Xavier Boys Track

Steingreaber, Freese win titles at Demon meet

IOWA CITY - Xavier High School senior Nick Steingreaber enjoyed a speedy beginning to the indoor track season Thursday.

Steingreaber captured the 60-meter dash in 6.98 seconds at the Demon Indoor meet at the University of Iowa Recreation Center.

There were a total of 104 sprinters from several dozen schools in the event, leading to numerous heats. Steingreaber beat them all.

"I feel pretty good," he said after blazing to victory. "I just wanted to get out here today, the first meet of the year, and get some work in."

Tavian Smith of Iowa City West finished second in the 60-meter dash in 7.00 seconds.

Steingreaber placed seventh in the 100-meter dash at the Class 4A state meet last year and is looking to move up this season. James Harrington of Cedar Falls, who won the race, has taken his considerable talents to the University of Alabama. All told, the top-5 finishers in the 100-meter state finals graduated.

"Harrington is not here, but there are fast guys still," said Steingreaber. "There's good competition around."

Steingreaber trained this winter at an indoor facility in North Liberty, just as did the previous two years. "It's good to be on a track there instead of in a gym," he said.

In addition to running, Steingreaber said he worked on his strength and flexibility in preparation for his final year of high school track.

Steingreaber wasn't the only Metro winner Thursday. The Linn-Mar Lions showed they'll have another strong team this season with a good showing at the Demon Indoor meet.

Tristan Freese and Austin Flieder, a pair of sophomores, finished 1-2 in the 200-meter dash to steal the show for Linn-Mar. Freese was clocked in 23.14 seconds and Flieder was a tick behind in 23.29 seconds in a spirited battle of teammates.

Chase Grabau placed third in the 800 for Linn-Mar, the 4x400 relay finished fifth, Mike Keiser took sixth in the 60 hurdles and Keegan Cook ran sixth in the 800.

The Kennedy Cougars made the charts with a third-place showing in the sprint medley. Tom Kaiser placed fourth in the 60 hurdles, Willie Rhoads and Shawn Beyer tied for fifth in the high jump, and John Koelling placed eighth in the 200.

Craig Murtha of Xavier finished fourth in the shot put.

Cedar Rapids Prairie competed in the meet but did not have any top-8 performances. Cedar Rapids Washington originally entered the meet, but withdrew and did not compete.

Linn-Mar junior Josh Evans, one of the top distance runners in the state, attended the meet but did not compete. He said he has recovered from injuries that plagued him during the cross country season and plans to make his indoor track debut Monday at a major meet in Ames.

DEMON INDOOR TRACK MEET
UI Recreation Center

WINNERS

4x800 relay - Pleasant Valley 8:19.23.
200 - Tristan Freese, Linn-Mar, 23.14
60 - Nick Steingreaber, Xavier, 6.98.
60 hurdles - Jon Rus, North Scott, 8.30.
800 - Mohamed Traore, IC West, 2:04.91.
High jump - Jeff Giannettino, W.Burlington/Notre Dame, 6-7.
Shot put - Emmett Wester, Mt.Pleasant, 54-10 1/2.
1600 - Bailey Wetherell, IC West, 4:27.65.
Sprint medley - Cedar Falls 3:48.26.
4x400 relay - Monticello 3:32.91.

LINN-MAR RESULTS
Top 8

1st - Tristan Freese, 200, 23.14.
2nd - Austin Flieder, 200, 23.29.
3rd - Chase Grabau, 800, 2:05.33.
5th - 4x400 relay (Austin Flieder, Tristan Freese, Tanner Rathje, Chase
Grabau) 3:38.96.
6th - Mike Keiser, 60 hurdles, 8.82.
6th - Keegan Cook, 800, 2:10.56.

KENNEDY RESULTS
Top 8

3rd - Sprint medley (Alex Hillyer, Famiek Cook, John Koelling, Evan Couch)
3:51.98.
4th - Tom Kaiser, 60 hurdles, 8.78.
5th (tie) - Willie Rhoads, high jump, 6-0.
5th (tie) - Shawn Beyer, high jump, 6-0.
8th - John Koelling, 200, 23.94.


