Another historic Iowa high school boys track and field season has come and gone.
Before we turn our attention to baseball and softball this summer, it’s time to put a bow on what was a thrilling year on the track. On the boys side, five all-time records (110-meter hurdles, 3200-meter run, 4×100, 4×400 and the shuttle hurdle relay) were set this season, to go along with plenty of other memorable moments across the state.
With that in mind, we have assembled the 2026 All-Iowa boys track and field teams. The Register has compiled an Elite Team made up of the 12 best athletes, regardless of class, this season. The staff has also made teams made up of each class. Results from the regular season, Drake Relays and state meet, along with other record-setting performances, were all taken into consideration when selecting the teams. While relay teams are not listed, performances by individuals from those relays were taken into consideration, too.
Here are your All-Iowa teams for the 2026 season:
Athletes are listed in alphabetical order by last name. Stats are from gobound.com.
Elite Team
Lincoln Bainbridge, Sr., Van Buren County
In four events at the Iowa state track meet, the future UNI Panther won all of them. Bainbridge was a strong mid-distance runner for his team, claiming the 400-meter dash and 800-meter run championships, as well as anchoring the state title-winning 4×400 relay and 1600 medley teams in Class 1A.
Hayden Carlson, Sr., Ankeny
The all-time state record holder in the 110-meter hurdles is Carlson, who ran a time of 13.52 seconds to claim a state title. The Ankeny senior also won the 110-meter hurdles at the Drake Relays and was part of a shuttle hurdle relay crew that had the fourth-best time statewide in 2026.
Canaan Dunham, Sr., Pella
Dunham was the state’s leader in the 800-meter dash, running a 1:50.61 to win the Class 3A state title for the event. In that race, he upended superstar and his best friend Quentin Nauman to show the level of talent he has despite racing against an all-time great during his career.
The Pella senior also anchored the 4×800 state champion team in Class 3A, and took second at state in the 1600 and 3200-meter runs.
Greyson Hartman, Jr., Washington
Hartman won the Drake Relays shot put title, as well as state titles in shot put and discus in Class 3A. He was the state leader in shot put at 67-03.5 and second in Iowa for discus at 189-05. Behind numbers like that, he was the best boys thrower in the state this year.
Kolby Hodnefield, Sr., Clear Lake
Hodnefield concluded the season as the state’s leader in the 400-meter dash at 47.48 seconds. That’s just under five-tenths of a second slower than the all-time record from Bettendorf’s Darien Porter at 46.99. His final tally of hardware at the state meet was titles in the 400, the 4×100 and 4×400-meter relays.
Kaiden Kunze, Sr., Norwalk
Two Drake Relays titles in the 400-meter dash and long jump, followed by a sweep of his events at the state meet— winning championships in the 100, 200, 400 and long jump — Kunze had a heck of a season. He ended his season with top-five times in that state for the 100, 200 and 400, including the season best time of 21.21 seconds in the 200.
Ajak Malual, Soph., Waukee
At the Drake Relays, Malual announced his talents to the world with a leap of 7-0 to claim a title. He didn’t quite reach that height at the state meet, but won his first state championship nonetheless. He is just one of two high school athletes from Iowa to clear seven feet since 2016.
Deztin McMurrin, Sr., Waterloo West
McMurrin was unable to secure a state or Drake Relays title, but his marks across multiple events still made him an athlete worth recognizing. He owned the state-best long jump at 24-06.5, followed by the third-best times in the 100-meter (10.51 seconds) and 200-meter dashes (21.24). Both of those times were hundredths of a second off matching the best marks in Iowa this season.
Quentin Nauman, Sr., Western Dubuque
Three Drake Relays titles and two state titles weren’t the way Nauman wanted to finish, but it was hardly anything to scoff at. One of the greatest distance runners of all time in Iowa ended his high school career with the state’s best time this season in the 1600 (4:03.65), along with the third-best time in the 800-meter run (1:51.22) and fifth-best time in the 3200-meter run (8:54). He’ll head to the University of Oregon to further his legacy.
Titus Steng, Sr., Shenandoah
Steng ends his career as a seven-time Iowa state champion, including four state titles in his final high school season. He swept the wheelchair race events at state, winning the 100, 200, 400 and 800-meter races. He also won the 400-meter Drake Relays title to make himself a fairly extensive trophy display this year alone.
Gage Tucker, Sr., Bettendorf
One of two Bulldogs to make the Elite team, Tucker was the state leader this season in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 51.92 seconds. He is the lone Iowan to run under 52 seconds this year.
AJ Willey, Sr., Bettendorf
Another Iowan to set an all-time record, Willey ran an 8:49.65 in the 3200-meter run to clinch a Class 4A state title and set the record. He is the first Iowan to ever run under 8:50 in the event, but was quickly followed by Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s Slader Buckheister at 8:49.97 as he pushed Willey to the brink to set the bar.
Class 4A
Class 3A
Class 2A
Class 1A
Honorable mention
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Meet the members of the 2026 All-Iowa boys state track and field teams
Reporting by Eli McKown, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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By Eli McKown, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
