Photo by Paul Trende
The 2025 Section 1A track and field meet was marked by a plethora of area athletes making state by standard, particularly from Chatfield and LFCMC. Meanwhile, RPH and GMLOKS saw its stars shine.
For GMLOKS, it would have been a complete shocker if sprinter Chantle Reiland did not shine in a fast and long way at her last 1A Meet. The Kingsland senior made her first state appearance as an eighth grader, and has stood out since. Reiland added two more first place section finishes to her resume, and four more state qualifications. She mopped up on the individual sprints, winning her third straight 100-meter title (12.43), doing so by setting the meet record, topping Caledonia/SG’s Mariah Schroeder from 2017 (12.50). Reiland also repeated as 200-meter champ (25.50), an event where she set the meet record last year (25.11). Her first individual qualification came on the first day of the meet, when she took fourth in the Long Jump (17’3 ¼”), but moved on by standard. She also was a part of her fifth state qualifying 4×200 team (with Lydia Redman, Brynna Nelson, and Breeley Galle). The foursome took second (1:46.23) to Pine Island (1:45.43). It was a ninth straight (competed season) state berth for a GMLOKS girls 4×200, a ridiculous feat. Reiland went to state in all four events last year too. The most shine-worthy GMLOKS guy was Tate Goergen. Last year’s state runner-up grabbed the 800-meter section title (1:56.84). He also ran anchor on the 4×400, gliding past multiple competitors late to lead his team (Zach Reiland, Kaleb Yunker, Carter Glynn) to that title (3:26.62) over nearest foe Cotter/HL (3:27.74). Said event had seven teams make state. Z-Reiland also made state individually. He took second (40:02) to St. Charles’ Christopher Hilton in the 300-hurdles (39.68). Rounding out the Day 2 state qualifiers was gal Pole Vaulter Amelia McCabe, who took second Pine Island’s Annalise Sherman, both vaulting 9’8”. The first day of the meet saw High Jumpers Lauren Queensland (5’2”) and Nevaeh Shaw (5’0”) make state by taking first and sixth, Shaw going by standard (5’0”). They were two of six to qualify in the event. Other top six GMLOKS finishers were Galle (4th Triple Jump, 5th 100-hurdles, 6th 300-hurdles), Avery Stroup (4th P-Vault), Gracie Foster (6th 100-H), Nelson (6th 400), Brynn Sathre (6th Discus), Kloe Meyer (6th Shot), and Bently Wiersma (6th L-Jump). Galle and Foster were state entrants in the short hurdles last season. Foster has battled a leg injury this season. Galle was less than three inches short of state by standard in the Triple Jump. Relay-wise, the girls 4×400 (Queensland, Rylee Holst, Kiera Eickhoff, Nelson) took sixth.
For Rushford-Peterson/Houston, Aubry Boldt was the no-shocker star. She competed in three events and won all three. On Tuesday, she grabbed the Long Jump crown with a leap of 18’1 ½”. On Thursday, she notably set the meet record in the Triple Jump (37’6 ¼”), besting the former mark set by K-W’s Mara Quam (37’4 ½”) in 2017. Boldt also claimed the 100-meter hurdle title (15.17). The Houston junior requalified for state in all three events. She did not win any of the three at sections last year. RPH’s male distance runners claimed two other state berths. The boys 4×800 (Aaron Ploetz, Matthew Sprague, Trey Hegland, Isaac Rasmussen) started Day Two’s action by setting a new program record (8:13.91) and taking second to Lake City (8:13.57). Rasmussen also qualified individually in the 1,600, winning a sprinting battle the final 100-meters to take second (4:29.46) to Cotter/HL’s Erik Semling (4:22.51). On Day 1, Chace Drazkowski was the sixth guy to make state in the Shot Put (49’5”), doing so by standard. It is his second straight season of making state individually, as he did so in wrestling as well. Other top six finishers were Jorja Meyer (3rd Shot, 4th Discus), Gregg Gile (4th T-Jump), Abby Prinsen (5th Discus), Casey Herek (5th 110-H), Ploetz (5th 3,200), and Drazkowski (6th Discus). Gile was last year’s section champ in the T-Jump. Relay-wise, the girls 4×800 (Ava Helgemoe, Kyra Kotsmith, Caitlin Bauer, E-Helgemoe) took sixth.
