MISSOURI STATE MEET

Rock Bridge Boys, Cardinal Ritter Girls Win Class 5 Team Titles 

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Chris Giles, Casey Hood and Andrew Hauser played big role in Rock Bridge's Class 5 boys team championship at the Missouri state track and field championships. 

Giles and Hood went 1-2 in the 100 meters, clocking 10.46 and 10.53, and powering 4x100 and 4x400 relay wins. Hauser, a sophomore, won the 1,600 in 4:11.72 and took third in the 3,200 meters. 

Mya Trober won the Class 5 girls 1,600 in 4:52.11 and the 3,200 in 10:40.97. 

Cardinal Ritter won the girls team championship, with sprinter Aniyah Brown, a sophomore, running 11.41w and 23.37w to win the 100 and 200. 

Zaya Akins of Raytown South starred in the Class 4 meet. She won the 100 in 11.32w (+2.5), which is faster than Muna Lee's all-time wind-legal state best 11.39. Akins broke the state 200 meters record earlier in the year but did not finish the state final. She broke the state meet record in the 400 with 53.41 seconds. 

PHOTOS by Lily Dozier

Connor Burns of Southern Boone ran one of the fastest times in state history, 8:48.76, to win the Class 3 3,200 meters final. Daelen Ackley from El Dorado Springs was second in 8:59.47. 

In the 1,600, Ackley got to the tape first in 4:05.96 and Burns was next in 4:06.49. That result helped both runners get added into the professional field of the Festival of Miles in St. Louis on June 2. 

In a couple of fast sprint finals, Chavi Flowers from Incarnate Word Academy ran 11.88w to win the Class 3 girls 100 over STEAM Academy's Leah Thames (12.01w). In the 200, Thames won it in 24.52 and Flowers was second in 24.79. 

Sydney Burdine won the 400 meters in 57.24 and Brooke Moore won the 100-meter hurdles in 14.29 and the long jump (18-8.75w) and triple jump (39-4.50) to lead Westminster Christian to the team title. 

Baylee Beard from Centralia threw 44-3.50 to win the shot put.

Olivia Rogers from North Platte shined in the Class 2 meet, winning the 100 (12.40) and 200 (25.95). She also contributed to winning relay teams in the 4x100 and 4x200 as her team won the championship. 

Lawson senior Cooper Slominski won the 110 hurdles and triple jump and was second in the 300 hurdles, and teammate Garron Blair won the javelin (174-3) to lead a winning effort.

Issam Asinga led Principia to the Class 1 boys team championship with high quality wins in the 100 meters (10.69 final/10.41w prelim) and 200 meters (21.95/21.25 prelim). 

Sophomore Riley Blay from West Nodaway tripled in the distance finals with 2:02.01/4:25.06/9:47.21. Green City's Asher Buggs-Tipton swept the hurdles finals (14.41/39.43). 

Emily Wheeler scored big points in the hurdles finals and triple jump and Olivia Shipps was in the top three of the shot put and discus to power Drexel to the girls team title. 

Lexi Craig from Stanberry threw 146-8 to win the javelin. 

Team champions - 

Class 5 - Rock Bridge boys 97 points, Cardinal Ritter College Prep girls 78 points - RESULTS

Class 4 - Festus boys 40 points, Parkway Central girls 78 points - RESULTS

Class 3 - Lutheran (St. Charles) boys 42 points, Westminster Christian girls 50 points - RESULTS

Class 2 - Lawson boys 48.5 points, North Platte girls 71 points - RESULTS

Class 1 - Principia boys 73 points, Drexel girls 46 points - RESULTS