DES MOINES — Anna and Marie Hostetler were right where they were supposed to be.
The Mid-Prairie sisters were No. 1 and No. 2 in the Class 2A girls’ 3,000-meter race at the state track meet on Thursday at Drake Stadium. The elder, Anna, led the way with three laps left.
But then Kate Crawford of Guthrie Center ACGC started her kick.
“I could hear her behind me (before her kick), she was breathing really hard — it sounded like she was dead,” Marie said. “I figured she would drop off at some point, but when she flew past us, I knew we couldn’t go with her with a pass like that. We just tried to stay as close as we could to her.”
Crawford built a sizeable lead, and with 400 meters left, Anna faded. Marie was the only sister that had a chance, but even she didn’t think she had a legitimate shot at winning.
“That race was not what I was planning on doing at all,” Marie said. “I was planning on going out and not necessarily going all out because I have three other races this weekend. We thought Anna would maybe try to go for the record, which would be her life-time (personal record) and I would just follow and get second. That girl came out of nowhere and she ran really good and really tough.
“For the last 200, I had just kind of given it up, but my dad told me on the back stretch, ‘You can do it. You can get her.’ I just tried to put my head down and go. The last 50 meters were crazy, I couldn’t feel my legs. I’ve never kicked like that before.”
Marie won the state title with a time of 10:25.78.
Crawford finished just behind her with a time of 10:26.89 and Anna finished third in 10:43.13.
This was the first time Marie, a sophomore, beat her sister, a senior, in a big race on the track. The two shared numerous hugs after the race. After all, it’s one of the last times the sisters will compete together in high school.
“I’m really proud of her,” Anna said, her voice cracking and shaking due to the emotions of the race. “She stepped it up when she needed to. I’m really proud of her for that.
“I just want to enjoy the last races that we have together.”
Their first and third finishes propelled Mid-Prairie to a day-one girls’ 2A lead with 16 points. Monticello is in second with 10 points, bolstered by its 3,200-meter relay team.
In the 3,200-meter relay, Monticello — the two-time defending champion — found itself in third place after the first three legs.
Anchor Paige Holub got the baton from Jordyn Patterson, trailing the leader by 6.5 seconds.
Holub didn’t see it as a negative.
“It’s definitely good to have someone to chase, that definitely helped,” Holub said. “I kept telling myself, ‘You can do it, you can do it.’”
And she did.
Her anchor leg was 2:15.1, winning a third-straight 3,200-meter relay in the 2A state track and field meet.
“It’s awesome, it’s great to have such a good distance program,” Holub said. “It’s awesome to prove it year, after year, after year.”
Monticello’s relay team consisted of Violet Lapke, Taylor Sporrer, Kylan Straight and Holub.
In the field, Tipton’s Jamie Kofron placed second in the shot put. She saved her best throw for last, hurling the dense, metal ball 44 feet, 1 1/4 inches. But she was still nearly a foot short of Brylie Zeisneiss’ throw of 45-1 for South Hardin.
Tipton finished the day in eighth with eight points.
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