Class 1
Boys
The Sprinters
Asher Buggs-Tipton - Green City
Green City's Asher Buggs-Tipton is on a mission to win 16 state golds in his track and field career. As he enters his junior campaign, he is already halfway there.
Buggs-Tipton is the reigning two-time state champion in the 110 Meter Hurdles, 300 Meter Hurdles, Long Jump, and Triple Jump. He's the top returner in all four events, of course, as well as the 100 Meter Dash.
The Green City junior is head and shoulders above the competition at the moment. His 14.04 personal best is 1.5 seconds ahead of anyone else in the 110 Hurdles and his 38.33 is over 2 seconds clear of anyone else. He may have some competition in the long and triple jump. But here's a truly ridiculous stat line that should put any doubts to rest: Buggs-Tipton has 95 event victories to 3 losses in his high school career.
We're watching history in the making.
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We probably won't see Asher Buggs-Tipton in the 100 meter dash at the state meet this year which means that the top returner in the straight line sprint is Tri-County's Derick Curtis.
Curtis was third last spring with an 11.24 mark, but finished off his junior campaign with an 11.12 personal best. He's also the top returner in the 200 meter dash outright with a 22.50 (+2.4) personal best and was third in this event last spring, too.
The pre-season favorite for golds in the 100 and 200, Curtis will certainly be living in the shadow of the Green City junior mentioned above, but will be on the minds of many Class 1 coaches as we head through the 2023 season, regardless.
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The 2nd best returner in the 200 and 400 meter dash is Princeton's Andrew Rhoades, but after a busy postseason and winter indoor season, Rhoades may be poised to take on the state in several more events, too.
Rhoades heads into the 2023 season with a 22.67 and 50.67 personal best in the 200 and 400, respectively, and earned 4th and 3rd place medals at last year's state meet. A decathlete by nature, Rhoades has posted marks in the 100, 200, 400, 800, 1500, 110m Hurdles, high jump, long jump, pole vault, discus, javelin, and shot put.
Whoa.
Rhoades cleared 3.95 meters in the pole vault this winter which puts him in a good spot to challenge for the gold there, too. The 148-11 javelin best is 5th among returners. He has a lot of options and should be at the state meet in whichever 4 events he chooses to pursue. Expect Rhoades to help carry Princeton back to the Class 1 team podium.
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Trotter Hughes - Wellington-Napoleon
The reigning state champion and top returner in the Class 1 quarter mile is Trotter Phillips. Phillips heads into the 2023 season on a 6 outdoor race win streak which he's already pushed to 7.
His personal best of 50.62 is just a finger nail ahead of Rhoades' best, but Phillips should nevertheless be considered the favorite to repeat in the event this year. The 800 state qualifier is also the 4th best returner in that event, making him one of Class 1's preeminent 400/800 studs.
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The Distance Runners
West Nodaway's Riley Blay broke out during a massive sophomore season and now is without an equal in Class 1.
The distance treble winner in 2022, Blay enters the 2023 season as the clear state leader in the 800, 1600, and 3200 with 2:00.03, 4:25.06, and 9:21.90 bests. This cross country season, Blay won his fifth straight state championship and has already posted 4:28.08, 8:51.78, and 9:31.69 marks in the 1600, 3K, and 3200 this winter.
Blay should be the preseason favorite to win the distance treble once again this spring in only his junior season.
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Dora's Cade Nold was the second fastest freshman in the entire state regardless of class in the 800 meter run with his 2:03.20 best at the Class 1 Sectional 4 meet. He ended up finishing 6th at the Class 1 state meet with a 2:04.29 best.
Nold had a stellar freshman year, earning a 21st place medal in cross country, as well. This past fall, he improved 14 places to 7th in a new personal best 17:12.40. We are watching to see what he does for an encore in his sophomore track campaign as he could be one of the challengers who could ruin Blay's quest for another distance treble with Principia's Sam Omware moving all the way up to Class 3.
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Kip Atteberry - Thomas Jefferson
Another Class 1 distance runner looking to rain on the distance treble parade this spring is Thomas Jefferson Independent's Kip Atteberry.
Atteberry is the second fastest returner in the 1600 and 3200 with his 4:33.32 and 10:14.44 bests. Last spring, he finished 4th and 3rd in the events, respectively. Not to be outdone, he's also the 3rd best returner in the 800 in 2:03.56 and finished 7th at state last season, too.
