Team Effort Leads City High To First MVC Super Meet Title Since 2015
Ryan Murken
Your Prep Sports
IOWA CITY – Abigail Burns kept her sights set keenly on the leaders in front of her for the duration of the 5-kilometer race at the Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet.
It was what Burns could hear going on behind her that let the City High senior know the Little Hawks were going to be successful on Thursday.
Burns led a tight City High pack that put three runners in the top 10 as the Little Hawks cruised to their first MVC Super Meet title since 2015 at Kickers Soccer Complex in Iowa City.
“I felt really strong out there today, I felt mentally in it,” Burns said. “I was listening for my teammates behind me and I could hear they were close so I knew they were pushing themselves too.”
Burns finished third in a career-best time of 18:12 but had plenty of company at the front of the race as Class 4A fifth-ranked City High put five runners in the top 20 on its way to the team title.
Junior Grace Hamann finished fifth and sophomore Eliza Doster was seventh as City High finished with 49 points, 22 clear of sixth-ranked Dubuque Senior which finished second.
Cedar Falls was third with 87 points followed by Linn-Mar with 124 and Cedar Rapids Prairie with 161.
“We went into it and we really wanted to work as a pack,” Hamann said. “We’ve always been working on that but today we really wanted to focus on it.”
Cedar Falls sophomore Charlee Gall won the individual title in 17:54 and Emma Chesterman of Dubuque Senior was runner-up in 17:55.8.
City High had three of the next five finishers led by Burns and showed its depth with seven runners in the top 23.
“What we talk about as a team, our entire team not just varsity, is using the strength of our depth to continue to push up in a race,” City High coach Ryan Ahlers said. “Don’t ever settle in a race, don’t be fine with where you are at, keep pushing up using each other and our girls are doing that and they are doing that in their own style.”
City High was runner-up to Dubuque Senior at the MVC Super Meet last season.
Burns was fourth at the Super Meet a year ago, Hamann was 10th and Doster 11th.
All three moved up on Thursday to help the Little Hawks claim the conference crown for the first time in a decade.
“It was a pretty big goal,” Doster said. “We are very proud of this win because we knew Dubuque Senior is a great team and it’s going to be fun to see them at more meets going forward.”
Hamann finished fifth in 18:41.7 and Doster was seventh in 18:54.6 while sophomore Calissa Fruin placed 15th in a time of 19:33.5.
Madeline Fischer was 19th in 19:49.2, teammate Naomi Downing-Sherer was 20th in 19:54.5 and Lucy Sherburne was 23rd in 19:57.2.
“That’s something we’ve been working on this whole season and we repeat to ourselves before we run to run as a pack,” Burns said. “We know that we can do that because we do it in workouts.”
West High finished sixth with 193 points and Liberty High was 10th with 229 points.
Freshman Adrienne Hodge led West High placing 14th in 19:33.2 while classmate Ava Twait was 30th in 20:18.3.
Freshman Ellie DeWaard was 38th for the Trojans in 20:30.8.
Liberty High junior Chelsea VeDepo finished 16th in 19:34.8 and Aleah Williams was 37th in 20:29.3 for the Lightning.
Mississippi Valley Conference Super Meet
At Kickers Soccer Complex
Team scores – 1. City High 49; 2. Dubuque Senior 71; 3. Cedar Falls 87; 4. Linn-Mar 124; 5. Cedar Rapids Prairie 161; 6. West High 193; 7. Cedar Rapids Xavier 214; 8. Dubuque Hempstead 216; 9. Dubuque Wahlert 228; 10. Liberty High 229; 11. Western Dubuque 271; 12. Waterloo West 378; 13. Cedar Rapids Washington 386; 14. Cedar Rapids Jefferson 433; 15. Cedar Rapids Kennedy 436
Individual leaders – 1. Charlee Gall (CF) 17:54; 2. Emma Chesterman (DS) 17:55.8; 3. Abigail Burns 18:12; 4. Nakia Ollivierre (WW) 18:26; 5. Grace Hamann (ICH) 18:41.7; 6. Hailey Kozloski (L-M) 18:43.7; 7. Eliza Doster (ICH) 18:54.6; 8. Lucy Murphy (DW) 19:02.7; 9. Reese Wiley (CRP) 19:15.2; 10. Mia Deegan (CRX) 19:19.7; 11. Kate Tomlyanovich (CF) 19:27.1; 12. Nevaeh Kessler (DS) 19:29.4; 13. Briel Bechen (DS) 19:32.5; 14. Adrienne Hodge (ICW) 19:33.2; 15. Calissa Fruin (ICH) 19:33.5
City High (49) – 3. Abigail Burns 18:12; 5. Grace Hamann 18:41.7; 7. Eliza Doster 18:54.6; 15. Calissa Fruin 19:33.5; 19. Madeline Fischer 19:49.2; 20. Naomi Downing-Sherer 19:54.5; 23. Lucy Sherburne 19:57.2
West High (193) – 14. Adrienne Hodge 19:33.2; 30. Ava Twait 20:18.3; 38. Ellie DeWaard 20:30.8; 59. Carly Moreau 21:20.9; 61. Susanna Olson 21:32.6; 79. Mia Ahn 22:00.4; 87. Ella Stone 22:27.9
Liberty High (229) – 16. Chelsea VeDepo 19:34.8; 37. Aleah Williams 20:29.3; 57. Ayla Trolliet 21:14.6; 60. Ella Lambi 21:22.4; 72. Nora Brown 21:51; 73. Claire Cannon 21:51.2; 83. Kaitlyn Raue 22:07.1
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