So far in this 2026 season, the SC-IL Cyclones have hosted their first-ever home track meet, rewritten the history books several times over, and now with a championship-winning performance by its women’s team, the program can add their first State appearance as a True Team qualifying squad to its ledger.
Despite another bitterly cold day with gusts which nearly toppled runners, 14 track & field programs battled on May 5 for a chance at the coveted True Team State tournament in Eden Prairie.
The True Team meet is regarded as an appetizer to the Section 2A meet on May 30; a litmus test of conditioning, technique, and endurance amongst athletes from programs like JWP-WEM, LCWM-Nicollet, Maple River, SC-IL, and others. Track & Field meets generally bring a layer of intensity just before the lineups, but True Team added urgency to coaches picking rosters for each event. Meanwhile, the athletes—many whom wore blankets in between events to stay warm—honed their focus to a fine edge once it became time to compete.
Keeping pace with another historical season, the Lady Cyclones took first place at the meet with 719 points, narrowly beating out JWP-WEM and MVL for the top spot and a ticket to the True Team State tournament on May 16. The men’s team had individual standouts in various events, but placed fourth with 586 points.
Women’s Results
In the field events, Hinze placed fifth in the long jump. Rollenhagen and Daly shared the top spot in pole vault, clearing a height of 9’0” while Daly also tied with Kirschner of Loyola-Cleveland-MCA in the high jump with a mark of 4’10”.
On the track, Hinze placed fourth in the 300m hurdles. V. Quast and A. Loeslie, finished top-five in the 3200M with second and fourth place marks respectively. The trio of V. Quast, Stencel from MR, and Meyer from Loyola-Cleveland-MCA was a familiar sight to many trackgoers, as they have tussled for position in this event for several seasons. Quast attempted a last-lap push to close the gap, but ultimately conceded third place. M. Loeslie and Anderson both had top-five finishes in the 800M with third and fifth place marks respectively, while Anderson also took third in the 400M.
The relay teams are where the Lady Cyclones shine, and they kept their impressive streak going with two second-place finishes (4×200, 4×400) and a dominant 18-second victory in the 4×800. The 4×200 team (Busse, Rollenhagen, Carstensen, Hinze) battled JCC and JWP-WEM with each baton pass, but a near-flawless relay in the final leg by SC-IL pushed them into second by a half-second.
Men’s Results
In a thrilling day in the sprints, Schull ran step-by-step with two other speedsters—Atherton of JWP-WEM and Proehl of MR—in both the 100 and 200M races. Schull took second in both events. Lien battled Atherton in the 400M, trailing him by less than a second toward a second-place finish. He would find redemption at that same distance as the final leg of the 4×400 team (Lentz, McClinton, Haala), which claimed a position over JWP-WEM.
Lien also tied for second place with four other athletes in the high jump (5’10”). Goodrich faced elite veteran competition in the 1600, yet fared well with a fifth-place time. The 4×100 relay team (Schull, Goosen, Lentz, Lien) took third out of 14 teams, while the 4×200 team (Busse, Roemhildt, Irvin, McClinton) placed fourth.
Coaches Corner
Coach Swanson has ushered in a regime of exceptional athletes during her tenure as the SC-IL Track & Field coach, and her women’s team earning a chance at True Team State is validation of that hard work. “Overall, this entire program did amazing. For the girls to win and go to True Team State is such an honor.” Additionally, she credited the men’s program, which admittedly has received less of the limelight compared to their female counterparts; however, Swanson acknowledged a sudden growth in both participation and success this season, “The boys are a small group, but so very talented…they have exploded in the second half of this season, and I couldn’t be more proud.”
As the season enters its final few weeks and each meet grows in importance, the Lady Cyclones are already proving capable of reaching the pinnacle of track and field. The Cyclones hope to keep the accolades piling high at the South Central Conference Championships on May 12 before the women’s team ventures to Eden Prairie on May 16 for a shot at True Team State glory.
