With the outdoor track and field season finally upon us, let's take a look at the top athletes from each of our five classes!
Competitions have begun, but that doesn't mean we will stop unrolling previews for the Class 1 and 2 boys and girls. We are introducing and discussing five of the top athletes in each of the sprints (100, 200, 400, 100/110 Hurdles, and 300 Hurdles), distance (800, 1600, 3200), jumps (long jump, triple jump, high jump, pole vault), and throws (discus, shot put, javelin) events. We are also introducing 3-4 of the top freshmen to watch, plus 3-4 teams to watch and a dark horse team on which to keep an eye.
Check back throughout the week to see who gets added next!
More Content to Explore: Meet Calendar | Virtual Meets | Rankings | 2023 Photos | Class of 2024 College Commitments
Recent Drops: | Class 5 Boys Preview | Class 5 Girls Preview | Class 4 Boys Preview | Class 4 Girls Preview | Class 3 Boys Preview | Class 3 Girls Preview | Class 2 Boys Preview | Top Performers: Missouri Girls Track and Field - March 20 | Top Performers: Missouri Boys Track and Field - March 19
Sprints
North Platte junior Lindsay Ramsey has already put herself in the conversation of the best 200/400 runners in the entire state regardless of class. She heads into the 2024 season ranked tops among Class 2 returners in both events.
Ramsey is the reigning state champion in the 400 meter dash with a personal best time of 56.93. She was under 60 seconds in all 11 times she competed last spring and only lost at the massive Bill Summa Invite and prestigious Kansas Relays before finishing 2nd in prelims at the state meet. In the 200, Ramsey finished 4th at state and finished out her sophomore year with a 25.07 best to her name. She added silver and gold state medals in the 4x200 and 4x400, respectively.
After opening the year with a 12.35 100 meter dash best, a mark that would have been third among returners, and 57.73 in the 400, Ramsey appears to be ready to take on the state once again in the long sprints.
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South Callaway's Reece Pahl is out hot already in 2024 with performances in the 100, 200, high jump, and long jump at two different meets already. This is not out of the ordinary for the now-sophomore, though, as she posted 55 individual performances across the 4 events as a freshman and appears to be on a trajectory to potentially match that number again in 2024.
Pahl's personal best of 12.12 in the 100 is tops among 2024 returners by over a tenth of a second. She will look to improve upon a 4th place finish at last year's state meet. She enters the year 9th among returners in the 200, though she was 6th at state last year. Her 26.32 personal best was good enough for a Sectional 2 victory.
Pahl will be one to watch in not just the 100 and 200, but also the long jump and high jump after clearing 5.21m (17-1) last season and 1.48m (4-10.25) already this season.
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Genesis Garner - Lutheran North
Lutheran North's Genesis Garner is another long sprinter to watch in Class 2 this spring as she heads into the season 2nd among returners in both the 200 and 400 meter dash.
It was a massive breakthrough at last year's Class 2 State finals, the kind that makes you take a double-take at the clock, when Garner came across the line in 57.53, her first ever sub-60 performance, to finish as the runner-up in the Class 2 400. She was also the state runner-up in the 200 in a time that was just off her 25.53 personal best. Garner also contributed to the state championship 4x200 relay and was a part of 28 of the 29 points Lutheran North scored to tie for fourth as a team. After a successful cross country season this fall, Garner may be ready to parlay that into 400 and even 800 success this spring.
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After qualifying for the 2022 Class 1 State Championships in 4 events and winning 2 of them, Crystal Smith's Jasper team had to move up to Class 2 for the 2023 season after an enrollment bump. Smith didn't skip a beat, though, as she would make 4 more trips to the state podium in Class 2. She earned her second 100m hurdles gold, 4th in the high jump, 7th in the 200 meter dash, and 8th in the 300m hurdles.
