thornton, Chase Trotter and Wilkins placed 20th in Class 1A on Friday.

They posted a time of 3 minutes, 45.67 seconds, which was a season best by 2 seconds.

The top eight finishers in each event at the state meet earn a medal. The final medal time in the distance medley relay was 3:35.69 and Oakland Riverside won the event with a 3:30.94.

“It was exciting. There’s a lot of people here,” said Buenrostro, who is the only senior on the distance medley quartet. “I felt much faster on the track. Our handoffs felt good. I think we PRed, too, so that’s good.”

Trotter, Thornton and Wilkins all agreed that it just feels faster on the blue oval.

Thornton, who dyed his hair blonde for the state experience, said he was nervous right up until the race started.

“It was good and nerve-wracking,” Thornton said. “But once I heard the gun go off, it felt like it was another race. We didn’t break the stagger very well, but it felt fast.”

Hosbond ran in the 1A girls 3,000 on Thursday and placed 18th with a time of 11:28.53.

Collins-Maxwell’s Jayden Peters, who won the 3,000 at Hosbond’s regional, was the final medalist in eighth. She posted a time of 10:52.89.

Council Bluffs Lewis Central’s Lili Denton won the race in 9:42.04.

Hosbond did not expect to make it to state in both cross country and track at the start of her freshman campaigns. But she fell in love with running even more a long the way and can still get better as she gets older.

“That’s exciting,” Hosbond said about making it to state in both sports. “It was not the expectation for a little bit, but I just kept working hard to get there. I’m thankful my coaches helped me work towards it. It was a lot of fun.”