Without a section champ, LFCMC qualified four relays and three more individuals. Senior Greg Kennedy had the most state qualifications, and LFCMC’s highest finish. He took second in the 200 (22.48) to Triton’s uber-athlete Pierce Petersohn (22.33). Kennedy also grabbed a state berth in the Long Jump, where he took third (21’0”) but qualified by standard (20’10”). He anchored the 4×100 (Weston Collins, Adrian Rindels, Davis Penhollow), helping it to finish third (44.16) behind Pine Island (43.22) and Cotter/HL (43.91). The Burros made state by standard and set the program record, topping a 2021 team (44.27). On the girls relay front, three of four made state, all by standard. It started with the 4×800 (Kinley Soiney, Maddie Zwart, Lillyan Kiehne, Autumn Rakosnik), which took fifth overall (9:50.85) in a below-standard time (10:01.24). Next came the 4×100 (Hannah Vaalemoen, Charlotte Ferrie, Kiehne, Soiney), which also took fifth (50.88) in below-standard time (51.01) and set a program record. Finally, the 4×400 (Olivia Rindels, Soiney, Kiehne, Rakosnik) took third (4:09.83) behind Cotter/HL (4:05.57) and Lake City (4:07.43) but was also under standard (4:10.50). Ella Halverson ran for Rindels in Day One’s prelims. The 4×400 and 4×800 re-qualified. Kiehne upped her career state relay tally to six. Her brothers Carson and Jayce were both state stand-outs. Like Kiehne, Rakosnik qualified for state three times. She earned her first bid Day 1 by standard, taking third (11:19.88) in the 3,200 behind Cotter/HL’s Sonja Semling (11:11.54) and Isabelle Katwa (11:19.72). Rakosnik broke her coach Lori (Bearson) Anderson’s record (11:22.1) set back in 1976. Day 1 also saw Brody Niemeyer take third (52’4 ½”) in the Shot Put behind BP’s Owen Krueger (53’6”) and PI’s Blake Schiltz (53’3 ¼”), but he made state by standard (48’10”). Other top six finishers were Elizabeth Clarke (3rd P-Vault), Ferrie (6th 100), and Ava Larson (6th T-Jump). Relay-wise, the guys 4×200 (Collins, A-Rindels, Penhollow, Kennedy) took fourth (just short of standard) and the guys 4×800 (Landon Sethre, Cooper Pickett, Jaxon Huntington, Grant Daniels) took sixth.
Chatfield’s top finish at the 1A Meet was just third. But via standard, the Gophers send six athletes to state. Jaelyn LaPlante heads the cast, as she will wrap up a brilliant career by competing thrice on the big stage. The senior started by taking third in the High Jump (5’0”) on Day 1, qualifying by standard (5’0”). She was one of six to make state in the event. On Day 2, she took sixth in the 200-meters (26.32), but also broke standard time (26.40). She was also the anchor for the third place 4×100 team (Adeline Schild, Savannah Peterson, Natalie Davidson), which ran 50.27 to break standard (51.01). LaPlante requalified for state in all three events. Peterson took third in the 200-meters (25.92) behind GMLOKS’ Chantle Reiland (25.50) and Cotter/HL’s Clarissa Sauer (25.77) but also went by standard, giving the Gophers two 200-meter qualifiers. In addition to LaPlante’s Day 1 High Jump qualification, Charlotte Oeltjen took fourth in the 3,200-meters (11:24.28) and Jake Stevens took fifth in the Shot Put (49’10 ¾”) but both made state by standard. LaPlante (4th 100) and Zach Whalen (4th P-Vault) each also had top five placings. Relay-wise, the girls 4×200 (Lillie Stejskal, Schild, Sophia Goldsmith, Peterson) took fifth, the boys 4×200 (Simon Erding, Keegan Patten, Lane Schmaltz, Logan Pearson) sixth.
For Caledonia/Spring Grove track and field, injuries hindered this year’s effort. Only one Warrior made state. Senior Fischer Wait took fifth in the 400 (50.72) but qualified by standard (51.53). Said qualification had an asterisk. He toughed out the run having tweaked a muscle in the prelims, something that made him a scratch in both the 200-meters and amidst the C/SG 4×200. The latter (Eli Staggemeyer, Owen Staggemeyer, Coby Hammell, Charlie Mauss) took fifth. With Wait, they qualified first (1:32.41). Eli Staggemeyer pushed for a repeat state berth in the 100 but took third (11.27) just over state standard (11.22). The girls 4×200 (Chloe Lange, Kamrin Thies, Savannah Augedahl, Nicole Banse), also a state qualifier last year, also just missed, taking fourth (1:48.83), just over standard (1:48.16). The same girls took sixth in the 4×100 (51.28), also not far back of standard (51.01). State qualifiers last year, Loisah Gay (relays) and Ethan Stendel, both did not compete. Gay was hurt during soccer. Stendel, a two-time High Jump qualifier, hurt his knee earlier in the year via a hard fall in the hurdles.
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