10A April 19, 2013 SUN THISWEEK - Apple Valley
Sports Eagle boys going for another SSC track championship
AV girls have some building blocks in place Sprinters Pipkins, Maki will help lead track team
Sprinters lead Apple Valley’s title defense by Mike Shaughnessy SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
It’s not uncommon for coaches to deflect attention from their own teams and onto others. So when Apple Valley boys track and field coach Rod Dirth was asked to name the favorites in the South Suburban Conference, he picked Rosemount and Prior Lake. In reality, the team to beat probably is the team that won the conference last year – Apple Valley, which added a Section 3AA title and fourth-place finish at state to its list of accomplishments from the 2012 season. The Eagles return several of the athletes who competed for them at state last year and should be particularly strong in sprints. Seniors Quinn Hooks and Steven Wilson ran on Apple Valley relay teams that finished third at state in the 4x100- and 4x200-meter races. Seniors Dom McDew-Stauffer and Jordan Charles are returnees from the 4x200 relay, and junior DaShawn Lewis ran on the 4x100. Charles also ran on Apple Valley’s sixth-place team in the 4x400. Hooks and Lewis finished in the top five in the 100 dash at the 2012
South Suburban Conference championships, where Apple Valley edged Rosemount by two points for the team title. McDewStauffer was a top-five finisher in the 200. Charles, who has signed with the University of Minnesota to compete in track and field, also is one of the state’s top returning triple jumpers. He was second in that event at the 2012 state meet with a jump of 46 feet, 1 inch. Charles, Hooks, McDew-Stauffer and Wilson all earned All-South Suburban Conference and All-State recognition. The Eagles also should have a solid distance and middledistance group with senior Nick Hughes and junior Tyler Roberts, both of whom ran in the 4x800 relay at state last year. Dirth said the Eagles are looking for some help in the pole vault and hurdles. There’s a large pool of candidates, as Apple Valley has about 90 athletes out for track and field. M c D e w - S t a u f f e r ’s health is a concern for the Eagles. McDew-Stauffer, who also took sixth at state in the discus, tore a knee ligament in Apple Jordan Charles will be one of Apple Valley’s key athletes Valley’s second to last as the Eagles attempt to defend their South Suburban Conference boys track and field championship. (Photo by See EAGLES, 11A Rick Orndorf)
by Mike Shaughnessy SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
As Apple Valley constructs its team for the 2013 girls track and field season, three sprinters from a state runner-up relay are good building blocks. Seniors Jaryn Pipkins and Megan Maki, along with sophomore Brita Dawson, were on a 4x100meter relay that finished second in the state Class AA meet last June. They’re part of a deep group of sprinters that also includes senior Melissa Swanson and ninth-graders Amanda Sonneburg and Tia San Agustin. Pipkins, an All-Conference and All-State athlete last year and Apple Valley’s Athena Award winner this year, also is likely to be one of the Eagles’ top returnees in the triple jump. Hannah Linder, a senior, has finished seventh and third at state in the pole vault the last two years. Junior Lexi Smrekar is the Eagles’ top returnee in the shot put and discus, although coach Geri Dirth said the team could use some more depth in those events. Seniors Meredith Jones and Amber Leonard, along with sophomore Cami Sjoquist, lead the distance group. Sjoquist
Lightning expects to improve over last year’s finishes State qualifiers Bestul, Funk, among returnees by Mike Shaughnessy SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Eastview hasn’t been able to do much outdoors, but its work indoors drew some attention earlier this month. The Lightning girls track and field team won the All-American Invitational on April 6 at the University of WisconsinRiver Falls. They surprised a number of people at that meet, including their coaches. “We stood in second or third place for most of the meet,” coach Jorjean Fischer said. “There were some very competitive teams there, and the fact we won showed how balanced we are.” In 2012 the Lightning finished seventh in the South Suburban Conference championships and tied for 35th at the state meet. Eastview is expecting better showings in both this year. Both of the athletes See EASTVIEW, 11A
Eastview senior Erica Bestul finished fifth in the 800 meters at last year’s state Class AA track and field meet. (Photo by Rick Orndorf)
competed in the state cross country meet last fall. Pipkins, Maki, Linder, Leonard, Jones, Tierney Slater and Joy Norton are Apple Valley’s captains. Apple Valley finished fifth in the South Suburban Conference, fourth in Section 3AA and tied for 10th at state last year, but the Eagles are only about two years removed from their third-place finish at the state Class AA meet in 2011. AVHS graduate and former U.S. Olympian Shani Marks Johnson left the Eagles coaching staff to become a volunteer assistant coach at the University of Minnesota. But the team replaced her with another nationally prominent athlete – Heather (Dorniden) Kampf, who starred at Rosemount High School and the University of Minnesota and competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials last year. Kampf still competes professionally and on Sunday finished third in the women’s professional mile at the Boston Marathon. The Eagles, like most Minnesota teams, have yet to compete outdoors this season. They were scheduled to be at home against Eagan on Thursday. Their next scheduled meet is the Wildcat Invitational at Eagan High School on Tuesday.
