Out with the old and in with the new. If this track preview were a prom and we needed a theme that would certainly be it. Missouri lost some of its best athletes in State history to graduation last spring and in 2009 it is time for those who sat patiently in the shadows of Alishea Usery, Maurice Mitchell and others to step up and deliver more of the jaw-dropping national-level performances we have become accustomed to over the last few years.
SPRINTS
With Usery (Florida) and Mitchell (Florida St.) tearing up the track in the Sunshine State the door is wide open for new champions in the sprints. The girl most likely to grab the headlines in 2009 is Villa Duchesne senior Lauren Hollingsworth. Hollingsworth was runner-up in both Class 3 short sprints a year ago, clocking 12.12 in the 100 and 24.61 in the half-lapper. Challenges for sprinting supremacy on the girl's side could come from a slew of sophomores who all made their way to the State finals a year ago. Ekate Lyon from Waynesville, Fox's Shawntanay Johnson, Crystal Harris from Summit and Normandy 's Eileen Williams are all ready for super sophomore years. Also keep your eye on Parkway Central senior Raequel Jacobs who will be looking to score big points for the Lady Colts in their bid for a State team title.
For the boys it may come down to a couple of running backs to see who gets crowned the State's 
fastest young man. McCluer North's Damonte Bell and SLUH's Ronnie Wingo are both seniors, both were highly recruited football players and both are lightning fast. Bell clocked 10.98 and 21.99 a year ago at the State meet and garnered third and fifth place finishes in the 100 and 200. Wingo was fourth in the short dash for the second time in his career. He finished there as a freshman in 2006, helping SLUH to a team championship. Others to watch in the short sprints include Jennings senior Marcus Bennett and West Plains junior Joey Meyer.
We can't mention the sprints without previewing one of the toughest events on the track, the 400 meter. Seven female returners broke 58 seconds at last year's State meet led by Berkeley junior Kianna Ruff who was the Class 3 runner-up in a sizzling 55.80. Others to watch include McCluer North's Kendra White, Lynette Atkinson from Ladue and in Class 2 Stephanie Essner from Scott City . For the boys the field appears wide open with Lafayette senior Ian Moore the only returner who broke 49 seconds at last year's State meet.
HURDLES
If the 400 is one of the toughest events on the track then the 300 hurdles may be the toughest. Not only are athletes sprinting all out for nearly a full lap but they also have to make their way over eight hurdles in the process. At last year's State meet it took Washington senior Kerwin Stricker just 37.71 seconds to complete that task on his way to a State title. Stricker leads the boys returning hurdlers but will have to exact revenge on McCluer North's Ralph Watson and Waynesville's Solomon Williams in the 110 hurdles if he wants two championships in 2009. Watson and Williams were second and third in Class 4 a year ago with Stricker in fourth. Also keep your eye on Class 2 where junior Nic Ford took the 110 championship in 15.1.
For the ladies it's all about Class 2 when it comes to the hurdles. Crystal City senior Precious Selmon posted the best time in any Class at last year's State Meet in the 100 hurdles but was bested in the 300s in Class 2 by Penney sophomore Lindsay Vollmer. Vollmer and Selmon are two of the nation's top young hopes in the heptathlon as both were ranked in the top eleven in the country. They should battle again this year in all sorts of events but overall hurdle supremacy could go to Pembroke Hill junior Tiffani McReynolds who was the Class 3 Champ in both hurdle races in 2008 and ran faster than Vollmer and Selmon in the 300s.
THROWS
Back to the boys for the throws and back to the theme of out with the old and in with the new. We cannot mention the boys throws without first saying goodbye to two-time defending State champ James Coleman of Marquette . His graduation finally allows for a new top dog in the Class 4 discus and Blue Springs senior Gus Toca could be the one to grab that title. Toca was second a year ago with an impressive mark of 173 feet, eight inches. Without question though the current star in the throws in any class, male or female, is Boonville senior Corey Jones. Jones launched a 66 footer to win last year's Shot Put title; setting a new State Meet record and earning himself fifth place on the year-end national list. Others to watch include Lee's Summit West senior Brooks Mosier who was the Class 4 Shot champ and finished third in the discus.
The girls throws contingent loses last year's Class 3 double State Champ Brittany Borman of Festus but returns top contenders Jasmine Boyer of Fort Zumwalt West and Jackson 's Jill Rushin. Boyer, a senior, won last year's Class 4 shot title and was runner-up in the discus. Rushin, a junior, was second to Boyer in the shot and third in the discus. Others to watch include Putnam County senior Katie Evans who launched the disc more than 140 feet at the 2008 State Meet.