Smith heads into the 2024 season as the top returner in the 100m hurdles and 2nd best returner in the 300m hurdles. She has won 26 of the 27 100m hurdles races she has contested heading into the season and should be considered a favorite for a third straight gold, even after losing her 2024 season opener. Her 46.24 is less than a tenth of a second behind the state's top returner in the 300 meter hurdles and her 25.95 200 meter best is 5th among returners. Expect Smith to be among the contenders for the win wherever she goes and in whatever she does this spring.
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Archie's Mollie Andrews heads into the 2024 season as the top returner in the 300 meter hurdles with a 46.16 personal best. She was the Class 2 runner-up in 2023 after running into a buzzsaw at her Sectional meet in 2022. In the 100 meter hurdles, she heads into the spring 3rd among returners with a 15.35 personal best which earned her another 3rd place medal in the event last May. Not to be outdone, Andrews is also the 2nd best returner in the pole vault with a 3.16m (10-4.25) personal best and has already cleared 3 meters in 2024.
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Distance
The Class 2 Girls distance scene gets a major facelift this spring with the departure of Father Tolton to Class 4. After running the table in the 800, 1600, and 3200, the Trailblazers leave a massive void with several strong contenders in line to fill it.
North Platte's Brianna DeBord is among the strong field of distance runners looking to pull in individual gold this spring. She heads into the 2024 season with the top mark among returning milers at 5:22.93, a mark that was good enough for fifth place last May. Her 11:43.65 3200 best was good enough for fourth in 2023, but has her sitting third heading into 2024. The senior could theoretically pick up points at state in the 800, too, with her 2:28.30 personal best, which sits fifth best among returners.
North Platte will surely be a top squad once again in 2024 with DeBord contributing significantly to their cause.
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Time and time again, we have seen cross country success turn into major breakthroughs on the track. This spring, we expect Brentwood's Kensington Curd to see the kind of major improvement that makes her a contender for the distance treble in 2024.
Curd dominated the 2023 cross country season with 6 meet victories, headlined by a Class 2 state title in November. Her 18:38.50 5k best is well ahead of any other Class 2 athletes. She heads into this spring with personal bests of 5:24.94 in the 1600 and 12:02.86 in the 3200, with performances in events ranging from the 100 to the 3200 to the horizontal jumps. Watch for this sophomore to be among the top distance runners in Class 2 this spring.
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2024's top returner in the Class 2 half-mile is Valle Catholic's Ava Bauman. Bauman heads into the season with solid marks in the 200 and 400, but has shown that she truly flourishes in the 800 with a personal best of 2:24.00, a mark that was fifth last May. Should she improve upon a 1:05.44 best in the 400, the sophomore should surely take another leap forward this spring, even after spending all fall on the volleyball court instead of the cross country course.
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Another important piece to North Platte's puzzle is the third sophomore on our list - Chloe Heckman.
Heckman is coming off a solid fall season in which she improved to 19:32.04 and finished third overall at the Class 2 state meet. She should be able to parlay that 34-second improvement into more success on the track this spring. She was the 12th place finisher in the 1600 last May, but snagged a bronze medal in the 3200, running personal bests of 5:31.40 and 11:36.13, respectively, at the season finale. She heads into the 2024 season tops among 3200 returners and 7th among 1600 returners and has already run 12:11.55 for 3200 meters on the short track at Northwest Missouri State.
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Clara Trent - New Covenant Academy
There are several girls that deserve a spot in our preview, girls like Ellie Hartley, Samantha Sharp, Emma Hunt, and Emerson Selsor, among others, but Clara Trent gets the nod here.
Trent heads into the spring season after successful cross country and short track seasons, looking like a potential major breakout candidate. Last fall, she finished 4th at the Class 2 state meet and now boasts a 19:29.48 personal best 5k. This winter, she has improved her 1600 best by 7 seconds to 5:35 and ran a 3k mark equivalent to 12:01 in the 3200. Her personal best of 11:42.52 came at last year's Class 2 state meet where she finished 6th. Trent should be among the top 5 girls in both the 1600 and 3200.
