Liberty High Senior Woody Caps Career With Third-place Finish in High Jump
Ryan Murken
Your Prep Sports
DES MOINES – Isabelle Woody didn’t have a specific goal she was focused on in her final appearance at the state track and field meet.
Instead, Woody simply wanted a strong finish to her career.
The Liberty High senior got just that on Thursday.
Woody finished in a tie for third in the Class 4A high jump at Drake Stadium in Des Moines by clearing 5-4.
“Today I just wanted to end on a good note,” Woody said. “I couldn’t ask for more today. The environment was great. It was really fun and the weather was great. It was a good way to end.”
Offseason surgery kept Woody from competing in running events this season limiting the senior to the high jump.
Rather than focus on the events she couldn’t do Woody focused on elevating her high jump marks.
She rode that mentality to a third-place finish Thursday as one of four athletes to clear 5-4.
“I found a new way to believe in myself and I just kind of ran with that,” Woody said. “I really believed in myself.”
Josie Moreland of Waukee won the title by clearing 5-6 ½ while Alex Gaskell of West Des Moines Dowling, Woody and Ankeny’s Reagan Hanfelt all cleared 5-4.
Gaskell finished runner-up while Woody and Hanfelt tied for third.
“It’s really fun competing against great girls and the energy that they bring, we all want everybody to do well and I think that’s what is special about field events like this,” Woody said. “The energy today was great.”
Liberty High earned two medals in field events on Thursday as senior Darya Acas finished sixth in the 4A discus with a mark of 123-3.
The Lightning closed the opening day in 11th place in the 4A team standings with 8.5 points.
City High freshman Ani Wedemeyer had an impressive state meet debut on Thursday placing third in the 400 in a time of 57.84.
Cedar Rapids Prairie senior Gabby Cortez won the 400 in 55.27 while Claire Farrell of Norwalk was runner-up in 56.06.
Wedemeyer, who entered with the fourth fastest time in 4A this season was third just ahead of Cedar Rapids Kennedy sisters Sidney and Addison Swartzendruber who finished fourth and fifth respectively.
“I wanted to get out fast because I’ve had trouble with that and I might of got out too fast and hit a wall,” Wedemeyer said. “It felt good, I definitely died a little on the last 100. But I thought it went well.”
Class 4A State Track and Field Meet
At Drake Stadium
Team scores (Top 10; area teams) – 1. West Des Moines Valley 22; 2. Waukee 20; 3. Des Moines Roosevelt 15; 3. Dubuque Hempstead 15; 5. Cedar Rapids Prairie 14; 6. Pleasant Valley 13; 7. West Des Moines Dowling 11; 8. Ankeny 10.5; 9. Norwalk 10; 10. Cedar Rapids Kennedy 9; 11. Liberty High 8.5 13. City High 6
State champion; area qualifiers
High jump – 1. Josie Moreland (Waukee) 5-6 ½; 3. Isabelle Woody (Liberty High) 5-4; 15. Ava Bruxvoort (West High) 4-10; 15. Waad Ibrahim (West High) 4-10
Discus – 1. Alex Buscher (Waukee) 132-5; 6. Darya Acas (Liberty High) 123-3
400 – 1. Gabby Cortez (Cedar Rapids Prairie) 55.27; 3. Ani Wedemeyer (City High) 57.84; 10. Iris Wedemeyer (City High) 59.65; 19. Erinn Varga (West High) 1:01.85; 21. Annie Schwartz (West High) 1:02.05; 22. Hannah Ramsey (Liberty High) 1:02.36;
3,000 – 1. Addison Dorenkamp (West Des Moines Valley) 9:55.89; 10. Ashlyn Keeney (Liberty High) 10:35.56; 12. Rowan Boulter (City High) 10:49.2; 14. Cori Mac (Liberty High) 10:59.25
4×800 – 1. Dubuque Hempstead 9:21.09; 12. Liberty High (Hailey Noel, Cori Mac, Clara Welch, Ashlyn Keeney) 9:46.25; 14. City High (Iris Wedemeyer, Tatum Frazier, Lucy Corbin, Rowan Boulter) 9:53.39
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