Local track & field teams will begin their indoor seasons at Monday’s high school invitational at Wartburg College. Boys and girls teams from Aplington-Parkersburg, Dike-New Hartford and North Butler will be in attendance.
Coming off a fifth place finish in Class 2A last season, AP girls coach Alex Pollock says the roster is in a good position to continue a tradition of excellence.
“Where we’re at right now is, and I don’t mean this as a put down to anybody, but we don’t have many elite track athletes right now,” Pollock says. “We just have a lot of really good ones. I think our depth right now is as good as it’s been in a while, and every class has some really good talent in it. So the split with our classes is really good with just the overall numbers, the overall talent. The girls that we have returning from those states competitors last year is really exciting. So I think we’re doing the right thing. I think we’ve got the right people to do it, and hopefully we can keep the injury bug away and make a run at things again this year.”
Of the four relays that qualified last season, three have three members back. The reigning state champion shuttle hurdle relay team has two returners.
Pollock says indoor meets offer a unique experience.
“It’s really different with a 200-meter track at Warburg. And every time you get done with a race, you’re like, man, that felt way faster than it was. Well, a 200-meter track, you get around fast, but for a 400, you’re like, oh my gosh, I’ve got to do another lap. That’s crazy. But we kind of use this first meet as just a get the jitters out type thing, see where we’re at. Some people think they’re farther than they are. Some people think they’re not as far as they are. So just kind of a gauge and figure out what we need to work on. Hurdling is not going to be anything crazy. We haven’t gotten outside yet. So that’s going to be a learning experience. Our throwers, we haven’t done a crazy amount with that, but after that first meet we’ve got, we finish the week of practice and then we’ve got spring break.”
Action will start at 1:00 p.m.
Alex Pollock interview:
