The boys Sectional 4 race Saturday at the Raymore-Peculiar cross country course will match some very even teams. It will include some old standbys as well as surprising newcomers.
The Sectional 4 team race Saturday morning at the Raymore-Peculiar cross country course is going to be one nail-biting time for runners, coaches and fans.
Led by senior Justin Howard's 5th place finish, the Raymore-Peculiar boys team packed five runners in the top 16 to easily win the Class 4 District 7 title on a beautiful Saturday morning at the Lake Jacomo cross country course.
Led by junior Ann Campbell's first-place finish, St. Teresa's won a hard-fought victory Saturday in the girls Class 4 District 7 meet on a wonderful Saturday morning at the Lake Jacomo cross country course
Led by Simon Belete's record-setting time, Missouri's No. 1-ranked Blue Springs boys squad placed four runners in the top eight at Saturday's Class 4 District 7 meet.
It appears the the No. 1-ranked LS West girls squad is rolling into great shape at the right time, eager to win its 6th straight Missouri Class 4 State title in a row in two weeks.
Yael previews the very tough sectional, Class 4, Section 4
Yael previews the deep Class 3 District 8 meet for the girls.
This weekend's Class 3 and 4 Missouri State Track and Field Championships will feature a number of great feats by athletes, close-fought team competition and, yes, some big surprises.
Here are just a few of the fascinating questions and story lines that will hold the attention of track athletes, coaches and fans in Jefferson City on Friday and Saturday.
Juniors Stephen Saylor and Max Storms are good friends who run with each other in the off-season, live near each other in the south KC area but attend different schools.
On Saturday, both had races they'll remember the rest of their lives.
At Missouri's State Meet in Jefferson City, Saylor of Raytown South placed 7th in the Class 4 race.
Less than 45 minutes before that, Storms of O'Hara had dominated the Class 2 competition with a 12-second victory....
Stanton Ragland wanted to push himself to the limit over the last part of the Class 4 Sectionals race Saturday at Lake Jacomo.
The Liberty senior did a great job of doing just that, defeating all the other top boys runners in the Kansas City area.
Ragland used a strong final mile to win the boys title in 16:26.98, the 8th fastest time ever on the course. Ragland also now owns the 9th fastest time at Jacomo: He won Sectionals last year in 16:29 as a junior.
"This course is great preparation for State," Ragland said afterward. Asked about his hopes for the State Meet next Saturday in Jefferson City, Ragland said he wanted to finish in the Top 10.
Liberty's Megan Yohe had one thought in mind as she sprinted into first place during the final stretch of the Class 4 Sectionals girls race Saturday at Lake Jacomo.
Yohe said she was telling herself, "I hope (the finish) comes really fast because I don't think that I can do this much longer."
Yohe was smiling as she recalled her thoughts after the race, which she won in 19:48.98. It was the 11th fastest girls time ever at Jacomo.
The victory for the Liberty sophomore was hard-earned....
Storms runs 15:59 at Longview to win WCC meet
O'Hara junior Max Storms raced to a 15:59 victory in the West Central Conference meet Tuesday afternoon on the Longview course.
On a cool and crisp fall day, Storms ran a tactical race with Harrisonville sopho-more Maksim Korolev. They ran side-by-side for most of the first two miles. Both went went through the first mile in around 5:05 and hit the second mile at around 10:24....
![\"Fort](\"https://mo.milesplit.com/files/mo/2007xc/mid6_conf.jpg\" "\\"Fort")
Raytown South's Steve Saylor -- one of the best runners in the KC area -- found himself in 9th place at the mile mark of Friday's Suburban Mid-6 Conference Meet at Lake Jacomo.
He was 17 seconds behind the leader.
No problem. That was right where Saylor wanted to be. And he passed the 2-mile mark at 11:09 -- still 5 seconds behind the leader.
Exactly at the 4k pole -- with a lead of just a few meters over three other runners -- the Raytown South junior kicked it into high gear. He ran the final 1,000 meters in around 3:05.
Saylor took the first place medal in 17:04, comfortably ahead of all competitors....
![\"Kevin](\"https://mo.milesplit.com/files/mo/2007xc/small6_boys.jpg\" "\\"Kevin")
LS West sweeps Suburban Small 6 Conference
LS West's Kevin Colon won a stirring duel against Kearney's Dalton Moberly on Thursday at Swope Park, leading the Titans to the boys Suburban Small 6 Conference title.
Brittany Tate of LS West easily won the girls race; the Titans took the team title.
After his race with Moberly, Colon, a sophomore, said he knew he "needed to gap" the Kearney senior during the second and third miles, to make sure Moberly couldn't push past him with a strong finishing kick....