We should expect to see Atteberry in all three distance events at the state meet once again this spring, especially since we saw improvements from him during the cross country season headlined by a runner-up finish a the Class 1 State cross country championship.
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Caleb Phillips heads into the 2023 season with the third best marks in the 1600 and 3200, having run 4:34.17 and 10:17.07 when it mattered most last May. He earned 5th and 4th place finishes on the Jefferson City track after finishing 11th in the 3200 in 2021. Phillips had another solid cross country season and should be a solid bet to earn top 3 finishes in both the 1600 and 3200 this spring.
The Jumpers and Vaulters
The reigning state champion and top Class 1 returner in the high jump is Princeton's Talan Holt. With his 6-4.25 personal best, he's also 2 inches better than any of his fellow competitors, making him the favorite for the repeat this spring.
Holt's solid sophomore season saw his qualify for state not only in the high jump, but also the 100 and 200 meter dashes. While he's a top 15 returner in both events, the high jump is clearly his best event and where we should see him succeed the most this spring. Expect 10 more points for Princeton from Talan Holt this May.
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Last year's Class 1 runner-up in the long jump was Crystal City's Kanden Bolton. Bolton is the 3rd best returner with her 21-3 mark from that state meet. He's also tied for 8th among high jump returners with a 6-0.5 personal best. After qualifying for state in the high jump the last two years, Bolton should head home with multiple medals in the jumps this May.
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The top returner in the pole vault is St. Elizabeth's Kade Wright. After leaving the Class 1 District 2 meet with a 'DQ' as his result, Wright is surely ready to ascend back over the bar at Jefferson City High School and back onto the podium.
Wright's last trip to state was in 2021 when he placed 8th overall in Class 1. He is nearly a meter better than the next closest returner with a 4.18 personal best (13-8.5). No one else in the state is over 12 feet.
With so many seniors graduating last spring, Wright is the far-and-away favorite for the state title in the pole vault this spring.
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One of the biggest challenges for Asher Buggs-Tipton this spring will be holding off North Harrison's Tyson Gibson in the long and triple jump. Gibson is the second best returner in the long jump with a 22-4.5 personal best and the triple jump with his 43-10.75 best.
He didn't get a chance to take down Buggs-Tipton last spring as, even though he qualified in the long and triple jump, he was notably absent from the state meet. Gibson's only state medal currently is a 3rd place one from the 2021 Class 1 triple jump. He has a realistic shot at taking home golds in both events in his senior season and should provide quite the storyline heading into May's grand finale should it come to that.
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The Throwers
Tina-Avalon's Tucker Singer is the reigning Class 1 state champion and top returner in the shot put a year after winning 8 of his 9 meets and earning a 54-3.25 personal best.
Singer is still practicing social distancing in 2023 as he is just under 6 feet away from the rest of his competitors heading into this outdoor season. Only a junior, Singer is not only the top returner in Class 1, but also No. 7 among all shot put returners regardless of class. Could we see the Tina-Avalon thrower challenge the 29 year old Class 1 record of 18.16 meters? It seems like he has the best chance of anyone in Class 1 if not this year, than next year.
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Nearly 9 feet ahead of everyone else, Gilman City's Brody Langfitt is the top returner in Class 1 with a personal best of 162-4. Langfitt was undefeated in the javelin last season until he met Garrett Strange at the Class 1 state meet. Strange beat him by nearly 20 feet, but Langfitt ended up grabbing the silver medal with his personal best. He's the only Class 1 thrower over 47 meters in the event and should be the heavy favorite to grab the title this year.
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The second best returner in the shot put is Worth County's Jase Latham.
Latham is going to be a key to Worth County's podium aspirations as he seems to have the best chance of anyone to pull off the upset over Singer in the shot put. His personal best of 48-5.25 came at his sectional meet where he finished 4th, but in a rare turn of events, the three ahead of him there were also the only three ahead of him at the Class 1 state meet. Now a strong candidate for at least the shot put silver, Latham could jump back into the discus, which should put the rest of the state on notice, too.
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The second part of Worth County's dynamic throws duo is the top returner in the state in the discus: Elias Alarcon.
Alarcon is heading into the 2023 season coming off an abridged 2022 season in which he didn't even make it to May. Regardless, he debuted in 2022 with what had to have been one of the best discus debuts of all time - a stellar 150-1.25 toss at his March Early Bird home meet. This year, Alarcon did not hit the same mark at the season opener, but he will surely be on everyone's discus watchlist as we head further into the 2023 season.
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The Top 5 Teams
Principia is gone all the way to Class 3 which means there will be a new sheriff in Class 1.
Heading into the season, it appears that Green City and Worth County are the top two competitors. Worth County was 2nd last year with Green City in 3rd. Green City is, of course, led by Asher Buggs-Tipton who should once again score 40 points all by himself. In his junior campaign, he is separating himself as one of the all-time greats as he continues his quest for 16 state golds. Aaron Peavler is not listed on the MSHSAA roster just yet, but if he does return, that would be an added bonus to the Gophers in the 100, high jump, and their relays. Ketch Rope Hamar will add points in the throws as he enters 8th in the shot put currently.
Worth County lost several important seniors, but still returns Elias Alarcon, Jase Latham, Braxton Hightshoe, Levi Cassavaugh, and Colt Cameron, giving them a balanced approach up and down the event list. They had a lot of success in the relays, as well, and should be able to retool to return to form in 2023.
Two teams with distance backgrounds enter the fold, as well. West Nodaway picked up 39 points last year to take 4th, with 30 of those points coming from now-junior Riley Blay. Blay won the 800, 1600, and 3200, and should have no problems doing that once again this year. He could certainly use some help, though, as the point scorers in the 400 and javelin that boosted them over King City and their relays attack are now gone. Hermitage is coming off a dominant cross country state championship this fall and brings several of those boys into the spring season. While they are certainly talented distance runners, athletes like Bennett Mantooth and DeJuan Chambers appear ready to contribute in the 400, 300m Hurdles, and high jump. Justus Yates and Justin Horn are top returners in the 1600 and 3200, of course, and their 4x800 relay should be top tier, once again.
Other teams to watch include the afore-mentioned King City, Wellington-Napoleon, and Thomas Jefferson Independent. It should be another wild ride as several public schools take their shot at a state title this spring.
Class 1
Girls
The Sprinters and Hurdlers
Drexel is looking to repeat as state champs this year and Josie Parks is going to be a major part of their quest for another crown. Parks is the top returner in the 100 and 2nd in the 200.
The Drexel junior was 3rd and 10th at the state meet in the 100 and 200 and was a part of the state champion 4x100 relay squad. The Bobcats have a deep squad and should benefit from Parks' sprints prowess several times this spring, just as they have the past two years.
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North Shelby's Whitney Shinn is the top returner in the Class 1 400 as she's the only athlete under 60 seconds in the quarter mile heading into 2023.
Shinn ran her 59.93 personal best to earn lane 4 in the 2022 Class 1 state finals. She ended up 2nd in finals, but should be the favorite for the win this year.
Shinn is a seasoned veteran at the state meet and has earned medals in the 100 and 200 in her career, too. She owns personal bests of 13.01 and 26.72 in those events.
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Richland's Breah Morris heads into 2023 with the fastest 200 meter time among Class 1 athletes. Her 26.31 mark came in the state prelims last spring and she posted a 27.64 mark for 7th in finals.
Her 12.75 best in the 100 meter dash is 2nd among Class 1 returners, as well, and she finished 6th overall at the state meet there. She should be among the top sprinters once again this year as she eyes a gold medal before graduating.
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Pattonsburg's Kelsey Crabtree is the second fastest Class 1 returner in both the 100 and 300 Meter Hurdles. She's run personal bests of 16.36 and 48.38, and owns 4 all-state medals already in the hurdle events. She was the 2021 runner-up in the 300s and 3rd in 2022. Back to back 8th place finishes in the 100 meter hurdles has her ready to challenge for the gold. Only a junior, Crabtree should continue to climb in 2023.
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Sheldon's Kimberleigh Colbert is among the top returners in the 100, 100 Meter Hurdles, and 300 Meter Hurdles.
Colbert is the 8th fastest 100 meter runner with her 13.09 best, though she's only been under 13.6 once in her career. She is also 2nd among returners in the 300 Meter Hurdles and 5th among 100 Meter Hurdlers. She was the state runner-up in the 300s and 4th in the 100 hurdles.
