(Sentinel photo by Ty Capron) Le Mars' Jared Clement leans into the finish line to win the Elite 100-meter dash Saturday at the Sioux City Relays. Clement won the race in 11.53 seconds, clipping Yankton's Tyrel Kool in second with a time of 11.61. [Click to enlarge]

Without the former Kingsley-Pierson star to carry the Plymouth County mantle at the 43rd running of the Sioux City Relays Saturday at Olsen Stadium, the Le Mars Community boys track team stepped up to fill the void.

The Bulldogs posted three wins on the day, finished second in two relays and had eight other top 10 finishes to boot.

Senior Jared Clement recorded Le Mars' first win of the day in the Class B 100-meter dash clocking in 11.31 seconds, then went on to win the Elite 100 in 11.53.

Clement also teamed with Mike Ritz, Ty Westphal and Caleb Van Otterloo to win the Class B 4x400 relay in 3:33.27. The same four runners combined for a second-place time of 3:44.25 in the Class B medley relay.

Tyler Schleis joined Ritz, Cody Engebretson and Westphal in placing second in the open 4x800 relay with a time of 8:19.19 - a race that included personal best legs from Schleis, Ritz and Westphal.

In the Class B 110 highs, Van Otterloo placed fourth in 16.56 and Bryan Borchers seventh in 17.51. Schleis added an eighth-place finish in the open 800-meter run (2:08.04), Mitch Zenk was 10th in the open 400 lows (60.74), Seth Shaver 13th in the Class B 100 (12.28) and Alex Rasmussen 15th in the open 3,200-meter run with a personal best time of 10:42.23.

Le Mars' 4x100 team of Tyler Bohlke, Shaver, Tim Newman and Andrew Meredith was sixth in Class B (46.05), while the 4x200 team of Bohlke, Nate Fischer, Newman and Meredith placed seventh (1:38.62) in Class B.

(Advertisement)

In the field events, Erik Tonsfeldt was seventh in the shot put with a toss of 46 feet, 7 1/2 inches. Allen Oetken was also ninth in the discus with a spin of 126-05.

The day didn't go quite as well for the Gehlen Catholic boys competing in Class C, with their top finish a sixth-place run for Ryan Langel in the 110 highs (16.91). Austin Langel also competed in the Class C 110 highs and finished seventh in a personal best time of 17.45.

The two hurdles later competed in the open 400 lows, where Ryan finished seventh (58.34) and Austin 21st (1:04.71). They both also ran with Tim Rosener and Wade Sitzmann on Gehlen's 17th-place 4x800 (9:05.08), while the team of Ryan Langel, Joe Sanem, Austin Langel and Rosener took eighth in the Class C 4x200 (1:40.93).

Other results for the Jays included Sanem 10th in the Class C 100 (12.11) and Wade Sitzmann 24th in the open 3,200 (11:18.82).

Kingsley-Pierson had just one competitor in the boys' field Saturday in Brennan Schaeuble. Schaeuble finished second in the Class C 110 highs (16.09) and advanced to the Elite 110 highs later in the day, placing seventh (16.66). He was also fourth in the Class C 100 (11.84).

Gehlen took the lead on the girls' side with a pair of wins on the day. Kayla Hatting was first in the Class C 100 hurdles (15.95) and later finished sixth in the Elite 100 hurdles (16.15), while the distance medley team of Hatting, Kelsey Sitzmann, Ellen Sitzmann and Ashley Sitzmann was first in Class C with a time of 4:34.07.

The Lady Jays' 4x200 team of Hatting, Lizzie Ryan, Kelsey Sitzmann and Ellen Sitzmann was sixth in Class C (1:55.9) and the team of Ryan, Ashley Langel, Ellen Sitzmann and Ashley Sitzmann was seventh in the open 4x800 (10:26.72).

Hatting added a 14th-place finish in the open 400 hurdles (1:18.07) ahead of teammate Danielle Gunter in 17th (1:22.17), with Gunter also placing 11th in the Class C 100 (14.58).

Ali Holtgrewe was 11th in the Class C 100 hurdles (17.84) to round out Gehlen's results on the track.

In the field events, Sarah Germann turned in a fourth-place spin of 107-3 in the discus and Kari Dirksen was 22nd throwing 94-8.

Le Mars Community had no wins Saturday in the girls' meet, but all four relays in which it competed ran season best times.

Unfortunately for Le Mars, the 4x200 team of Chasie Sloan, Jess Reuter, Rachel Nilles and Alyssa Louison was disqualified after clocking in a season-best 1:52.88. The 4x100 team of the same four runners did finish second in Class B with a season-best time of 52.66, while Le Mars' distance medley team of Sloan, Louison, Kendra Collins and Maddie Theisen placed sixth in Class B in 4:41.51.

Theisen, Collins, Cara Clement and Tara Lehner combined for a 12th-place run in the open 4x800 (10:49.9) as well.

Louison led Le Mars individually with a fourth-place finish in the Class B 100 with a personal best time of 13.51 and Nilles was ninth in 13.91. Emily TeBrink took seventh in the Class B 100 hurdles (17.46), just ahead of teammate Bailey Heidebrink in 10th (17.62).

Sadie Moritz registered a personal-best time of 12:30.28 in placing 15th in the open 3,000-meter run, while Briana Engebretson was 21st in the 1,500-meter run (5:39.02) and Jess Kelly 26th (13:50.95).

Ashley Knapp was Le Mars' only competitor in the field events, placing 22nd in the shot put with a toss of 30-11 1/2 and 29th in the discus with a spin of 82-4.

The Kingsley-Pierson girls entered a limited number of events in Class C Saturday, but made the most of those entries. The Lady Panthers' team of Jessica Washburn, Dani Bottorff, Brianna Hobbs and Megan Rohde placed third in the Class C 4x200 in 1:52.77 - the best time in the 4x200 in coach Rob Wiese's tenure.

The same four runners also combined to finish fourth in the Class C 4x400 in 4:19.38.

Bottorff had K-P's best finish of the day with a second-place time of 1:07.81 in the open 400 lows, while Kayla Kuchel added a fifth-place run in the Class C 100 hurdles (17.09).

Ashley Langel also competed for K-P in the 3,000 and finished 27th in 14:03.43.

The Lady Panthers had a pair of top 10 finishes in the field events as well, with Briana Schaeuble sixth in the high jump clearing 5-0 and Nikki Richards 10th in the discus with a spin of 104-3 3/4.