Comet jumpers soar indoors before start of outdoor T&F season

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

DECORAH — You may have heard of the term “jumping out the gym”.

If often refers to a basketball player with extraordinary “hops”.

It can also be applied to outstanding long jumpers competing in an enclosed facility.

Charles City sophomore Sophia Calpito didn’t literally jump out of the gym during her and the Comet team’s two indoor track and field meets this young season. But she jumped far enough to win the girls LJ at both meets a little more than a week before she’ll spread her wings without a roof over her head when the outdoor season commences.

At Tuesday’s final Northeast Iowa Conference Indoor Meet at Luther College — the NEIC disbands after the current school year — Calpito recorded a winning leap of 17 feet, 3 inches, which is 3 ½ inches shy of her personal-record she set her freshman season that concluded with a 10th place finish at state.

Calpito was tied with Crestwood junior Isabella Schlatter (16 feet, 11 ¾ inches) going into her fourth and final attempt, which yielded the winning distance.

Schlatter jumped 16 feet, 3 ¼ inches her final attempt and finished runner-up.

Later, Calpito placed second in the girls 55-meter hurdles as her time of 8.93 seconds was bested by Decorah junior Renae Wilson (8.80) — Wilson would later win the girls high jump (5 feet, 2 inches).

Charles City was also well represented in the boys long jump with sophomore Patrick Bruening placing runner-up with a flight of 18 feet, 11 inches — an inch better than senior teammate Jordin Ritter, who placed third.

Crestwood sophomore Nate Mahr won the boys LJ with a leap of 19 feet, ½ inch.

Patrick Bruening was part of two Comet relays that placed second at the meet — the boys 4-by-400 relay with senior Xander Graeser, senior Ezekiel Causey and junior Victor Ward (3:43.78); and the boys 4-by-200 relay with junior John Bruening, senior Terry Cooks and Ward (1:36.00).

John Bruening and Ward are two returners from the Comets’ school record-setting boys sprint medley relay from last season.

Graeser placed third in the boys 1,600-meter run with a time of 4:45.12 after leading most of the race before Decorah junior Garrett See (4:40.25) and Grant Zilka (4:40.84) pulled ahead of him before their near photo finish.

Charles City sophomore Brett Halbach placed third in the boys 55-meter hurdles with a time of 8.76 behind Decorah junior Ashton Saltou (8.63) and Waukon senior Ethan Gibbs (8.67).

The next meet for Charles City will be the Waverly-Shell Rock Invitational next Thursday (April 3).