GLENWOOD, Iowa — The grueling late August heat didn't prevent Glenwood's Johnny Fuller and Atlantic's Ali Krogman from doing what they do best.

Fuller, the Iowa Association of Track Coaches' second-ranked Class 3-A runner, won for the third straight year Tuesday at the 36th annual Glenwood Ram coed meet with a time of 16 minutes, 14 seconds. Krogman, ranked first in 3-A coming off a state title last fall, won her second title in as many years with a time of 15:14.

Class 3-A No. 1 Glenwood won the boys title, and No. 9 Atlantic won the girls competition.

The Glenwood boys placed four runners in the top 10. Following Fuller were Mark Abrams (second, 16:43), Kyle Wheeler (sixth, 18:10) and Jakob Rhodes (ninth, 18:27). Not bad for the first race of the season, but as Fuller said, much work remains for the Rams.

“Can we run a lot better? Yeah, and hopefully we can show that,” Fuller said. “Personally, I didn't even run that fast. With about 600 meters left, I decided it wasn't going to be a stellar time, and my feet were on fire.

“It was an un-ideal day to run, but you've got to make the best of it.”

Glenwood coach Todd Peverill was impressed with his team's debut. With a roster loaded with both talent and experience, he thinks the Rams are on track for success.

“They're going after it this year, and since most of them are seniors, that in itself is motivation,” Peverill said. “This'll be our third trip to state if we make it through districts OK, and barring any injuries or illnesses, we should make it OK.

“We've got some improvements to (make), but we're right on the path of where we thought we should be at this point in time.”

After the boys race, it was Krogman's turn to get her season under way.

She and a handful of other runners distanced themselves from the rest of the pack as they followed the course marshal.

But an open gate from the boys race was inadvertently left open when the girls race began. The marshal led the front of the pack into the gated area and away from the true girls course.

Course officials noticed the mistake after the first group entered the wrong area and closed the gate for the rest of the participants, putting them back on track.

Krogman kept following the marshal and eventually got back on track. She won, but had she run the correct course entirely, her time of 15:14 most likely would have changed.

“My coach was standing there, and he yelled, ‘Just go this way.' So everyone was all messed up,” Krogman said. “I thought I was going the right way the whole time. We walked the course before, but I never pay attention to where I'm going.”

Confusion aside, Krogman was pleased with the result, especially after all the training she did during the summer. “I feel like I ran a lot more than the past two years,” she said. “I've been working out in practice, and my teammates have been pushing me.”

Among other western Iowa schools, Shenandoah finished second in the boys race and third in the girls event. Sean Skillern, in fifth, led the boys, and A. Saner (third) paced the girls.

Harlan's girls finished second and its boys fourth. Jessica Feldman (fourth) and Rachel Pauley (sixth) paced the girls, while Michael Blackman's 20th-place finish led the boys.

Boys team results: 1. Glenwood 31, 2. Shenandoah 58, 3. Council Bluffs Thomas Jefferson 105, 4. Harlan 141, 5. Southwest Iowa 145, 6. Atlantic 153, 7. Abraham Lincoln 178, 8. Treynor 193, 9. Lewis Central 209, 10. Red Oak 222.
Individual top 10: 1, Johnny Fuller, Glenwood, 16:14; 2, Mark Abrams, Glenwood, 16:43; 3, Luke Karamitros, Atlantic, 17:32; 4, Conrad Sain, Treynor, 17:46; 5, Sean Skillern, Shenandoah, 17:58; 6, Kyle Wheeler, Glenwood, 18:10; 7, Casey Cruickshank, Southwest Iowa, 18:21; 8, Richard Golden, Southwest Iowa, 18:22; 9, Jakob Rhodes, Glenwood, 18:27; 10, Tate Jensen, Shenandoah, 18:38.

Girls team results: 1. Atlantic 65, 2. Harlan 68, 3. Shenandoah 89, 4. Council Bluffs Lewis Central 97, 5. Glenwood 121, 6. Corning, 7. Treynor 142, 8. Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln 154, 9. Red Oak 154.
Individual top 10: 1, Ali Krogman, Atlantic, 15:14; 2, Tiffany Shepherd, Corning, 15:32; 3, A. Saner, Shenandoah, 15:51; 4, Jessica Feldman, Harlan, 16:15; 5, Christy Stevens, Atlantic, 16:23; 6, Rachel Pauley, Harlan, 16:29; 7, Kaitlin Killinger, Treynor, 16:48; 8, Natalie Olberding, Lewis Central, 17:42; 9, Kristen Carmichael, Corning, 18:04; 10, Lauren Krogman, Atlantic, 18:16.

« High Schools

Share