Colleges sign more local student- athletes Student-athletes from local high schools signed with college programs Wednesday, the first day of the spring signing period. Apple Valley senior Harry Sonie, a starting guard on the Eagles’ state championship boys basketball team, signed with Waldorf College. Dylan Caspar will play lacrosse at Queens University on Charlotte N.C. Shanotta Bawek signed with Morgan State to play volleyball. Two softball players were among the Burnsville athletes signing Wednesday. Erica Belter will play at Dakota State University and Ellie Grubb will play at Dakota County Technical College. Luke Hansen signed with Iowa Central College for baseball and Charlie Kollasch will swim at St. Cloud State. Eagan senior Zach Glienke signed a Division I hockey National Letter of Intent at the University of Maine. Tony Sarne will play football at the University of Mary in North Dakota, Drew Nichols will play tennis at St. Cloud State and Sonja Hedblom will compete in Nordic skiing at Michigan Tech. Eastview senior Tyra Johnson, who helped the Lightning place third in the state Class 4A girls basketball tournament, will continue her college career at Minnesota State, Mankato. Erica Bestul signed with Drake University for track and field and Claire Grimm will play volleyball at Minnesota State-Moorhead. Two Rosemount lacrosse players signed with colleges Wednesday. Grant VanOverbeke will play men’s lacrosse at Florida Southern College and Sydney Lubeley will play women’s lacrosse at the University of Cincinnati. Also signing from Rosemount were Trevor Capra (South Dakota State, cross country) and Anthony Winters (Dakota County Technical College, baseball).
Distance runners should help EV boys track Like most teams, Lightning held back by bad weather by Mike Shaughnessy SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
In Tom Sharp’s previous role in the Eastview boys track and field program, a little snow and cold in the spring wouldn’t have bothered him. He coached the Lightning’s distance runners, and distance runners are used to dodging snowbanks and training in the elements. But it’s difficult for other track and field athletes to function unless it’s warm outside, and that’s a concern for Sharp, who’s in his first season as Eastview’s head
coach. “I think we’ve had three outdoor meets cancelled already,” Sharp said last weekend. “We do what we can do. The distance runners, they’re OK. They’re used to being outside, although not being on the track isn’t ideal for doing interval work. “But our pole vaulters can’t do a full run-up indoors. Our throwers can throw the shot put inside, but they have to be outside to throw the discus.” Of course, the weather is every Minnesota high school track coach’s problem, but now that Sharp oversees the whole
Eastview roster, he’d like to see his athletes compete. The Lightning finished fourth overall and was the top Minnesota team at the All-American Invitational on April 6 in River Falls, Wis. Eastview was scheduled to compete in a meet at Rosemount High School on Tuesday. When the outdoor season finally starts, Sharp said he likes the Lightning’s chances of being competitive in the South Suburban Conference. Eastview finished third in the SSC last season. Two Eastview athletes went on to score points at the state meet, but both graduated last June.
Distance running should be a strength for the Lightning, which has several of the runners that competed for Eastview in the Class AA cross country meet last fall. That group includes seniors Nick Oelke and Zach Tollefson. Oelke holds the school’s 5,000-meter record. His best event in track is probably the 1,600 (meters), Sharp said, but the 800 and 3,200 also are strong events. As for Tollefson, “I wish I had about 900 of him,” the coach said. “By the end of the season, our distance group should be running pretty
strong,” Sharp added. The Lightning also is looking for a bounceback season from senior Ryan Lockard, who was fourth at state in the high jump two years ago but didn’t qualify last year. “He’s already cleared 6-4, 6-6 in our early meets,” Sharp said. Lockard also is one of three Eastview athletes who already have exceeded 40 feet in the triple jump. Jonathan Lenz is a strong 800 runner, Miles Witcher can do sprints and hurdles, and Jahkye McClarron looks to be the top returning sprinter. Thomas Cole is a re-
turning hurdler and Scott Smith finished fifth in the shot put at last year’s South Suburban meet. Finding more sprinters will be paramount. With three open sprints and three relays designed for sprinters on a track meet’s itinerary, “it’s still a sprinter’s game,” Sharp said. “You can go against anybody if you have sprinters.” Eastview will try again to get outside at the Pony Relays at Stillwater High School on Saturday. Email Mike Shaughnessy at mike.shaughnessy@ecminc.com.