With nine returning athletes, the West Liberty High School Track and Field Team of 11th year head coach Gus Garcia hopes to return several athletes to the Iowa State Track & Field meet later this spring.
With a total of 20 athletes on the track this season, Garcia says he has a number of talented athletes to build this year’s Comet team including senior Jahsiah Galvan, who had a ninth place finish last year in the 100 meter dash, missing the finals by .03 seconds, recording a final time of 11.42.
Galvan was also part of a hurdle shuttle team that returns senior Caleb Wulf and junior Drake Collins, but will have to replace their fastest hurdler, Sam Gingerich, who graduated. The team finished third in the state last year with a 1:01.33 time. Garcia said his goal is to find a solid replacement.
The coach said the team should be real strong in hurdle events as well as sprints and has a strong group of incoming freshmen who “still need to be tested on the track,” noting the weather hasn’t been real cooperative this spring season in helping prepare athletes, already missing a meet on Saturday at Iowa City Regina where the team was to compete with seven other schools. The Comets hoped to get their season underway on Tuesday outdoors at Wapello High School, beginning at 4 p.m., in a seven-team meet before going to Tipton’s City Park for a 4:30 p.m. meet on Thursday, April 7, when the Comets face host Tipton along with Bellevue, Central DeWitt, Louisa-Muscatine, Monticello, Mount Vernon, North Cedar and Wilton.
The team follows with multi-team meets in Wapello, Monticello, Mid-Prairie, West Branch and Anamosa before finishing with a home meet in West Branch with Belle Plaine, North Cedar, Prince of Peace Catholic, Winfield-Mount and Union. The Comets cannot hold a meet on their regular track because the all-weather surface is damaged, so home meets have been moved to West Branch.
Garcia said not being able to host a track meet in West Liberty isn’t a good thing, but said “it’s only one track meet this year, so it isn’t a huge deal.”
Other returning athletes for the Comets include senior Trenden Vileta as well as sophomores Joe Akers, Joaquin Elizondo, Arza Martin-Thomas, Jayce McHugh, Quintyn Rocha. Newcomers this year include junior Josh Zeman as well as freshmen Seth Axom, Cougar Bendict, Jonathan Cardona, Cael Daufeldt, Cole Daufeldt, Ryker Dengler, Bryson Garcia, Cameron Iske, Caden Laughlin and Rodrigo Fierro-Perez.
Garcia said he’s happy to have Brad Daufeldt and Jim Koala as well as Sam Gingerich helping as assistant coaches this season.