Tiger track not done

JEFFERSON CITY— After placing fourth in the 2008 Class 4 MSHSAA Track and Field Championships, the Waynesville boys track team lost some key members of the squad that scored 34.5 points.
This year, they aren’t as deep, but head coach Jerry Guffey didn’t fret over it.
“We know coming in that it would be tougher today [than it was last year],” he said.
On Friday, the Tiger boys had a rough outing. Only one runner— hurdler Solomon Williams— qualified for the finals in his heat.
He, along with shot putter Taeshaun Agee, will be the last Tiger boys standing today at Lincoln University’s Dwight T. Reid Stadium in Jefferson City.
Williams qualified for the finals in the 110-meter hurdles and will compete in the long jump today. He placed fourth in the triple jump Friday, earning the Tigers five points with a leap of 47-2 1/2 feet.
“I wasn’t too happy with myself for that one,” Williams said of the triple jump result. “I was just a little bit off.”
A quarter-of-an-inch off, to be exact. Derek Blevis of Raytown South jumped 47-2 3/4 feet to capture third.
Williams said he was confident that he could earn top three finishes in both of his other events.
He’ll be the favorite in the 110 hurdles, where he placed first in his heat—and among all qualifiers—at 14.25.
“I had a bad start,” he said. “I hit that first hurdle real bad.”
But he overcame it to race to first overall. Prentice Ivy of Chaminade finished second among qualifiers with 14.27. Williams expects him to be main competition today.
“If everything goes as planned, I can win,” Williams said, referring to his misstep on that first hurdle. “I want to hopefully get a [time of] 13 [seconds],” he said.
He also has a chance to take first in the long jump, where he qualified with a jump of 22-7 1/2, second only to Dajuan Beard of Raytown South.
“If I can get a good landing, I think I can make top three,” he said.
If not, he said he could fall further down— there’s a log jam further down as Williams and the third-and-fourth-seeded jumpers were all within 1/4 of an inch of one another.
Aside from Agee, who will throw the shot put tomorrow, the other Tiger boys failed to advance. Senior sprinter BJ Ray struggled in the 400-meter dash, finishing at No. 13 with a 50.41.
Ray rebounded and ran a nice opening leg of the 400-meter relay, but the team lost some steam and finished at No. 14 with a 3:27.56.

Girls looking solid
Although the boys will only have three competing today, the Lady Tigers have five.
“We did alright, although the 200-meter [relay] team didn’t qualify,” said girls head coach Gary Shultz.
“But Ekate [Lymon] is running very well.”
The sophomore Lymon will get a chance to defend her 100-meter dash title today. She also has a shot at the 200.
She said he time in the 100 has been improving from earlier in the season.
“I can feel myself starting to get better,” she said.
Lymon qualified for today’s finals with a 12.17.
The 200 also treated her well Friday. She ran a 25.09, breaking the school record— which she owned.
“In the sectional I ran a 26,” she said, “so I’m happy. I’m feeling a bit more confident about the 200.”
A chief rival of Lymon’s in both races will be Gateway Tech’s Olivia Lewis, a senior who bested her in the 200 last year. She’s seeded first in the 200 and second in the 100 this year.
“All this competition is just making me do my personal best,” she said.
Other than Lymon, the remaining Lady Tigers will compete in field events today.
Jasmine Reynolds had the top qualifying seed for the high jump, Roxanne Koke is entered in the shot put (she also threw the discus, but did not place) and Shaunte Davis will triple jump.
Davis and Reynolds were on the 200 relay team, so they’ll have another shot at scoring some points for the Lady Tigers today.
“I think I’ll win,” Davis said. “I know I sound pretty confident, but I have to.”
She qualified in the middle of the pack with a 25-6, but said that the three girls directly ahead of her weren’t ahead by much. All of them qualified with a 25-8.

Team scores: Here are the team scores after the first day and five scored events. The Waynesville boys are tied at No. 13 with 5 points, while the girls have yet to score.

Class 4 boys: 1. Lee's Summit West 30; 2. St. Louis University High 16; 3. Raytown South 14; t-4. Francis Howell North, Ozark 13; 6. Lebanon 12; t-7. Joplin 10, Timberland 10; 9. Nixa 9; 10. Neosho 8; t-11. Hazelwood East, McCluer 6; t-13. Glendale, Waynesville, Chaminade 5; t-16. Blue Springs, Normandy, Rock Bridge; t-19. Rolla, Parkway Central, Rockwood Summi; t-22. Lee's Summit North, DeSmet, Hickman, Smith-Cotton 2; t-26. Raymore-Peculiar, Park Hill South, Parkway North, Vianney 1                                       

Class 4 girls: 1. Parkway Central 28; t-2. Jefferson City 17, Rockwood Summit 17; 4. Lee's Summit West 15; 5. Neosho 14; 6. North Kansas City 13; 7. Jackson 10; t-8. Ft. Zumwalt West, Branson 8; 10. Washington 7; 11) Lee's Summit North, Eureka, Hickman 6; t-14. Joplin, St. Joseph's Academy, Ft. Zumwalt South 5; t-17. Raytown, Raytown South, Liberty 4; t-20. Nerinx Hall, Winnetonka, Lafayette (Wildwood) 3; 23. Northwest (Cedar Hill) 2; t-24. Kirkwood, Hazelwood West 1

Class 3 boys: 1. Boonville 18; t-2. Potosi, Sikeston, Logan-Rogersville 16; 5. Staley 10; t-6. Farmington, Duchesne, Versailles, Westminster Christian Acad. 8; t-10. Maryville, Windsor (Imperial), Harrisonville, Oak Grove 6; t-14. Ste. Genevieve, Clayton, Union, Kennett 5; t-18.West Plains, O'Hara, Cameron, University City, St. Charles West, Perryville 4; t-24. St. Clair, Carl Junction, Jennings 3; t-27. Lutheran South, Ava, Kearney, Notre Dame (Cape Girardeau) 2; t-31. Osage, Savannah 1

Class 3 girls:  1. Festus 30; 2. Villa Duchesne 15; t-3. Lincoln Prep, Moberly 13; 5. Boonville 12; t-6. M.I.C.D.S., KC Center, Staley, Sullivan, Kearney, West Plains 8; t-12. Smithville, Maryville, California 6;       t-15. Carl Junction, Kirksville, Marshall 5; t-18. Grain Valley, Odessa 4; t-20. Southern Boone County, Herculaneum, Savannah, Ruskin 3; t-24. Sikeston, Helias, Warrenton; t-27. Mexico, St. Francis Borgia, Fredericktown, Farmington 1; t-31. Republic, Chillicothe 0.50