The hottest meet in the state takes place in Festus this weekend and we have at least 5 reasons why.
1.100m Stars
It’s only fitting to start at the 100m. While it be March and it may be a bit chilly, expect some fast times to come from Festus. Michael Wells, the fastest in the state, will be in attendance. Wells had a huge indoor season, running 6.73 for 60m and 22.09 for 200m. He opened his season last week with a solid 11.16/22.50 double. This weekend should bring even faster times.
On the girls side, San Diego State commit, Ashley Henderson, headlines the girls 100m entries. Henderson will start her senior campaign after winning three state titles a year ago – 100m, 200m, 4x200m.
2.Long Vs. Werner vs. Field
What a race lined up for the girls 1600m. We could go on and on about it but the fields on the girls distance races are stacked. Viewers will get the treat of watching the two best girls in the state – Hannah Long and Taylor Werner. The last time these two met for this distance the outcome was both of them going under 4:50 for a mile. While that may have been late May, anytime these two meet you are in for a good one. Throw in a list of other accomplished runners – Nicole Lee, Jamie Kemper, and Jill Whitman and you have yourselves one of the deepest races we will see all season.
3.Boys One Lap Madness
Where to begin – you have the second best returner from Kansas, Ian Jones, Hazelwood Central’s Marcus Davis and Brandon Chunn and Lafayette’s Eric Yarbrough. Jones, who will be making the trek across Missouri is coming off of solid indoor season which saw a 49.35 at Arkansas. Davis, the Missouri State Champ in the 400m, is joined by Chunn who also comes in having run under 49 seconds.
4.State Champ Battle in Hurdles
In one corner, you have Morgan Smith, Class 4 State Champ in the 300H and University of Nebraska Commit. In the other, you have Kendra Perren, DeSoto, who will be a bit closer to home on Saturday. Perren was the Class 3 Champ in the 100H and was second in the 300H. Perren and Smith will be battling it out on Saturday in both of the hurdle races.
5.Notable Field Events
The field events will be among the best with a number of state champs opening their season at Festus. Sierra Maddox, winner of the Class 4 Pole Vault in 12-6 in 2013, will highlight the girls pole vault. In the horizontal jumps it will be Kezia Martin leading the way. Martin was second a year ago in the long jump.