Sports 24 August 2021

Small squad; large goals

New Hampton Tribune and Nashua Reporter - Staff Photo -

Given her choice, Sarah Bakula would love to have her Turkey Valley cross country teams have enough runners to appear in the team standings.
“It is what it is unfortunately,” she said, “and it’s not like I can just go grab Joe Blow off the side of the road and say, ‘You’re running for me.’ But we have a lot to run for this year.”
She’s not kidding. Turkey Valley has one of the best runners in the state in senior Jalyssa Blazek, another runner who had a breakthrough season in senior Cambree Kruse and a third who epitomizes the sport of cross country in senior Dale Schwamman.
Start with Blazek, who has been an all-state runner in her previous three seasons. She finished sixth at the Class 1A state meet in 2018 and took third at the state meet the past two seasons.
“She’s had, there’s no other way to put, a brilliant career,” Bakula said, “and she’s not done yet. I think what stands out for me when it comes to Jalyssa is that she’s not only obviously a talented runner but she’s willing to put the work into it, too. … I mean I don’t even want to think about next year and not just writing ‘Jalyssa’ into the lineup.”
Blazek is part of a historic Upper Iowa Conference trio that also includes Kee’s Haley Meyer and South Winneshiek’s Billie Wagner, and the trio went 1-2-3 at the 1A state meet last fall.
— For more on this story, see the Aug. 27 Tribune

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