Maanum's premier level of excellence wasn't totally expected. That's based on seeding which of course can be a quite theoretical thing. Maanum's forte was the 800 meters. It seemed unlikely that Maanum would even garner a medal. His seeding position was No. 15. A big deal? As it turned out, no.
The Tigers vie in Class A. Maanum's performance in the Friday preliminaries was a prelude of things to come. Indeed he was swift on the track, running a time of 1:56.39. This elevated his seeding status to No. 2 which he would take into the Saturday finals. Maanum stayed in top form for the Saturday phase as he bested all but one of his foes. Only Luke Olson of Ely proved faster.
Maanum and Olson had a close battle for top honors. Maanum achieved No. 2 in state with his time of 1:56.18. And yes, this was a new MACA school record. I can imagine the smile on coach Dale Henrich's face, not to mention Jaden's plus his family and other supporters. Olson got a little extra burst of speed going into the last 100 meters. Olson's championship time was 1:55.48.
Maanum had never before gotten below two minutes. He wasn't confined to the 800 meters on Saturday, as he also showed his prowess in long jumping. He covered 19 feet even to place 14th.
And there's more: Maanum carried the baton as part of the 4x400m relay team. He helped this tandem set a new MACA standard. That was in the Friday pre-lims where the foursome achieved 3:25.99. It was the third best time in the pre-lims, but in the finals there was an unfortunate complication. Mace Yellow became sidelined due to an injury experienced in the 4x200m relay finals.
The 4x400m relay finals saw Maanum joined by Camden Arndt, Zach Hughes and Kenny Soderberg. They placed fourth with a 3:26.5 time.
MACA was quite well represented in the 2019 state meet. Distance running standout Noah Stewart got a medal in the 1600 meters where he took fourth, timed at 4:26.88. The 4x200m relay group of Soderberg, Yellow, Noah Thielke and Hughes visited the podium for their eighth place showing, time of 1:33.57.
Also in the distance running sphere we saw our Maddie Carrington showcased. She's a quite seasoned performer in this. We're used to seeing her name in cross country as well as track. Ditto with Stewart. The state meet saw Carrington earn two medals with her stamina. She excelled in the 800 meters (sixth place, 2:18.84) and the 1600 meters (seventh, 5:10.30). In the process she improved on her season-best times, at the most opportune time to do so.
Junior Lexi Pew tied for third in the high jump with her jump of five feet/two inches. The winning height was 5'4". Kaylie Raths accelerated in the 100m hurdles. Her time: 17.12. Olivia Lebrija likewise showed her hurdling prowess, also in the 100m, and her showing was 17.73.
For the boys, Arndt was 14th in the 110m hurdles with his time of 16.15.
Well, we have come to the end of the 2018-19 prep sports season. It is a pleasure for yours truly to continue writing about MACA student athletes. I never tire of it. I note that the Stevens County Times on its website has a quote from one of the athletes attributed to the West Central Tribune. I find that odd because both the Morris and Willmar papers have the same owner. They are really one and the same entity.
Now into the heart of summer
We'll sense soon how it feels not to have the longstanding summer Prairie Pioneer Days anymore. I write on this basic subject on the "Morris of Course" post that I'm putting up right now with this post. You may click to read on this link, and thanks as always for visiting.
https://morrisofcourse.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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