Hansen’s hurdles ‘PR’ caps Cyclone weekend at Drake

 DES MOINES (April 28) -- Harlan Community’s Chloe Hansen appeared well on her way to qualifying for the Drake Relays in her signature event last April when a fall in the 400-meter hurdles at Iowa Western Community College cost her that opportunity.
 One year later, Hansen wasn’t about to let an ongoing battle with painful shin splints prevent her from participating in America’s Athletic Classic.
 Competing for the first time in eight days, Hansen anchored the Cyclone girls’ 4x100 relay on Friday night, then ran a personal-best time of 1:07.14 to finish 13th out of 16 qualifiers in the 400 hurdles on Saturday.
 Among the six boys and girls events HCHS qualified for Drake, Hansen’s ‘PR’ in the 400 hurdles was the only season-best performance.
 The Cyclone girls’ 4x100 relay - featuring seniors Sidney Craig and Alyssa Sotelo, freshman Ashley Hall and Hansen - finished 72nd out of 80 qualifiers with a time of 53.07.
 The Cyclone boys’ 4x100 relay finished 51st as senior Andy Burchett, junior Jon Owens and seniors Deren Schmitz and Nick Foss joined forces to clock a time of 45.13.
 The HCHS boys qualified for Drake in three individual events as well. Foss, who won last year’s long jump championship in a steady, cold rain, placed 11th in the same event Thursday with a mark of 21 feet, 2.5 inches on his first attempt - just four inches shy of his winning jump last year. Foss was just an inch away from making this year’s finals and earning three extra jumps.
 Foss also competed in the 100-meter dash prelims Friday morning and finished 27th out of 32 qualifiers with a time of 11.56 seconds.
 HCHS junior Caleb Bieker, meanwhile, finished 21st out of 24 competitors in Thursday’s discus with a throw of 142 feet.