DES MOINES 

What a difference a year made for Hillcrest. Last year the Ravens qualified for one event at state, this time around they took part in seven events. 

Traveling to the Blue Oval in Des Moines last week, Hillcrest was represented at this year’s State High School Track and Field Champions by three talented Ravens: Marie Yoder and siblings Owen and Rya Scott. 

For Owen it was his second time competing at state and for his twin sister Rya it was her first. Owen qualified for two events, the long jump and the high jump, and Rya qualified for an impressive four events, the 100m, 200m, 400m, and the long jump.  

“It’s great having other people on my team here with me and I’m glad my sister qualified in all four of her events. I’m proud of her for that,” Owen said about being able to compete at state along with teammates Rya and Yoder.

 “He’s my twin brother, and I look up to him,” Rya said about Owen. “He’s a great competitor and sometimes we do workouts together, and he helps me push myself to be better and Marie, she’s just a really good, supportive teammate.”

For Owen his first event at state was a familiar one, the long jump. Last year as a freshman Owen placed 11th and now as a sophomore, he placed 3rd with a jump of 21-07.75, a new PR. He reached this distance from his first leap of the day.

“I think I always try to have my first one to be the best, because that’s when I have the most energy,” Owen said about his first jump being his best attempt. “I just go all out during that one.”

In the high jump Owen cleared the bar at 5-11.00 to place 14th. Owen’s sophomore season comes to a close but after a second consecutive trip to state he is more motivated than ever before. 

“Mostly I think of next year,” Scott said about what his mindset was after placing third in the long jump. “I want that title win.”

"Owen sees the potential for future improvements and seems motivated to work towards those improvements," Hillcrest coach Marty Gingerich said. 

For Rya all four of her events fell on the first day of competition, making for quite a busy evening on a very hot day.

“I just prayed a lot,” Rya said about how she prepared for competing in four events in one day. “I made sure I was warmed up well, stretched well, was hydrated because it’s hot and just had a positive mindset of “I can do this”. “

With the event’s times so close to each other Rya was able to perform her first attempt in the long jump before going to race in the 200m prelims. While she set a new PR with a time of 26.80 to place 19th the race did take a toll on her legs.  

“I had one jump before doing the 200, and then after the 200, my legs were dead,” Rya said. “So, I didn’t perform well in my long jump. It was a little rough.”

"The long jump and 200 meter dash were concurrent which made the long jump especially challenging," coach Gingerich said. "Her performance there was respectable considering the situation."

It was a 24th place finish for Rya in the long jump with a leap of 14-00.25. Later in the day she placed 15th in the 400m in 1:02.34. Her best finish came in the 100m prelims, placing 6th in 12.69, a new PR, to advance to the finals on day three. 

On the third day Rya, while battling an injury, competed in her final state event, placing 6th in the 100m finals in 13.13. 

"On Saturday Rya had a new challenge since she had rolled her ankle Friday evening," coach Gingerich said. "She handled the situation well by placing sixth which was the same as her seed. " 

“I got injured last night, so I was kind of anxious about today, but it went better than I thought it would go,” Rya said about her performance in the 100m finals. 

For Yoder this was also her first time competing at state. The talented freshman competed in the 3000m in a field of 24. Yoder, who also qualified for state in cross-country, completed this long-distance race under the hot sun in 11:30.03 to place 16th. 

"Her time at state was not her best this season but it was also the first time this season she had raced in such hot conditions," coacj Gingerich said about Yoder. "This year Marie gained a lot of useful experience that will help her in future seasons."

Class 1A Results 

3000m: 1, Lili Denton, St. Albert, 10:18.60; 16, Marie Yoder, Hillcrest, 11:30.03

100m finals: 1, Jaidyn Sellers, Panorama, 12.41; 6, Rya Scott, Hillcrest, 13.13

200m prelims: 1, Jaidyn Sellers, Panorama, 24.68; 19, Rya Scott, Hillcrest, 26.80

400m: 1, Jaidyn Sellers, Panorama, 55.44; 15, Rya Scott, Hillcrest, 1:02.34

Girls long jump: 1, Ella Whitney, Wayne Corydon, 16-07.25; 24, Rya Scott, Hillcrest, 14-00.25

Boys long jump: 1, Austin Jordan, Grand View Christ, 22-00.25; 3, Owen Scott, Hillcrest, 21-07.75

High jump: 1, Lance Bunde, ACGC, 6-06.00; 14, Owen Scott, Hillcrest, 5-11.00