SIOUX FALLS – Only his senior year was spent at Riggs, but Jason Maciejczak made quite an impact.
He was part of the sixth consecutive 11AA championship football team for the Pierre Governors, and on Friday, he won the boys AA shot put state title at the SDHSAA State Track & Field Championships at Howard Wood Field.
In winning the event for the eighth time in nine outdoor meets this season, Maciejczak had a best throw of 61 feet, 11 3/4 inches, five inches better than the favorite, Kael Miedema of Sioux Falls Washington. Maciejczak extended his school record for the boys shot put, which he set April 24 at the Legion Relays at Hollister Field at Phil Trautner Stadium with a throw of 60 feet, 9 inches.
Maciejczak is the first individual boys track & field state champion for Pierre since Erick Colman won the shot put in 2018.
This completed a sweep of the AA shot put titles for Pierre after Reese Terwilliger won the girls championship on Thursday.
Maciejczak said that he was honored to defeat Miedema.
Jason described his winning throw.
Maciejczak improved from 2022, his junior year at Douglas.
When throwing the shot and discus, Maciejczak would spin, something not everyone does.
Also on Friday, Kali Ringstmeyer recorded the best qualifying time in the AA girls 200 meters, 26.29, to advance to Saturday’s final. Ringstmeyer recovered after a difficult day Thursday, in which she was disqualified in the 100 meter qualifying due to a false start and was part of a bad baton exchange in the 4×100 prelims.
Kali and Dani Ringstmeyer teamed with Grace Richter and Charlee Williams-Smith to qualify for Saturday’s 4×200 final. That team had the fifth-best qualifying time, 1:45.80.
Deegan Houska ran the 300 meter hurdles in 41.15, the sixth-best time in qualifying, to advance to the Saturday final.
Maya Shorter finished second in the AA girls discus with a best throw of 125 feet, nine inches. That was less than two feet behind winner Sarah Zino of Sioux Falls Jefferson. Terwilliger finished eighth and Hannah Lemieux was ninth.
Jared Lutmer ran to a fourth-place finish in the boys 3200 meters. Lutmer’s time was 9:34.25, his personal best by four seconds.
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