Two weeks of the 2025 track and field season are down and now it is time for meets to start. With racing season on the horizon, Missouri MileSplit has several articles on deck to get you all ready for the excitement.
First on deck is our bold predictions for the 2025 season. After a historic 2024 season which saw numerous overall and State meet records broken, this spring should be no different. In fact, it may be even better.
So check out our ten boldest predictions for the 2025 season. We look forward to watching and covering all the amazing things our Show-Me State athletes accomplish this season.
More on MoMileSplit: Returner Rankings | Meet Calendar | District/Classification Projections | Articles Archive | Virtual Meets
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1. Ladue Ends Cardinal Ritter's Historic Team Title Streak
The 2025 Class 5 Girls State Track and Field meet is going to be one for the ages.
Ladue, the reigning Class 4 State Champions who scored 68 points, will be moving up to meet the reigning back-to-back-to-back Class 5 State champions, Cardinal Ritter, in a juggernaut battle unlike any we have ever seen..jpeg)
In their fourth straight victory, Cardinal Ritter scored a whopping 103 points, becoming only the third team to ever score 100 points at the State meet (Trinity Catholic - 2019, Lee's Summit West - 2018). They have averaged 86.6 points in their four consecutive victories and are looking to become only the third team to ever win five State titles in a row.
The Ladue Lady Rams cruised to the 2024 Class 4 State Track and Field state title
Ladue, though, is returning most of their team from last season and are bringing in some interesting additions. They were milliseconds off the State record in the 4x400 last year and should be poised to compete in all four relays and the sprint events once again this year.
The Lady Lions lost several athletes to graduation last year, but return nationally ranked hurdler Kyndall Spain along with a strong stable of sprinters, including Takia Tiller, Mekenzie Rogers, and Kayla Watkins, among others. Tiller and Watkins will contribute in the horizontal jumps, as well, but will their prowess in the sprint events, sprint relays, and a handful of points in the horizontal jumps hold off the onslaught Ladue will bring in this year?
It starts with Delaney Brinker, a generational talent who is headed to Kansas State University next year. She has posted impressive marks from 200 to 800 over the last two seasons, as well as a 7.87 60m mark that converts to approximately 12.12 in the 100 meter dash. 
She was instrumental in their State 4x200 and 4x400 victories in 2024, while picking up individual points in the 200 and 400. Her sister Zoey has joined the fold this winter, posting a 1.63m (5-4) mark in the high jump and 10.73m (35-2.5) mark in the triple jump already. She joins Bella Jones, the reigning Class 4 high jump champion, to form a dynamic 1-2 jumps duo.
3:45.91 Meet Record. With the scoreboard in the background displaing the new Class 4 State Meet Record and 2nd-fastest time in state history, Ladue's (left to right) Delaney Brrinker, Aaliyah Rogers, Karina Griffin, and Laila Murray, pose on the awards podium.
Their half-mile crew of Aaliyah Rogers (below), Karina Griffin, and Harper Buxner will make the Rams competitive for the 4x800 title, while Laila Murray should once again contribute to the long sprints stable, as well. The loss of Journee Williams to Francis Howell High School will be a big blow, but they are adding freshman Zoe Coleman as a solid replacement.
Cardinal Ritter knows how to push the button at the end of the season and head into overdrive, steamrolling every competitor on their way to impressive victories over the last four years. We are projecting that Ladue and Ritter will be battling it out all the way through the State series, first in District 2, then Sectional 1, then in Jefferson City, though, so this could be a situation where the team with the most bodies at Adkins Stadium is the one who comes out on top. Either way, our first bold prediction for the 2025 season is that this tight battle comes out in favor of the Ladue Horton Watkins Rams.