Mount Pleasant's Brumbaugh proves she is simply the best thrower
DES MOINES — Four years ago, Jadan Brumbaugh joined the Mount Pleasant High School track and field team, a young, impressionable girl with a wealth of talent and a willingness to listen, learn and apply herself.
On Saturday, Brumbaugh left her final competition as a Panther as the best thrower in program history.
Period.
Brumbaugh, who won the Class 3A discus state championship on Thursday, added her second Class 3A shot put state title on Friday, and she did it in record-setting style. Her winning throw of 47 feet, 5 1/2 inches shattered the Class 3A state meet record by over two feet.
Her school-record throw of 49-9 earlier this season was the second-best in state history.
And her winning discus throw of 151-10 on Thursday put her 15th on the all-time state list.
Brumbaugh is simply the best.
“It’s really cool. I’m really proud of myself. I’m beyond proud," Brumbaugh said. “It feels amazing. I’m very pleased with my results. It doesn’t matter the distance. It’s about who you have helped over the journey.”
“She’s got a pretty good kinesthetic awareness and understands where she needs to be to throw far," said Mount Pleasant throws coach Shawn Striegel, who already has secured his place as one of the top throws coaches in the state. “She’s been special for a long time. We knew she had some extra explosion not everyone has, even as a seventh and eighth-grader and as a freshman threw pretty well. It doesn’t surprise us, but the distances she’s been able to achieve in the state of Iowa over the period of time is very impressive and something we may not see again.”
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Brumbaugh and Striegel developed a special bond, one which allowed Brumbaugh to flourish the last two years.
“Everyone told me when I was a freshman, ‘You’re going to do great things.’ I was like, ‘Are you sure about that?’ It’s really cool. I’m very grateful," Brumbauigh said. “He is my best friend. He is like a dad to me. He knows what to say when I’m upset or don’t know what to do or want to freak out because I’m not throwing as far. It’s one of those things where he knows what to say at the right moment.”
“It’s an absolute pleasure. She’s a great kid who works hard and trusts in all the processes that it takes to be a great thrower," Striegel said. “They’re all unique and they’re all wonderful people that I’ve had an opportunity to coach. Obviously she can do things that are just special. She’s a special human and a special athlete. I think Iowa State is going to end up with a pretty good thrower on their hands.”
Brumbaugh put together another impressive series to secure her legacy as the greatest thrower in school history. All six of her throws were good enough to win the state title.
“There’s a lot of young ladies that know who she is, know how special that is and want to be like her," Striegel said.
“I’m proud of the legacy we have at Mount Pleasant. I’m proud to be a part of it. All the coaches and everyone I’ve met," Brumbaugh said.
More: 5 things to watch for from Burlington-area athletes at the state track meet on Saturday
Falcons flying around Drake Stadium
While the ever-present swallows were swooping around Drake Stadium Friday, the Falcons were busy flying around the track.
West Burlington-Notre Dame's 4x200 boys team of Jack Riley, Grant Boal, Owen Gulick and Jace Figuereo flew around the track in 1 minutes, 31.05 seconds to finish sixth in Class 3A.
Considering they came in with the 17th-best time, the Falcons were ecstatic with their performance.
“We surprised ourselves. We came in 17th. We didn’t expect much. We just came out and ran hard and did our best," Riley said.
“We did a lot better than we thought," Figuereo said. "We were going to come out here and compete and try hard, going against tough competition in 3A. Just running relaxed and doing good. We did our thing and came out better than we thought.”
“We felt a little underrated coming in. We wanted to prove ourselves," Boal said. “Jack and I had kind of a rough handoff. My hand wasn’t far enough back and not high enough. It was a little rough there, but we ended up getting it through in the exchange zone.”
“We started off the year with that same order. We had Jack anchor the last two meets. I think changing it back helped," Gulick said.
WB-ND came back later to run a season-best 43.44 with the same quartet in the preliminaries of the 4x100 relay. That was the fifth-fastest qualifying time for the final, which is scheduled for 3:40 p.m. Saturday.
The dreaded nine
West Burlington-Notre Dame's girls teams were not as fortunate. The 4x200 and 4x100 relay teams each finished ninth, one spot out of placing in the 4x200 and one spot of advancing in the 4x100.
The 4x200 team of Katy Stephens, Jenna Bentz, Amiya Davis and Ava Parkins ran a season-best 1:45.87, but missed medaling by .14.
The 4x100 team if McKenna Marlow, Parkins, Davis and Stephens also ran a season best, finishing in 50.06. They missed advancing by .22.
Bulldogs making their mark
The Mediapolis boys put on quite a show on Friday.
The distance medley relay team of Cole Lipper, Kadin Salek, Anthony Isley and Logan Ross finished 10th overall in 3:40.37.
“I tried getting out quick and I guess it worked. I gave him a little bit of a lead," Isley said. “I definitely wanted to get out in front so I could get my 800 runner the lead. I gave it a lot in the first 200. That last 100 — I didn’t know if I could make it all the way, but I did.”
Lipper was doing double duty, finishing eighth in the Class 2A discus competition with a toss of 142-6.
And the 4x400 team of Salek, Levi Arnold, Rosas and Isley blazed the blue oval in 3:26.32, the top qualifying time for Saturday's 4:20 p.m. final.
Not to be outdone, the Mediapolis girls 4x100 team or Kira Messer, Kendal Nollen, Kennedy Welliver and Haley Steffener finished 14th overall in a season-best 51.74.
Other top performances
Louisa-Muscatine junior Spencer Kessel finished third in the Class 2A discus with a best of 160-0.
Van Buren County's Anthony Duncan finished fifth in the 2A boys 400 hurdles in 55.62.
Mount Pleasant junior Will Davidson finished ninth in the 3A boys 110 hurdles in 15.44.
Matt Levins is a sports reporter for the USA TODAY Network in Burlington, Iowa, who has covered local sports for 31 years. Reach him at mlevins@thehawkeye.com.
This article originally appeared on The Hawk Eye: Jadan Brumbaugh sets new Class 3A Iowa state shot put record
