Huffman headlines an impressive district meet for Kelly track and field

Advancing to the Class 2 sectional track meet in three events last year wasn't enough for Kelly's Dalton Huffman, so the Kelly High School junior decided early this season to add to his repertoire.

A state participant in the high jump, long jump and triple jump last year decided to try life in the fast lane.

"Me and another kid started out running the 100 at the beginning of the year and ended up running some of our fastest times, even breaking the school record, so we decided to put together a 4x100 team, and ended up winning and placing and all that," Huffman said during a break in Saturday's Class 2 District 1 track and field meet at Central High School. "And then today, we got (second) and beat our (personal record) and the school record again (45.28 seconds), so it's very exciting. A very big deal."

It was a big deal -- and a big day -- for many of the Kelly athletes at the meet. As a team, both the Kelly boys and girls placed third in the district meet, but the Hawks advanced a number of athletes to next week's sectional meet.

Huffman and his relay teammates -- sophomores Matt Burford and Maurice Davis along with senior Gavin Ray -- will run in next week's sectional, along with junior sprinter Dakaria Johnson, who placed first in the 100-meter dash in 12.85 seconds and in the 200 at 27.41 seconds.

The Kelly girls squad placed third with 90 points, behind Jefferson (137) and Herculaneum (111), while the Kelly boys were also third with 80 points, behind Valle Catholic (97) and Herculaneum (92).

"Our Kelly track team has probably been the best it's ever been in a long time," Huffman said. "Our whole track team has just been breaking records the past two years."

Kelly's Dakaria Johnson wins the girls 100-meter dash during the Class 2 District 1 track meet Saturday, May 10, 2014 at Central High School. (Fred Lynch)

Johnson, who finished eighth in the 100 last year at the state meet in Columbia, is looking for bigger and better things this time around.

"This year I want to at least rank in the top three, which I think I can do," she said.

She also anchored both Kelly's winning 4x100-meter relay squad, which toasted the competition with a time of 51.96 seconds, and the Hawks' 4x200 relay team, which won with a time of 1:50.94.

"I feel like we have a really good relay team," she said of Kelly's 4x100 squad. "Four fast girls, which you really don't (often) get in the relay. We made it to state last year, but I think we can keep pushing and make it to state again, and actually finish in the (top) four."

Huffman won the triple jump with a leap of 42 feet, 11 1/2 inches and placed second in both the high jump and long jump to qualify for the sectional meet in all four of his events.

Teammate Trey Walker shattered his personal best by more than 7 seconds to win the 1600-meter run with a time of 4:37, a race in which the senior runner led from start to finish.

"I prefer to not front-run, but that's how the race went out today, so I was just going to take control and run my race," Walker said. "The first 800 was a little slow, so I knew that I'd have more for the last 800 than I normally would, so I just started pushing it more."

Kelly's Samantha Ratledge competes in the long jump event during the Class 2 District 1 track meet Saturday, May 10, 2014 at Central High School. (Fred Lynch)

Kelly junior Samantha Ratledge won the long jump title with a leap of 16-3/4, which helped soothe a second-place finish in the triple jump.

"I think I pushed myself a little harder, realizing that I had to do something in the long jump since I didn't do anything in triple, really," Ratledge said. "I didn't perform in triple today at all."

Other top area performances included Saxony Lutheran's boys 4x800 relay squad, which stunned the competition with an 8:50.70 clocking, some 12 seconds better than its seeded time.

"We were behind Herculaneum by about 10 or 11 seconds," said Saxony senior Taylor Richmond, who ran the first leg for the Crusaders. "We just wanted to come out and each person just take just a few seconds off our time and we'd be competitive with Herculaneum. But we never actually had to compete with them and we still took time off. ... We didn't expect to come in first place. We came out here thinking that we were one of the better teams out here, and we just wanted to prove that to everybody."

Greg Hapgood started the second leg in third place. By the time the senior distance specialist handed off the baton to Saxony's third runner, he had given the Crusaders a large lead.

"I don't really consider myself the best runner, but I guess that I did want to give him a good lead," said Hapgood, who also qualified for the sectional in the 1600- meter run with a third-place finish. "And I did that. ... They're around my speed, so they can keep that lead where it is and even push it further."

Freshman Drew Zieba maintained the advantage for the Crusaders over the third leg.

"I was just hoping I could keep it and not give it away," Zieba said. "As a freshman, I thought it was going to be really, really hard, [but] I did it. And I'm glad for all the guys that made it. I was trying to (not) let anyone else get past."

Saxony senior Aaron Koehler brought the victory home.

"Having that big lead, I just wanted to keep up with it," said Koehler, who was suffering the effects of an upper respiratory infection from earlier in the week. "I figured those guys put in all that work and effort for me, I'm not going to let them down. That's what I tried my best to do, and I managed to pull it off."