XAVIER RESULTS
Top 8

1st - Nick Steingreaber, 60, 6.98.
4th - Craig Murtha, shot put, 49-5.

Kramer takes 2nd at MVC track meet

CEDAR FALLS - Northern Iowa junior Derek Kramer placed second in the 60-meter dash at the Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships Sunday in the UNI-Dome.

Kramer, a former state champion at Xavier High School, was clocked in 6.79 seconds. Northern Iowa teammate Carlos Anderson won the race in 6.71 seconds.

Indiana State won the team title. Northern Iowa tied for third.

Xavier boys 3rd at MVC Valley Meet

Shaquille Harbor did not win any races at the Mississippi Valley Conference track meet at Kingston Stadium Friday, but he was a winner nonetheless.

Harbor has experienced quite a bit during the past nine months, enough to make most teenagers dizzy and confused. Instead, Shaq sounds level-headed and determined to make a success of himself in sports and the classroom at Cedar Rapids Jefferson.

Harbor moved from Louisiana to Cedar Rapids in September, was adopted by his biological cousin and her husband in October, began the school year as an eighth grader at McKinley Middle School and was promoted to the freshman class at Jefferson in January.

He joined the Jefferson track team after the season began and has already developed into one of the top young sprinters that Ron Tower has tutored during his 16 years as head coach.

"Good story," Tower said Friday during the MVC Valley Division meet. "He does want to do well."

Tower entered Harbor in the frosh/soph 100-meter dash Friday, but the coach was laughing at himself for not putting Harbor in the varsity 100 after Harbor was clocked in 11.58 seconds. That easily won the frosh/soph race and would have been good enough to place third in the varsity 100.

"Smart coaching, huh?" joked Tower.

Tower said Harbor has been a little inconsistent in his workouts and races, which is understandable considering his youth and inexperience, but he ran a strong opening leg on the varsity 4x100 relay Friday that finished third. It was only the third time all season that Tower let Harbor run on the 4x100 relay.

Tower said Harbor struggled with his workouts when he joined the team, but there was a reason. Tower makes all of his 100 and 200 sprinters train with the 400-meter guys at the beginning of the year and Harbor wasn't too fond of that.

"Coach, Coach," Tower said, laughing as he recalled Harbor's reaction to running longer distances, "I just run the 100!"

Tower said Harbor wasn't ready for varsity competition at the beginning, but he's making up for lost time. "Over the last month he's matured quite a bit," the coach said. "He does want to do well. He's grown up a lot in a month. It's amazing the maturity I've seen."

For his part, Harbor said he's happy to be here and living with his new parents, Chris and LaSheila Yates, and making new friends.

"It feels good. A lot of good people," he said. "I'm focused more on school. And track."

Harbor attended the eighth grade in Alexandria, La., during the 2010-11 school year, but the Cedar Rapids school district decided to have him begin the 2011-12 school year here in the eighth grade again since he arrived a few weeks after the fall semester began.

"No, it didn't make me mad," he said. "It made me get motivated. Like, 'I have to do this, I have to get out of this school.'"

Harbor said his favorite sports have been football and basketball, but he's developed a fondness for track. "I like track," he said. "It gets me fit and ready for football."

Harbor is a running back, with good speed and a strong body. Brian Webb, Jefferson's new football coach, might have a pleasant surprise this fall. The new coach and new J-Hawk have not met yet, but they undoubtedly will soon.

"I haven't had a chance to talk to him yet, but I'm anxious to talk to him," said Harbor.

As you might expect since he's from Louisiana, Shaquille Harbor was named after former Louisiana State and NBA basketball star Shaquille O'Neal. "My grandmother told my mom that she likes Shaquille O'Neal, so they decided to name me Shaquille," he said. "No. Never met him."

Harbor served notice Friday that he could be a force for Jefferson sports teams in the coming years. Meanwhile, the powerful track teams from Iowa City West and Cedar Falls dominated the Valley Division meet at Kingston on a warm day.

Iowa City West won the team championship with 169 points and Cedar Falls finished second at 118.