JUMPS
The jumps are events often dominated by great all-around athletes. Think Jackie Joyner-Kersee, perhaps the best heptathlete of all-time, and one of the best long jumpers as well. It's no different in Missouri this year as two of its best jumpers are Lindsay Vollmer and Precious Selmon, probably the 
two best all-around track athletes in the State. Vollmer tops the list of returning high jumpers along with Moberly's Morgan Whitson and Oak
Park 's Ashley Taylor. The Penney sophomore is also tops among returning long jumpers from last year's State Meet where she leapt 18 feet, seven inches and bested Selmon by two inches. The best combo jumper in the long and triple might be Raytown South junior Jade Nalls as she is the defending Class 4 State champ in both events. Another defending champ to look out for is Rockwood Summit's Bethany Buell who topped all Classes in the pole vault last year with a mark of 11 feet, nine inches and has gone over 12'3" this winter indoors.
The boys are led by Sikeston senior Cal Lane who took home Class 3 State titles in the long, triple and high jumps a year ago. Raytown South senior Derek Blevins is the defending Class 4 champ in both the long and triple jumps and has the best returning mark from the 2008 State meet in the long jump at 24 feet. Besides Lane, other high jumpers to look out for include Grandview 's James White and Poplar Bluff 's Chris Kilgore who each leapt 6-8 at last year's State meet. The pole vault is wide open with four boys returning from 14 foot marks at the 2008 State meet.
DISTANCE
The out with the old and in with the new theme is back once again and perhaps most prominently in the distance events. Graduating in 2008 were multiple-time State Champions Aimee Bonte, Lauren Borduin, Eric Fernandez and Darwin Price as well as US Junior 800 meter champ Cydney Ross and Kickapoo standout Rick Elliott. But no one fits the “new” bill as well as the reigning cross country State champ and Nebraska transfer Emily Sisson. Sisson, only a junior, is already a many-time All-American in track and cross country and her list of accomplishments include being a three-time Foot Locker finalist and a US Junior champ in the 5000. Look for Sisson to challenge the overall State records in the 1600 and 3200 and perhaps run a leg on what could be a very formidable 4 x 800 relay for the Lady Colts. Sisson's teammate Diane Robison, herself a Foot Locker finalist and the 2007 State cross country champ, should challenge in the same events.
The Parkway Central duo could be outdone by Festus senior Alyssa Allison however. Allison was a double State champ a year ago, running an outstanding 10:48 for 3200 and an even more impressive 4:51 for 1600. Then there is Berkeley junior Kianna Ruff who will likely challenge the State meet record of 2:09.78 set in 1992 by Hazelwood Central's Ann Heffner. Ruff ran 2:09.89 a year ago, losing by just one one-hundredth of a second to Ross at the State Meet. Others to watch in the distance races include Eureka 's Chelsea Chrisman, Oakville 's Kat Oberle and Liberty 's Megan Yohe.
The boys distance races lose the excitement of last year's successful triple victory by Normandy's Price but should make up for it with a wide open field that should produce some very close finishes. The top returning distance ace is without question Potosi 's Jacob Swearingen who won last year's Class 3 State 3200 title only weeks after suffering a broken jaw. Swearingen won the State cross country title this past fall and should be the favorite to take home at least one more State championship on the track and maybe as many as three. Others to watch in the longer distance races are Lee's Summit West's Kevin Colon, Chaminade's Matt Estlund, Francis Howell North's Nick Happe, College Heights Christian's Caleb Hoover, Potosi's Nick Niggeman, Raytown South's Stephen Saylor and Lee's Summit's Adam Volkert. In the 800 look for Ozark's Sam Jones, Staleys' Hans Pitia and Hazelwood East's Banjo Jaiyesime to post top marks.
TEAMS
The final out with the old and in with the new reference might be the most intriguing of all as this could be the year that someone finally ends the Jefferson City Lady Jays' stranglehold on the Class 4 girls team title. Watch for Parkway Central to go point for point with Jeff City in a two-day long battle that could come right down to the end. Jeff City will score in a lot of events, as they always do, but Parkway Central will likely counter with somewhere between 40 and 50 points from the distance events alone. Berkeley will be a force on the girls side in Class 3 but the loss of Usery makes them a little less formidable than in previous years. The boys team battle is wide open as Raytown South loses 40 point man Maurice Mitchell leaving the door open for a number of teams to try and grab the title away. There will be lots of fireworks in Jefferson City on the last two weekends in May so if you are a fan of the sport make the trip and check them out!
Pics courtesy of Morunners.com (top to bottom): Lauren Hollingsworth, Ronnie Wingo, Lindsay Vollmer, Alyssa Allison and Emily Sisson, Kevin Colon
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