Mounds Park Academy high jumper ties record

Mounds Park Academy's Yahya Madar tied a 38-year-old Class 1A state record Saturday, clearing 6 feet, 10 inches in the high jump.

The 6-5 senior converted the record-tying jump on his second attempt at that height in the state track and field meet at Hamline University. He then missed on a 6-11 jump.

"After I cleared [6-10], I just started screaming for joy," Madar said.

Madar, who also plays basketball, began competing in track and field as a sophomore and made state that year with a 6-2 jump. He took fourth in state last year with a 6-5 jump and said he came into this season with the mentality that he could win the meet.

"I came in thinking, 'I know I can physically jump 6-8 and higher,' " said Madar, who cleared 6-8 in his section meet.

Madar cleared 6-9 on his third and final attempt to set a personal record. He said his coach, Nate Bander, pulled him aside before that final 6-9 attempt and told him, "This is what you're made for."

Madar, who was dealing with a sore ankle, said he wanted to be done after that but called clearing 6-10 amazing.

Jordan won the boys' team title with 97 points, and Providence Academy, led by Max Peckenschneid's wins in the 100 and 200, was second with 58. The Hubmen took first in both the 4x100 and 4x200 relays.

Blake won the girls' team championship. The Bears had 57 points; Cotter was second with 44. Freshman Anisa Thompson of Blake won the 200 and teammate Robbie Grace, a senior, the 400.

Sophomore Grace Ping of Winona Cotter said she wasn't expecting to beat her younger sister, eighth-grader Lauren, in the 1,600-meter finals.

But Grace, the defending 1,600 champion, passed Lauren just before the third of four laps and held on for the win in 4:59.07.

"My plan was to just kind of stick with her and let her pull me along as much as I could," Grace said.

Lauren Ping won her second straight 3,200 title on Friday and had the faster 1,600 qualifying time but finished in 5:00.57.

"Today I just felt really good," Grace Ping said.

Members of the GMOLKS girls' 4x200 relay said they kept their expectations modest heading into the state meet, after winning the event last year.

The relay, representing a co-op of Grand Meadow, LeRoy-Ostrander, Southland and Kingsland high schools in southeastern Minnesota, exceeded those expectations with a winning time of 1:44.47.

Senior Lauren Buchholtz grabbed the lead in the third leg of the race, and junior Riley Queensland held on for the victory. It came after early legs by eighth-grader Anika Reiland and sophomore Hailey Hindt.

"I feel like it's more exciting [than last year], because we can say we defended our title," Reiland said.

Buchholtz, Queensland and Reiland were part of the winning relay last year.

"I was just really excited, because I know how well we can do," Hindt said. "We came out here and executed, and it was really fun."