The Platte County track and field team got a mini-state preview while competing at the 60th annual Capital City Relays on Saturday, April 13 at Adkins Stadium at Jefferson City High School.
On the same track as the state championships next month, the Pirates had a pair of champions in a deep field with teams from Missouri and Illinois.
Colorado State-Pueblo signee Keegan Cordova picked up a win in the 1,600-meter run in 4 minutes, 32.66 seconds, nearly a full second ahead of Jefferson City’s Thomas Neid.
Isabella Geddes did well the hurdles, winning the 300-meter (46.83) and was the runner-up in the 100 (15.87).
Jacob Laures was a runner-up for Platte County in the pole vault, jumping 14 feet.
Xavier Keith, coming off his school record in the shot put, threw 55-1 ½ in the event and took third.
Blake Reynolds took third in the 200 dash, while a pair of relays were third.
The 4x120-yard shuttle hurdle team was made up of Will Hay, David Pecha, Spencer Hay and Chandler Steinmier, while Abbie Schweider, Haley Luna, Aly Anderson and Bryn McGehe were on the 4x400-meter relay team.
Gary Parker Invitational
Four of the six Suburban Conference Gold Division teams took part in a meet hosted by Blue Springs.
The Trojans took third in the girls standings with 54 points, coming in behind Columbia Battle (108) and Lee’s Summit West (104).
The lone championship for Park Hill came from LaShunda Tapp, who won the discus event with a throw of 113 feet, 2 inches in competition held at the Blue Springs Freshman Center, a mile from the Gary Parker Track Complex. She added a runner-up finish in the shot put.
Teresa Thomas was the runner-up in the long jump and was third in the 100-meter dash.
Javion Gathrite had the highest finish for the Trojans, taking third in the 110-meter hurdle event. Park Hill took 15th overall in the boys standings. Battle won the boys title by 1 1/3 points ahead of Kirkwood.
Winnetonka Invitational
Park Hill South claimed the boys championship at the Winnetonka Invitational on Thursday, April 11 at the North Kansas City District Athletic Complex at Staley in Kansas City North.
The Panthers racked up 160 ½ points, easily outdistancing runner-up North Kansas City’s 126.
St. Teresa’s Academy won the girls title, followed by North Kansas City, Kearney and Park Hill South (77 ½ points) in the standings.
The Panthers won six races, while taking first in the 4x400- and 4x800-meter relays.
In the 4x400, Chris Dupree, Christian Ludtke, Connor McCauley and Ethan Mick ran 3:31.95 and posted a 15-second margin of win ahead of North Kansas City. In the 4x800, Dupree, Christpher Rouse, Moti Sarbessa and McCauley ran 8:42.61 and posted a 14-second win ahead of Kearney.
McCauley, a junior, won the 200-meter dash in 24.38, edging teammate Payton Murray. In the 1,600-meter run, Ludtke won in 4:39.91, while Bret Worley took second, four seconds behind. Worley got a first in the 800 (2:07.01), while Anthony Bell won the 110-meter hurdles (16.66).
Bell added a second in the triple jump and third in the 300 hurdles.
Addison Snowball was the runner-up in both the shot put and discus, coming in behind North Kansas City’s Adetomiwa Adebawore, a Northwestern football signee, in both events.
Ben Owere was second in the 100 finals, but didn’t compete in the triple jump event, a week after setting the school record in that event. Mick was second in the 400.
Andrew Beldo (javelin) and Duke Maddox (3,200) were third-place finishers for Park Hill South.
On the girls side, the lone first-place finish came from Maya Sullivan in the pole vault. She jumped 10 feet to win, while teammate Taylor Young was third with a jump of 8-6.
De’Jaria Guillory had the lone second for Park Hill South girls, doing so in the 300 hurdles.
Third-place finishes went to: Alex Hammon (100 hurdles), the 4x800 (Paige Snider, Skyelar Nelson, Marisa Garcia, Sarah Gardner); Grace Dieleman (javelin) and Melody Sasser (high jump).
Kearney Throwers Meet
One of the longest standing records at Platte County High School fell on Tuesday, April 9.
The Pirates went to Kearney Throwers meet and by the end of it, Xavier Keith had added his name to the leaderboard.
Keith threw 56 feet in the shot put and broke the mark that Larry Bigus set in 1972 with a heave of 54-11. Keith, a senior, easily won the event as Kearney’s Dylan Jones was second at 46-2.
In the discus, Keith set a new personal record and took fourth place.
Addison Long had a runner-up finish in the javelin on girls side, with a toss of 105 feet.
Jaycie Stubbs was fifth behing Long and added a fourth-place finish in the shot put.
Gunner Tongate was seventh for the Pirates in the boys javelin.