NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO | Seniors Braxten Rohrs and Cade Rosenberger run side by side in the 1600 meter dash.

WAVERLY — It was another important week for the South Tama boys track and field team, as they loaded the bus on the way to Waverly to compete in the Wartburg Invitational last Tuesday. After a successful performance the previous week at the Iowa Indoor Track Championships, the Trojans looked to continue the positive momentum into this meet. This meet will also serve as a good opportunity to prepare for the WaMaC conference meet on Tuesday.

As the meet got underway the Trojan sprinters started off hot. Senior Chase Gustafson competed in the 55 meter dash, where he finished ninth overall with a time of 6.95 seconds, which put him one spot off of making the finals. Sophomore Nick Upah also competed in this event finishing with a time of 7.22, placing him 23rd.

In the 55 meter hurdles, senior Jeramy Dolash made his debut in this event placing 18th with a time of 9.84. Juniors Cody Blocker and Tyrus Clegg both had successful 200 meter dash performances. Blocker placed 8th with a time of 24.57 which also scored points for South Tama as a team while Clegg placed 14th with a time of 25.22. Finally, senior Travis Cecak ran the 400 meters in a time of 58.20 to place 10th.

South Tama also got valuable team points from the distance squad, led by senior James Brant. Brant ran the 800 meter race in a time of 2:03.02, which placed him second overall and scored the Trojans eight points. Seniors Braxten Rohrs and Cade Rosenberger also stacked up some points with their finishes in the 1600 meter race.

Rohrs finished in sixth place with a time of 4:54.03 followed closely by Rosenberger who finished in seventh with a time of 4:55.08. Sophomore Barrett Jesina raced in the 3200 meters placing ninth with a season best time of 10:43.58, followed by senior Holden Schirmer, who placed 11th also accomplishing a season best time of 10:49.07.

NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTO | Sophomore Barrett Jesina competes in the 3,200 meter run at the Wartburg Invitational last Tuesday. Jesina would go on to finish ninth overall.

South Tama was also able to find success in their relays, as the 4×200 squad of Clegg, Upah, Etzen, and Dolash finished in 8th place with a combined time of 1:42.53. The Trojans were also able to get big points out of their 4×800 relay team as Rosenberger, Rohrs, Houghton, and Brant combined for a time of 8:42.54 to place third overall, scoring the team six points.

The field events also proved to be positive for the Trojans as Dolash and Clegg finished 10th and 11th in the long jump, both achieving jumps a little over 18 feet. Sophomore Tim Chandonia also was able to score team points as he placed eighth overall in the shot put with a throw of 41 feet.

South Tama as a team finished 10th overall out of 20 teams with a total of 22 points. The Trojan boys competed again on Tuesday at Grinnell College for the WaMaC indoor conference meet.