BISMARCK — Fans at the North Dakota state track meet were seeing double in the Class B girls division Saturday.
Thompson’s Lana Krack and Izzy Shirek were both double winners and Oakes’ Lanie Awender and Paige Haakenson of Nelson County made multiple trips to the podium. In the end, the Rugby Panthers came away with the team championship, boasting a single individual winner.
Shirek dashed to wins in the 100-meter and 300-meter hurdles, was on the 1,600 relay team and placed in the high jump to help the Tommies make a run at a state Class B championship. Rugby held off everybody, however, finishing with 84.5 points to claim the team title.
Thompson was second with 67.5 points, followed by Langdon Area-Edmore-Munich with 40, Central Cass 38 and Oakes 36.5. Rugby’s only win was the 1,600 relay team (4, minutes, 6.09 seconds) of Ellie Duchscherer, Emily Mattern, Maria Blessum and Anni Steier.
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Krack won the 3,200 under a bright sun after shining Friday in the 1,600 in a driving rain.
“You can’t have 50 and rainy every day,” Krack said.
She admitted backing off of a record chase to save something for the 800. Nevertheless, her winning time of 11:08 was 11 seconds faster than her winning time of the previous year.
That 800 turned out to be special.
“That 800, that was the one I was most hyped for the whole meet,” Krack said. “I didn’t really figure out how to run 800s until (Friday) in the 4x800. I’ve been working on that since I was a freshman.”
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Krack posted a 2:18.21, which had special meaning. “This is now my PR. And the best part is … our school record was .22 so I beat it by .01, so I was like ‘yes!’”
Shirek opened the day with a win in the 300 hurdles in a time of 45.21. Lexis Olson of Langdon Area was second in 45.62.
“I was a little sore from yesterday, so I just stretched out and let the race be what it was,” Shirek said. “Lexis' strides are stronger than mine, I have to do like two strides to her one.”
Shirek later added the 100 hurdle title by running a 15.38 to win by almost a second over Beulah’s Tia Horning (16.21).
“That was fun,” Shirek said. “Coach tells me to be explosive coming out, so I try to focus on that and I have to be fast between the hurdles to build speed and finish strong."
Central Cass’ qualifying time in the girls 800 relay was 43 seconds behind the top spot held by Dickinson Trinity. But the Squirrels’ winning time of 1:47.07 was .18 faster than the runner-up Titans, thanks to eighth-grade anchor Decontee Smith, who passed Kara Wanner on a sprint down the stretch. The Squirrels also won the 400 relay in 50.57.
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“I was determined to get first,” Smith said. “I thought I was about to get passed by a team and I was determined not to let her pass me. I finished strong and we won.”
Oakes' Lanie Awender won her first state title, racing to a win in the 100 meters in a time of 12.55. “I think it went really well,” Awender said. “I usually do come from behind but I try to come out of the blocks as fast as I can so I don’t have to make up all that ground.”
Awender then doubled up with a win in the 200 in a time of 25.85, matching her state-qualifying mark.
Haakenson took first in the shot put (39-4) and discus (122-8).