With the departure of Father Tolton's stable of stars, the 800, 1600, and 3200 fields should be fun to watch this spring.
Jumps
The top Class 2 returner in the triple jump is Dixon's Montgomery Keck. The senior is a three-time state qualifier in the event, with 3rd and 2nd place medals to her name, and cleared 11.2m (36-9) in 2023. Her 10.52m (34-6) season opener over the weekend is currently tops in Class 2 among 2024 marks.
Keck has also earned state berths in the long jump (2021), 100m hurdles (2021, 2022, 2023), and 300 meter hurdles (2022) in her career, earning two 100 meter hurdles state medals. Her season best time of 15.32 is 2nd among Class 2 returners, but she ran even faster in 2022 - a 15.28 mark that doesn't move the needle rankings-wise, but shows that she has been consistent over her career in the low 15s.
Keck should be the early favorite for a triple jump state title this spring and will surely be in the mix in the hurdles races and even the long jump, should she improve upon her 4.9m (16-1) lifetime best from her freshman year.
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Those of you who were wondering in the sprints section "Where is Angela Dobbins??" should worry no longer. We just saved her for the jumps section.
Dobbins is one of the more well-rounded returners for the 2024 season in Class 2 as she heads into her senior season with a top 3 mark in 4 events, headlined by a top spot in the high jump and long jump. Her 1.7m (5-7) personal best is nearly an inch clear of Jasper's Smith. She was 7th at last year's state meet in this event, but was undefeated otherwise. Her long jump lifetime best of 5.5m (18-0.5) is 2 millimeters ahead of her 5.48m (17-11.5) 2023 season best, but both are still well ahead of the field in the event. She is a three-time state medalist and should be the favorite for both jumps events.
The other two events in which she currently shows top 3 marks based on 2023 performances are the 100 (12.27, 2nd) and 200 (25.57, 3rd) meter dashes. The heptathlete should be in for a busy weekend this May and should help the Green Wave climb the team standings with her talents and efforts.
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Next on the long jump list is South Harrison's Abbey Henry who finished up her junior season with a runner-up finish and profiles as the second best returner for the 2024 season. Her 5.33m (17-6) should put her among the top contenders for the crown this spring.
Henry also heads into the season with an impressive triple jump lifetime best of 10.75m (35-3.25) from her freshman year would put her 4th on the list if she chooses to come back to it in 2024. We haven't seen a triple jump mark from her since 2022, even though she finished 3rd in the event in 2021.
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Tops on the list of 2023 returners in the pole vault is Barstow's Zoey Hrabe. The senior heads into her final high school season with a 3.31m (10-10.25) personal best, but she has already improved on that, once over the winter and another time at the UCM Mule Relays with a 3.35m (11-0) clearance. After finishing as the Class 2 runner-up in 2023, she should be considered the favorite for the gold medal in 2024, but a freshman we are profiling later in this article may have something to say about that.
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Sherwood's Sadie McCulloh enters the 2024 season 3rd among long jump returners with a 5.22m (17-1.5) personal best, a mark that helped her earn a third place medal at last year's state meet. McCulloh was 9th in the event in 2022, even though she cleared 5 meters three times. This spring, she has already cleared 5.17m (16-11.5).
Not to be outdone, she is also 4th among 100 meter hurdles returners with a 15.37 personal best, 6th among 300 meter hurdles returners at 47.26, and 10th among javelin returners with a 33.31m (109-3.5) best mark last season.
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Throws
Aubrey Rehmert - Belle, Emma Fischer - Harrisburg, Jadyn Barnes - Licking
We merged three javelin throwers into one section here because they all head into the season with similar reasons for being on our preview list.
First is the top returner based on personal best - Belle's Aubrey Rehmert. Finished 4th at last year's Class 2 state meet behind Fischer and Barnes, but heads into the 2024 season with the only mark over 130 feet. She is also 6th among discus returners with a 33.56m (110-1.25) mark.
