West Bend-Mallard junior Tyra Schupbach and Bishop Garrigan freshman Julia Swift capped off their 2024 cross country seasons with top 20 finishes in the girls class 1A state meet at Kennedy Park in Fort Dodge Saturday morning, as Schupbach placed 11th in 19:26, and Swift finished 16th in 19:40.
Schupbach’s 11th place state finish earned her a second career cross country state medal after placing 15th last season. Schubach also narrowly missed a state medal as a freshman when she finished 18th. The Wolverine junior worked her way through early traffic after the opening straightaway of the race, moving up to 12th place by the mile mark, clocking in with a split of 5:55 for the first mile, then progressing into the top 10 just past two miles, with a split of 12:15 at the second mile marker putting her in 8th, before holding on to 11th by the finish.
Swift, the Golden Bear freshman, improved upon her own school record, set last week in 19:42 at the Central Springs district meet. Swift patiently worked her way up through the field, going from 26th place at the mile to 19th place shortly after the two mile mark, battling with a pack competing for the final couple all-state spots. Swift would pick off a couple more runners in the final mile, but narrowly missed 15th place, the final all-state position, as North Iowa’s Lauren Hillesland clocked in .3 seconds ahead of Swift.
In spite of missing all-state honors by one place, Swift walks away from the meet as the second fastest freshman in class 1A, bested only by Maquoketa Valley’s Audra Burbridge, who placed 12th in 19:27.
The girls class 1A race was won by St. Albert’s Lili Denton in 17:59, 29 seconds ahead of runner up Nora Peterson of Alta-Aurelia. Earlham claimed the team title with 91 points, followed by Madrid with 109, and Treynor with 172.
State Cross Country Interviews:
Julia Swift
Tyra Schupbach
Bishop Garrigan Head Coach Brandon Rowley