"Being my senior year, it's the last time I get to run, and the last time I get to run with these guys, especially. They're such a great team. I'm really pumped for sectionals coming up."

Chaffee's Trevor Morehead competes in the shot put event during the Class 2 District 1 track meet Saturday, May 10, 2014 at Central High School. Morehead placed first in the event with a throw of 48 feet, 11 inches. (Fred Lynch)

In the field events, Chaffee's Trevor Morehead won the shot put with a heave of 48-11.

"I'm pleased, but I really just wanted to hit that 50-spot," Morehead said. "I've been working all week in practice, and I thought I would work it up today, but you've got to be happy with what you get. I'm pretty pleased. Just excited to move on to the next level and hopefully make it to state."

Morehead credited Chaffee's throwing coach, Terry Glenzy, for his success.

"[Glenzy] does a great job working with us," he said. "He's one of, if not the best, coach in the area. And we do have a lot of exceptional throwers. It's a lot of credit to him."

Scott City sophomore Rachel Perry won the girls discus with a throw of 102 feet, 2 inches. She thinks she can do better.

"It just came out of my hand really good," she said of her winning toss. "I want to try and hit 110 (feet)."

Other local first-place finishers included St. Vincent sophomore Delia Lowman with a time of 1:02.19 in the girls 400 meters and Scott City's Austin Spriggs in the high jump with a 5-10 effort.

BOYS

Team Scores -- 1. Valle Catholic 97; 2. Herculaneum 92; 3. Kelly 80; 4. Charleston 78; 5. Carnahan 60; 6. Hayti 45; 7. Malden 41; 8. East Prairie 40; 9. Scott City 33; 10. St. Vincent 32; 11. Saxony Lutheran 24; 12. Grandview (Hillsboro) 22; 13. Caruthersville 20; 14. Chaffee 17; 15. Jefferson (Festus) 12; 16. Crystal City 9

Sectional qualifiers

100 -- 1. Devonte Ware (Char) 11.48; 2. Cedric Harris (Ha) 11.52; 3. Larry Rhines (Carn) 11.68; 4. Gaven Ray (K) 11.72

200 -- 1. Adam Fisher (He) 23.46; 2. Devonte Ware (Char) 23.49; 3. Nathan Stamps (He) 23.69; 4. Cedric Harris (Ha) 23.86

400 -- 1. Adam Fisher (He) 50.70; 2. Cedric Harris (Ha) 50.73; 3. Damian Jokerst (VC) 52.63; 4. Armond Spann (Ha) 53.00

800 -- 1. Trey Walker (K) 2:00.22; 2. John Lipe (SV) 2:09.09; 3. Austin Pennell (VC) 2:09.69; 4. Patrick Matthews (M) 2:10.09

1,600 -- 1. Trey Walker (K) 4:37.48; 2. Patrick Matthews (M) 4:48.19; 3. Greg Hapgood (SL) 4:48.59; 4. Josh Ferguson (He) 4:57.27

3,200 -- 1. Tristan Mock (He) 10:34.42; 2. Ryan Pieper (He) 10:40.56; 3. Colton Kassen (J) 11:00.28; 4. Aaron Koehler (SL) 11:03.01

110 hurdles -- 1. Tyler Craig (Char) 16.35; 2. Nick Gracy (Carn) 16.38; 3. Skyler Bewley (SC) 16.75; 4. Laurent Washington (Carn) 16.98

300 hurdles -- 1. Tyler Craig (Char) 42.67; 2. Gaven Ray (K) 42.94; 3. Skyler Bewley (SC) 43.57; 4. Nick Gracy (Carn) 44.19

400 relay -- 1. Carnahan (Larry Rhines, Curtis Phillips, Adrian Harris, Dontrelle Busby) 44.54; 2. Kelly (Matt Burford, Maurice Davis, Dalton Huffman, Gaven Ray) 45.28; 3. Valle Catholic (Jason Jokerst, Jarrod Davis, Tyler Fallert, Damian Jokerst) 45.28; 4. Caruthersville (Xavier Williams, Abdule Johnson, Marcus Hunt, Terrance Raspbery) 46.39

800 relay -- 1. Carnahan (Dontrelle Busby, Adrian Harris, Eric Williams, Larry Rhines) 1:32.98; 2. Charleston (Demontrail Clark, Tyler Craig, Dyrel Pierce, Devonte Ware) 1:36.83; 3. Caruthersville (Marcus Hunt, Abdule Johnson, Terrance Raspbery, Xavier Williams) 1:37.73; 4. Hayti (Jamerial Cody, Kedron Rollings, Elijah Jones, Jamal Brooks) 1:38.23