Next is the top returner based on finish at state, and that would be reigning state champion Emma Fischer of Harrisburg. Fischer saved her best for last in 2023 as she heaved a 38.15m (125-2) personal best for the win in Class 2. It was the first trip to state in the event for the junior. She now heads into the 2024 season with the second best mark among returners and should be among the favorites to bring in the gold medal this May. She has also cleared 10 feet in the pole vault already this spring, making her one to watch in that event, too.
Licking's Jadyn Barnes is neither the top returner based on personal best nor state finish, but after finishing 3rd in Class 2 last spring, ahead of Rehmert and fewer than 2 meters behind Fischer, it appears that the sophomore could make this a three horse race for the javelin crown in 2024. Barnes threw 36.68m (120-4) when it mattered most last May - an over 2 meter personal best - to secure the bronze medal. She will head into the season 3rd among returners, but could certainly challenge for gold in Jefferson City.
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Disaster struck at the 2023 Class 2 Sectional 3 meet when Cabool's Elaina Swisloski, one of the top discus throwers in the state, completed her first meet of the 2023 season without a mark over at least 30 meters and finished the dreaded 5th. Her personal best of 33.45m (109-9) would have earned her 9th at state, but currently has her 7th among returners for the 2024 season.
Where Swisloski should really make her hay in 2024, though, is the shot put. As the top Class 2 returner with a personal best of 12.04m (39-6), Swisloski should be considered a contender for the crown this May, even if her next closest mark is a full meter off that personal best. After three straight 16th place finishes at state in the event, she very well could climb all the way to 1st this year.
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The top returner in the discus based both on personal best and state meet performance is Monroe City's Timia Reinberg. The sophomore heads into the 2024 season with a 38.25m (125-6) mark that is well ahead of the rest of the field. After earning a silver medal in 2023, this year could bring gold for the Monroe City Panther.
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Incoming Freshmen to Watch
Butler has two strong incoming freshmen that have already made themselves known in 2024. First on the list - pole vaulter Tandee Hiser.
Hiser cleared 3.3m (10-10) over the summer to win the 14 year old division at the AAU Junior Olympics, the second best mark in state history for a middle schooler according to our database. Already, Hiser has cleared 3.45m (11-3.75) indoors and matched that 3.3m outdoor personal best. While Barstow's Zoey Hrabe, profiled above, is the top returner among 2023 marks, she is still a centimeter behind Hiser's top mark now. Expect Hiser to challenge for the Class 2 pole vault title this spring and begin a trajectory toward becoming the state's next best vaulter.
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The other 2027 freshman from Butler that deserves your attention is thrower Kylee DuBray. DuBray heads into the 2024 season with and impressive 12.71m (41-8.25) personal best in the shot put, albeit with a lighter implement. Regardless, she has already opened the season with 11.31m and 11.77m marks, with the 11.77m (38-7.25) mark putting her 3rd among Class 2 returners. DuBray also appears to be a solid javelin thrower as she debuted with a 29.55m (96-11.75) mark. She should certainly shake up the shot put scene in Class 2 and will be one to monitor in the other two throws as she gains more experience.
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Salisbury may have themselves a game-changer incoming freshman in the sprints and jumps in Lydea Britt.
Last spring, Britt dropped solid marks in the 100, 200, 400, and triple jump, finishing out the season with personal bests of 12.76, 26.92, 1:01.67, and 11.09m (36-4.5), respectively. The triple jump personal best would be 3rd among 2024 returners. She opened up her season at the Paris Open on a very windy Friday night last week and should continue to progress as she picks up speed this spring.
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Top Teams
The Class 2 team title race in 2023 was one of the most incredible battles we have ever seen in state history. North Platte went toe-to-toe with Father Tolton at a state meet in which both teams scored over 80 points and North Platte came out on top, 86-83. They picked up at least 8 points in all four relays and at least 2 points in each running event from the 100 to the 3200, with double digit efforts coming in the 100, 200, 400, and 3200.