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The Distance Runners
Stoutland's Mallory Shaw heads into the 2023 track season coming off a breakthrough cross country season.
Shaw used a massive final kilometer to go from 6th to 1st at the Class 1 State Cross Country Championships and closed out the season with a 20:32.95 5K personal best.
Heading into the spring, Shaw should be a major player in the distance events. As an 8th grader, she posted personal bests of 2:33.92 in the 800, 5:38.02 in the 1600, and a cross country 3200 of 12:21.50. It should be a solid freshman year from the Stoutland harrier.
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Canton's Nariah Clay has been one of the top 800 meter runners in Class 1 over the last two years and enters her senior campaign with the best half mile mark among returners.
Clay heads into the 2023 season with a 2:23.70 lifetime best from the 2021 Class 1 state meet, which helped her earn a silver medal. Last year, she posted a 2:24.05 personal best, 0.02 seconds ahead of the next closest returner, and should be the front-runner for the state title in the 800 as we kick off the first big weekend of outdoor season.
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Chadwick's Gretchen House enters the 2023 track season as the top returner in both the 1600 and 3200 with 5:30.26 and 12:15.93 personal bests.
House earned 6th and 2nd place medals in the 1600 and 3200 last spring, and finished 11th in the 800. She owns a best mark of 2:31.85 in the half mile and is 6th among returners there.
After another solid cross country season in which she finished 6th at the Class 1 state meet and 20:28.16 5K personal best. Watch for House to challenge for the golds in both the mile and 2 mile, which would potentially help her Chadwick squad climb to the podium.
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Jaclyn Riedinger - North Andrew
North Andrew's Jaclyn Riedinger heads into 2023 with three state medals on the track to her credit already. Riedinger is the second best returner among milers this year with a 5:34.24 personal best that earned her 2nd at the Class 1 state meet.
Riedinger also has state hardware in the 3200 to her name after finishing 4th in 2021. She's run 12:20.78, but hasn't ran it since 2021. Riedinger will be one of the top distance runners heading into the 2023 season.
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Glasgow's Addison Barringhaus is coming off a stellar cross country campaign and heads into the 2023 season 2nd among returners in the 3200 and 6th in the 1600.
She closed out the 2022 cross country season as one of only two Class 1 girls under 20:00 in the 5K - the other being freshman Mya Wray - and should be a major player in the distance events this spring.
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The Jumpers and Vaulters
Albany's Abigail Troncin is the reigning Class 1 state champion in the long jump and Class 1 runner-up in the triple jump.
She heads into the 2023 season with a personal best of 17-0, just a shade ahead of the next closest returners Atlanta's Kyley Magers and Green City's Meranda Lewis. She's also 2nd among triple jump returners with a 36-9.75 (+2.8) personal best. Troncin should be able to rack up significant points for her Albany squad, and potentially chip in in the 200 and 400 should she take a step forward there, too.
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High jump, triple jump, long jump - Kyley Magers is ready to run the table.
The Atlanta senior owns the top marks among Class 1 returners in the high jump and triple jump with personal bests of 5-3 and 37-2.75 respectively. She won 9 of her 10 tries at the triple jump in 2022, including the Class 1 state title. Magers was the state runner-up in the high jump, one of two losses among her nine tries. Finally, in the long jump, Magers is tied for 2nd among returners with her 16-11.5 personal best, just a shade behind Albany's Troncin. She was 5th at state last year.
Magers has a realistic shot at winning all three jumps events this year and securing enough points to land her Atlanta team on the podium on her own.
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Drexel's Emily Wheeler is a triple jump/hurdle specialist as she enters the season top 3 among Class 1 returners in all 3 events.
Wheeler has been all-state twice now in the triple jump and heads into 2023 with a realistic shot at finally winning it all. Her career best sits at 35-2 and she has already cleared 33-5.25.
As for the hurdle events, Wheeler is the top returner in the 100 Meter Hurdles with her personal best of 15.90 (+3.7). She was the state runner-up after clearing prelims first. In the 300 Meter Hurdles, she was 6th at the 2022 state meet and owns a 48.46 personal best - 3rd among returners.