The Xavier Saints won four events and placed third in the team standings. Craig Murtha claimed the shot put and discus for Xavier, Alec Clasen won the high jump and the quartet of Nick Ball, Jordan Weber, Zach Stovie and Brandon Gradoville captured the sprint medley.

Jacob Aune was a double champion in the 3200 and 1600 meter runs for the Prairie Hawks.

Timauntay Jones won the 800 for Jefferson in a swift time of 1:55.84.

BOYS MVC VALLEY DIVISION MEET
At Kingston Stadium

Team Standings
1. Iowa City West 169, 2. Cedar Falls 118, 3. Xavier 94, 4. Prairie 82, 5. Jefferson 56, 6. Hempstead 35, 7. Waterloo East 4.

High Jump
1. Alec Clasen (CRX) 6-2, 2. Kalund Brown (CF) 6-0, 3. Marquis Busch (CF) 6-0, 4. Demetrius Harper (CRP) 5-10, 5. Nathan Sims (DH) 5-8, 6. Jon Hermsen (DH) 5-8.

Long Jump
1. Tavian Smith (ICW) 21-6 1/2, 2. Charlie Rogers (ICW) 21-5, 3. Haakon Wilz (CRP) 20-5, 4. Brad Hennen (DH) 19-9, 5. Jarred Edmonds (CRP) 19-7 1/2, 6. Andrew Sorenson (CF) 19-2.

Shot Put
1. Craig Murtha (CRX) 49-11, 2. Ross Pierschbacher (CF) 49-10, 3. Josh Williams (CRP) 47-11, 4. Brady Waskow (CF) 47-8 1/2, 5. Ryan Eivins (CRJ) 46-0 1/2, 6. Kevin Sandhu (DH) 44-11.

Discus
1. Craig Murtha (CRX) 149-4, 2. Joseph Weiner (DH) 140-8, 3. Sam Techau (CRJ) 130-8, 4. Robbie Hanson (ICW) 130-3, 5. Kevin Sandhu (DH) 124-2, 6. Colton Spicer (CRJ) 123-6.

3200 Meter Run
1. Jacob Aune (CRP) 9:45.73, 2. Daniel Gardarsson (ICW) 9:47.31, 3. Mitch Pritts (CRP) 9:54.93, 4. Isaac Jensen (ICW) 9:55.99, 5. Adam Streicher (CF) 10:02.53, 6. Taylor Mueller (CRJ) 10:15.56.

4x800 Relay
1. Iowa City West 8:10.64, 2. Hempstead 8:23.14, 3. Cedar Falls 8:23.52, 4. Xavier (Patrick Mullin, Zach Stovie, Evan Gradoville, Ben Schueler) 8:38.61, 5. Jefferson (Devin Stone, Aaron Carter, Colton Cortez, Tim MacDonald) 8:44.03, 6. Prairie (Luke Gradoville, Isaiah Vlasek, Steven Wallace, Connor Neuhaus) 8:47.50.

Shuttle Hurdle Relay
1. Iowa City West 59.38, 2. Cedar Falls 1:01.22, 3. Prairie (Mitch Dellamuth, Keagan Pinter, Jarred Edmonds, Haakon Wilz) 1:02.17, 4. Jefferson (Savaun Bounds, Tanner Lund, Michael Moncivais, Dakote Tomkins) 1:04.21, 5. Xavier (Noah Clasen, Josh Nelson, Nick Lang, Joe Pape) 1:06.03, 6. Hempstead 1:06.44.

100 Meter Dash
1. Armando Williams (ICW) 11.40, 2. Nick Steingreaber (CRX) 11.44, 3. Luke Toyosi (CF) 11.59, 4. (tie) Nate Karlan (CRJ) 11.62; Richard Bryant (ICW) 11.62, 6. Mitch Dowell (CF) 11.67.

400 Meter Dash
1. Charlie Rogers (ICW) 50.17, 2. Austin Dellamuth (CRP) 50.22, 3. Shane Shaddox (CF) 50.52, 4. Timauntay Jones (CRJ) 50.83, 5. Ahmed Noureldaim (ICW) 50.85, 6. Demetrius Harper (CRP) 52.29.