The Panthers head into the 2024 as the heavy favorites to repeat even after losing a couple of key points contributors. The effect of Father Tolton's ridiculously stacked distance squad moving out means North Platte's duo of Brianna DeBord and Chloe Heckmann will have an opportunity to snag those up-for-grabs points. They are projected to pick up 32 points in the individual events and should contribute to the total in the 4x800 relay, too.
Lindsay Ramsey appears ready to pull off the 200/400 double and should contribute, once again, in the relays. North Platte also returns Graci Williams, a key relay leg at the state meet, but will need to find some more to try to replace the likes of Olivia Rogers and Kalli Schuster, among others. They might not score 86 points again this year, but 50 is well within the realm of possibility and should lock the Panthers in as the favorite for a Class 2 title in 2024.
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Contrary to North Platte's emphasis on the running events, East Buchanan should compile points in several of the field events.
In the long and triple jump, the Bulldogs have Rilyn Sherwood who heads into the season with 5.17m (16-11.5) and 10.94m (35-10.75) personal bests and will be seeking a repeat of her triple jump state title in 2024. She is ranked 4th among long jump returners and 3rd among triple jump returners based on best marks.
In the throws events, Sherwood is also a 5th ranked returner in the javelin with a 34.8m (114-2) personal best, and she should have help from Brooklynn Johnson and Laney Wilmes to help round out the scoring there. Johnson is ranked 2nd among shot put returners and 5th among discus returners with personal best marks of 11.92m (39-1.25) and 33.94m (111-4.25). She was the state runner-up last spring in the shot put. Wilmes is ranked 4th among javelin returners at 35.52m (116-6.5) and picked up the final medal at last year's state meet.
It's big points from three girls, but we will see if East Buchanan can pick up a few more to climb the ladder and test the North Platte juggernaut.
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Jasper is a team to watch this spring by virtue of their hurdles/sprints/jumps phenom Crystal Smith. The junior projects to score 29 points on her own at this year's state meet, the exact number needed to land on the podium last year. She is the top returner in the 100m hurdles, 2nd in the 300m hurdles, 2nd in the high jump, and 5th in the 200m dash.
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Most of Malden's success this season will come from their sprints crew, much like it did in 2023. The Green Wave sprint squad finished 5th in 4x100 and 7th in the 4x200, while also picking up a 3rd place finish in the 100 meter dash from Angela Dobbins. They should also see points from Dobbins in the high jump and long jump.
Antwanasia Bloniarz-Smoot, Sydni Haliburton, and Khyrie Mathies are all important returners for the squad as they will most likely join Dobbins for at least one, if not two, sprint relays. Bloniarz-Smoot is a top 8 returner in the 100 meter dash (lifetime best of 12.70) and shot put (11.24m, 36-10.5). Malden was tied for 11th in 2023, but could be set up well to compete for their first ever team trophy in 2024.
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Dark Horse Team to Watch
Brentwood is a sneaky team for 2024 after a strong 2023 cross country season. Kensington Curd of course leads the way and could pick up 20 points all by herself, but it appears that the Eagles could make a run at the state podium with some gains from some important role players.
Nija Hayes will be an important piece to the puzzle for Brentwood as she heads into the season with the the 4th best triple jump mark among 2024 returners with a 10.55m (34-7.5) best. She was 6th in the event at last year's state meet. She is also the team's top returner in the 100, 200, and long jump.
Last season it took 29 points to land on the podium as Class 2 teams really shared the points well amongst each other, after the top 2 greedy squads pulled in 83 and 86. Twenty points from Kensington Curd in the 1600 and 3200, another handful of points from Hayes in the triple jump and, possibly, long jump, and a viable 4x800 squad could push Brentwood into trophy contention this spring.