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Stanberry's Katlyn James is well ahead of the rest of the field this year with a career best of 10-10.25. She is just shy of a foot ahead of the rest of the field and, even though she was 3rd last year behind another returner, she should be the early favorite for the state championship this spring.
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Mound City's Ava Barnes is entering the 2023 season 2nd among pole vaulters, behind Stanberry's Katlyn James.
Barnes was the Class 1 runner-up last season and closed out her season with a best of 9-10.5. She has already cleared 9-6.25 this season and should continue to climb in her junior campaign.
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The Throwers
Knox County's Jennifer Hinkle is out for redemption this year.
The second best javelin thrower in the entire state after throwing a 2022 MO No. 4 mark of 145-9, but ended up hitting her second lowest mark of the season at the Class 1 state meet. She still finished 5th overall and would later go on to win the Great Southwest Classic.
Now a senior and Mizzou commit, and with no one within 6 meters of her, Hinkle is the far-and-away favorite to win it all this year in the javelin.
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Rock Port's Rylee Jenkins is the reigning Class 1 champion and only girl over 40 meters in the discus among Class 1 returners. A discus specialist, she has only gold and silver medals in the event to her name so far. The junior enters the season with an impressive 132-11.75 mark, 4 meters ahead of anyone else in Class 1.
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Drexel's Olivia Shipps is the only returning Class 1 thrower over 12 meters heading into this season. She hit 12 meters exactly (39-4.5) at her sectional meet before finishing 3rd at the state meet. This year she has already cleared 12 meters again this season and should continue to climb all the way to the top of the podium this May.
She is also the 2nd best returner among discus throwers after hitting a career best 119-7 for 2nd at the 2022 state meet. She is one of only three girls over 36 meters heading into the season.
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It's not every day that you can say one of the top returners in the javelin is also one of the top returners in the 800m run. Tarkio (East Atchison) junior Tommi Martin fits that unorthodox bill.
Martin returns MO No. 2 in Class 1 with her 134-1.5 best from the AAU Region 16 Qualifier. She was 2nd at the Class 1 State meet a year after a 5th place finish at her district meet. In the 800, she was 2:24.07 for 5th at the Class 1 state meet and returns with the second best mark there by .02 seconds.
Martin was busy this winter with three shot put marks, three 800 marks, and an impressive 1:03.41 400m personal best. A potential future multis athlete, Martin will look to pull off the rarest of rare Javelin/800m run doubles at this year's Class 1 state meet.
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Maggie Collins - Jefferson Conception Jct
Platte Valley's Maggie Collins is among the top returners in all three throws events.
Collins was all-state last year in the shot put with a 5th place finish, but has a realistic shot at medals in all three throws in 2023. She is 2nd among returners in shot put with her 37-10.75 best, 4th among returners in the discus with a 110-11 mark there, and 8th in the javelin with a 110-2.75 throw. The points she can bring at the state meet will be a huge boon for her squad's chances at a top 4 finish this spring.
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The Team Outlook
With Jasper and Valle Catholic moving on to Class 2, Drexel comes in as a heavy favorite to win it all once again in Class 1.
Drexel is led by several top returners, most of which being Emily Wheeler, Olivia Shipps, and Josie Parks. Each of them occupied a spot in their respective throws, jumps, and sprints sections, adding to Drexel's balanced attack. The big points each of these girls is projected to bring in as top returners in at least one event will be huge for the Bobcats' repeat effort.
Atlanta, Tarkio East Atchison, Chadwick, and Jefferson Conception Junction (Platte Valley) are all going to be competing for one of the next three spots behind them. Atlanta's Kyley Magers scores all 27 of their projected points so far as she enters ranked first in the high and triple jumps, and tied for second in the long jump. Tarkio scores points with Tommi Martin, Elizabeth Schlueter, and Payton Woodring. Can they also regain their relay prowess? If so, that could bring them enough points to challenge Drexel for the top spot. Chadwick scores points with Gretchen House primarily, as she is the top returner in the 1600 and 3200, as well as shot putter Chloe Burkhart. Platte Valley's Maggie Collins joins up with Jenna Mason, a strong distance squad led by Andrea Riley, and sprinter Kayley Hauber.
It will be quite the dogfight to see who comes out on top among teams in Class 1.