4x200 Relay
1. Iowa City West 1:29.20, 2. Xavier (Nick Ball, Brandon Gradoville, Cal Stovie, Jordan Weber) 1:30.77, 3. Jefferson (Nate Karlan, Chance Tiedtke, Alex Baxter, Dylan Chittick) 1:31.56, 4. Cedar Falls 1:31.62, 5. Waterloo East 1:37.35, 6. Prairie (Marquan Wilder, Alex Nelson, Dylan Becker, Mitch Dellamuth) 1:37.53.

110 Meter Hurdles
1. Lucas Brenneman (ICW) 15.72, 2. Haakon Wilz (CRP) 15.79, 3. Josh Nelson (CRX) 15.92, 4. Kalund Brown (CF) 16.09, 5. Carter Valentine (CRX) 16.27, 6. Kalehl Brown (CF) 16.34.

1600 Meter Run
1. Jacob Aune (CRP) 4:29.47, 2. Bailey Wetherell (ICW) 4:30.16, 3. Lincoln Rozeboom (ICW) 4:37.28, 4. Matthew Adrian (CF) 4:38.27, 5. Mitch Pritts (CRP) 4:40.79, 6. Andrew Halloran (CF) 4:52.11.

200 Meter Dash
1. James Harrington (CF) 22.17, 2. Armando Williams (ICW) 22.59, 3. Nick Ball (CRX) 22.95, 4. Mitch Dowell (CF) 23.04, 5. Nick Steingreaber (CRX) 23.30, 6. Nate Karlan (CRJ) 23.38.

400 Meter Hurdles
1. Charlie Rogers (ICW) 54.96, 2. Austin Cuvelier (CF) 56.03, 3. Noah Clasen (CRX) 56.04, 4. Matt Feeley (ICW) 56.23, 5. Lucas Vanous (CRJ) 56.83, 6. Jarred Edmonds (CRP) 59.86.

Sprint Medley Relay
1. Xavier (Nick Ball, Jordan Weber, Zach Stovie, Brandon Gradoville) 3:42.54, 2. Cedar Falls 3:42.86, 3. Iowa City West 3:44.93, 4. Jefferson (Aaron Gruwell, Ryan Deerberg, Jordan Selby, Taylor Mueller) 3:46.19, 5. Prairie (Austin Dellamuth, Alex Nelson, Mitch Dellamuth, Isaiah Vlasek) 3:52.08, 6. Hempstead 4:04.03.

800 Meter Run
1. Timauntay Jones (CRJ) 1:55.84, 2. Bailey Wetherell (ICW) 2:02.50, 3. Kaleb Greiner (ICW) 2:05.65, 4. Bryan Case (DH) 2:07.99, 5. Jared Failor (CF) 2:09.01, 6. Nick Klein (DH) 2:09.62.

4x100 Relay
1. Cedar Falls 42.56, 2. Xavier (Nick Ball, Jordan Weber, Cal Stovie, Nick Steingreaber) 42.78, 3. Jefferson (Shaquille Harbor, Dylan Chittick, Chance Tiedtke, Nate Karlan) 43.46, 4. Iowa City West 43.60, 5. Waterloo East 46.20, 6. Hempstead 47.05.

4x400 Relay
1. Iowa City West 3:23.67, 2. Prairie (Austin Dellamuth, Jarred Edmonds, Jacob Aune, Demetrius Harper) 3:25.09, 3. Cedar Falls 3:25.28, 4. Jefferson (Ryan Deerberg, Alex Baxter, Asim Wallace, William Orr) 3:27.51, 5. Xavier (Trey Sampson, Noah Clasen, Brandon Gradoville, Zach Stovie) 3:41.24, 6. Hempstead 3:43.89.

Saints win 6 events at South Tama

TAMA - The Xavier High School boys track team won six events at the South Tama Invitational on Tuesday.

The Saints looked particularly strong in the relays and captured the 4x100, 4x200, 4x400 and 4x800 events. Nick Steingreaber won the 100 meter dash and Alec Clasen claimed the high jump at 6-foot-6, matching his best jump of the season.

Brandon Gradoville ran on three of the triumphant relay teams for Xavier. Ben Valentine, Nick Ball, Cal Stovie and Jordan Weber ran on two of the winning relays.

Demetrius Harper captured the 200 meter dash for Cedar Rapids Prairie.

Pella won the team championship with 178 points. South Tama placed second in the 11-team field with 148 points and Xavier was third with 145. Prairie finished sixth.

SOUTH TAMA INVITATIONAL
Team Standings

1. Pella 178, 2. South Tama 148, 3. Xavier 145, 4. Benton Community 136, 5. BCLUW 96.5, 6. Prairie 83, 7. (tie) Williamsburg 65; Grinnell 65; 9. Iowa Valley 55, 10. Clear Creek Amana 51, 11. Grundy Center 41.5.

Winners

3200 - Nate Carr, Grinnell, 9:57.32.
4x800 relay - Xavier 8:28.00.
Shuttle hurdle relay - Clear Creek Amana 1:01.05.
100 - Nick Steingreaber, Xavier, 11.20.
400 - Joe Nowasell, Grinnell, 50.69.
4x200 relay - Xavier 1:31.63.
110 hurdles - Conrad Thompson, Benton, 14.75.
1600 - Zach Buchheit, Pella, 4:25.01.
200 - Demetrius Harper, Prairie, 22.72.
400 hurdles - Conrad Thompson, Benton, 55.95.
Sprint medley - Pella 3:42.00.
800 - Joe Nowasell, Grinnell, 2:04.95.
4x100 - Xavier 43.62.
4x400 - Xavier 3:33.18.
Shot put - Robert Rathje, Benton, 47-3.
Long jump - Kyle Stephenson, South Tama, 21-3 1/4.
Discus - Austin Lowe, South Tama, 110-3.
High jump - Alec Clasen, Xavier, 6-6.

Xavier Placewinners
(Top 6)

1st - 4x800 relay (Patrick Mullin, Ben Valentine, Evan Gradoville, Brandon Gradoville) 8:28.00.
1st - Nick Steingreaber, 100, 11.20.
1st - 4x200 relay (Nick Ball, Brandon Gradoville, Cal Stovie, Jordan Weber) 1:31.63.
1st - 4x100 relay (Nick Ball, Nick Steingreaber, Cal Stovie, Jordan Weber) 43.62.
1st - 4x400 relay (Ben Valentine, Trey Sampson, Zach Stovie, Brandon Gradoville) 3:33.18.
1st - Alec Clasen, high jump, 6-6.
2nd - Nick Ball, 200, 22.78.
2nd - Noah Clasen, 400 hurdles, 56.08.
2nd - Ben Sagers, high jump, 5-8.
4th - Zach Stovie, 400, 51.96.
4th - Josh Nelson, 110 hurdles, 15.83.
4th - Sprint medley (Josh Nelson, Jim Moore, Ben Valentine, Zach Stovie) 3:52.00.
5th - Shuttle hurdle relay (Noah Clasen, David Kirpes, Nick Lang, Josh Nelson) 1:06.57.
5th - Jordan Weber, 100, 11.58.
5th - Noah Clasen, 400, 52.39.
6th - Ben Schueler, 3200, 10:35.08.
6th - Seth Fahnle, shot put, 42-8 1/2.

Prairie Placewinners
(Top 6)

1st - Demetrius Harper, 200, 22.72.
3rd - Austin Dellamuth, 200, 23.17.
3rd - Sprint medley (Jarred Edmons, Jacob Aune, Jace Hanna, Luke Galloway) 3:50.00.
3rd - Sam Manternach, discus, 125-1.
4th - 4x200 relay (Mitch Peters, Dylan Becker, Jace Hanna, Cam Rathje) 1:37.92.
4th - Josh Williams, shot put, 43-8.
5th - Haakon Wilz, 110 hurdles, 16.10.
6th - 4x100 relay (Austin Dellamuth, Alex Nelson, Haakon Wilz, Steve Wallace) 47.18.
6th - Haakon Wilz, long jump, 18-10 1/2.