Saturday state track and field: Spartan boys win sprint medley title

Grundy Center’s Grant Newton, Judd Jirovsky, Brody Zinkula and Brayden Davie wave their State Champion flags after winning the sprint medley relay on Saturday morning.

The Grundy Center boys sprint medley relay woke up on the winning side of the bed on Saturday morning.

“We got here around 8:30 this morning, and we were ready to dominate,” Brody Zinkula said.

The Spartans feasted on the 2A field at the state track and field meet in Des Moines, running 1:31.84 for the state championship.

Grant Newton, Zinkula, Judd Jirovsky and Brayden Davie passed around the baton for the gold medal. It’s only the second outdoor boys relay title in school history — Lee Luhrs, Tim Williamson, Mark Carter and Brian Borchardt won the Class B Two Mile Relay title in 1970.

The race came down to a showdown between Davie and Denver’s Ethan Reiter. With 100 meters to go, Reiter made his move and looked like he’d overtake Davie in the latest battle between the two NICL foes.

“I’ve gotta beat him, I’ve gotta finish,” Davie said of his mindset. “I knew he was gonna be chasing me the whole time but I knew I’d have that kick at the end.”

Reiter was ahead with roughly 50 meters to go, trying to overtake Davie on the outside, but Davie had a little more left in the tank and leaned in to squeeze past Reiter and the Cyclones by eight hundredths of a second.

“I leaned with my head at district, and that’s how I lost my open 400 at district,” Davie said. “So, I was just thinking to lean with my chest. … We’re on top now.”

Brayden Davie celebrates after the finish of Grundy Center’s state title win in the 2A sprint medley.

The Spartans lived up to their top seed coming into the race, which was a big boost after coming up short with a third-place finish in the 4×200 on Friday, another event where Grundy Center had the top district time and ended up trailing Spirit Lake and runners-up Denver.

“Losing to Denver in that 4×2 sucked, so getting them in this race feels amazing,” Newton said. “Couldn’t ask for three better guys and better coaches to help us win this.”

Grundy Center has had no shortage of close calls with this kind of championship euphoria, with many runner-up and third-place finishes in recent years under the tutelage of head coach Chris Conger and his staff.

The strategy this year, which has included avoiding long nights in hotel rooms, is paying off.

“[Conger’s] been wanting one of these for a long time,” Zinkula said. “I know he’s waiting for us over there just shaking in anticipation for us, I know he’s happy.”

Jirovsky added: “Conger always says that he wants happy, healthy athletes in May, and I think we showed that here today. … They put together a great plan for us every day and we just try to execute that mission because we know they’re gonna put us in the best spot when we come down here.”

The quartet made sure to turn to salute Spartan Nation in the southwest corner of the stadium, where fans have been loud and proud all week long.

“There’s a reason why we have this across our chest,” Davie said. “Their support is so needed and they’re everywhere we go for all of our sports, and it means a lot.”