Linn-Mar Girls Track

Jenks, Lions to get state track titles

The Linn-Mar girls track team will be awarded two more championships from the 2014 state meet, two months after it was held in May.

The Quad-City Times reported Friday that the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union has determined that Pleasant Valley star Kaley Ciluffo was ineligible to compete in the state meet, stripping Pleasant Valley of its team championship and changing the official results of several events.

The IGHSAU has determined that Ciluffo competed in four sanctioned collegiate meets between December of 2013 and June of 2014, which is a violation of IGHSAU rules.

Ciluffo won the Class 4A 800 meter run and helped Pleasant Valley capture the 4x400 relay at the state meet.

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Evans, Jenks place 3rd in Seattle

SEATTLE - Josh Evans and Stephanie Jenks of Linn-Mar finished third in their distance races at the 2014 Brooks PR Invitational Saturday in Seattle.

Evans placed third in the mile in 4:07.20. Matthew Maton of Summit, Ore., won the race in 4:06.32.

Evans broke the Iowa state record in the mile earlier this month in 4:04.38 at the adidas Dream Mile in New York City.

Jenks placed third in the two-mile run in Seattle in 10 minutes, 6.54 seconds. Bethan Knights of Northwood, Calif., won the race in 9:53.54.

Evans will be a freshman at Iowa State this year. Jenks is heading into her junior year at Linn-Mar.

Metro Spotlight honors track athletes

Athletes from the Metro area enjoyed a fabulous weekend at the state track meets in Des Moines with 10 gold medals, 11 silver medals, seven bronze medals and two handsome trophies.

As a result, the Metro Sports Report is honoring all of these track stars as the Metro Spotlight Athletes of the Week.

Josh Evans of Linn-Mar collected four gold medals in the 800, 1600, 3200 and distance medley with Austin Fielder, Tim Wolfe and Duggan Trenary.

Stephanie Jenks of Linn-Mar claimed two gold medals in the 1500 and 3000. Curtis McCrary of Linn-Mar won the long jump, giving the Lions seven titles overall.

The Cedar Rapids Jefferson girls captured the 4x200 relay and sprint medley relay. And the Cedar Rapids Prairie boys won the 4x800 relay as part of the Metro's golden haul.

In addition to all that gold, Evans ran the fastest 1600 in state history (4:06.32) and set a Class 4A state meet record in the 3200 (9:00.97). The Lions also set a 4A state meet record in the distance medley in 3:24.39 with Evans on the anchor.

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J-Hawks, Jenks win more gold medals

DES MOINES - Jasmine Blue runs fast for a reason.

"I hate getting second," she said with a sweet, determined smile. "I love first."

Blue had that loving feeling Saturday afternoon with a gutsy anchor to help Jefferson win the sprint medley at the Class 4A state track meet in Des Moines.

Ashley Norem of Urbandale made a spirited bid to pull ahead of Blue on the 400 leg of the medley, but Blue refused to concede.

"I felt her the whole time, but I knew I had to do it," said Blue. "I already knew how it was going to feel if I was going to get second."

And as she said before, "I hate second."

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