1,600 relay -- 1. Valle Catholic (Damian Jokerst, Tristan Huck, Jarrod Davis, Austin Pennell) 3:34.82; 2. Scott City (Noah Hahn, Caleb Sykes, Austin Spriggs, Skyler Bewley) 3:40.36; 3. Carnahan (Nick Gracy, Isayas Wright, Larry Rhines, Laurent Washington) 3:44.76; 4. East Prairie (Joey Abrego, Davon Douglas, Matthew Howell, Deverence Jones) 3:45.09

3,200 relay -- 1. Saxony Lutheran (Greg Hapgood, Aaron Koehler, Taylor Richmond, Drew Zieba) 8:50.70; 2. St. Vincent (Isaac Baer, Levi Krauss, John Lipe, Brett Lottes) 8:52.80; 3. Herculaneum (Daniel Evans, Josh Ferguson, John Maddox, Tristan Mock) 8:53.59; 4. East Prairie (Joey Abrego, Cade Douglas, Davon Douglas, Cody Easter) 8:54.30

High jump -- 1. Austin Spriggs (SC) 5-10; 2. Dalton Huffman (K) 5-10; 3. Brandon Evans (EP) 5-10; 4. Damion Tipler (EP) 5-8

Pole vault -- 1. Logan Tucker (VC) 14-0; 2. Nathan Stamps (He) 13-0; 3. Sam Huskey (G) 11-6; 4. Josh Craig (G) 11-6

Long jump -- 1. Brandon Evans (EP) 21-0 1/2; 2. Dalton Huffman (K) 20-7 1/2; 3. Abdule Johnson (Caru) 20-7; 4. Dyrel Pierce (Char) 20-4 1/4

Triple jump -- 1. Dalton Huffman (K) 42-11 1/2; 2. Dyrel Pierce (Char) 42-1 1/4; 3. Brandon Evans (EP) 40-0 1/2; 4. Isaiah Williams (Char) 39-3 1/2

Shot put -- 1. Trevor Morehead (Chaf) 48-11; 2. Nick Thompson (M) 47-5 1/2; 3. Jesse Meyer (VC) 44-6 1/2; 4. Devon Foote (He) 44-6

Discus -- 1. Nick Thompson (M) 155-7; 2. Robbi Wingerter (SV) 126-5; 3. Matthew Skaggs (VC) 123-0; 4. Jesse Meyer (VC) 121-4

GIRLS

Team Scores -- 1. Jefferson (Festus) 137; 2. Herculaneum 111; 3. Kelly 90; 4. Grandview (Hillsboro) 65; 5. Valle Catholic 64.5; 6. St. Vincent 45; 7. (tie) Carnahan, Scott City 34; 9. Crystal City 31; 10. Chaffee 29; 11. (tie) East Prairie, Hayti 18; 13. Charleston 11; 14. Saxony Lutheran 8; 15. Malden 2.5

Sectional qualifiers

100 -- 1. Dakaria Johnson (K) 12.85; 2. Ashley Perry (J) 13.35; 3. Hilah Fish (J) 13.52; 4. Danitra Jones (Char) 13.55

200 -- 1. Dakaria Johnson (K) 27.41; 2. McKynlee Neumeyer (K) 27.78; 3. Danitra Jones (Char) 27.84; 4. Kassidy Kassel (SV) 28.31

400 -- 1. Delia Lowman (SV) 1:02.19; 2. Kelly Cooper (G) 1:02.22; 3. Ashley Perry (J) 1:02.29; 4. Chelsey Operle (VC) 1:02.97

800 -- 1. Kim Huskey (G) 2:26.63; 2. Bella Bowers (SC) 2:28.63; 3. Sam Jarvis (He) 2:33.23; 4. MacKenzie Null (J) 2:35.17

1,600 -- 1. Alyssa Becherer (J) 5:41.70; 2. Sam Jarvis (He) 5:45.80; 3. Emily Bolen (K) 5:49.48; 4. Danielle Prince (He) 5:56.86

3,200 -- 1. Danielle Prince (He) 12:55.16; 2. Kristen Keeney (J) 13:04.80; 3. Alyssa Becherer (J) 13:28.86; 4. Sally Heil (VC) 13:48.85

100 hurdles -- 1. Mackenzie Roney (He) 17.16; 2. Emily Flecke (CC) 17.46; 3. Courtney Eisenbeis (J) 18.02; 4. Summer Maxwell (EP) 18.36

300 hurdles -- 1. Mackenzie Roney (He) 49.54; 2. Ivy Winters (Ha) 50.95; 3. Sydney Patterson (C) 53.30; 4. Bailee Settle (J) 53.42

400 relay -- 1. Kelly (Samantha Ratledge, Dakaria Johnson, Taylor Lasater, McKynlee Neumeyer) 51.96; 2. Carnahan (Imani Denton, Bryanna Williams, Tiana Tolen, Joy Burton) 52.63; 3. Valle Catholic (Chelsey Operle, Lacey Marschel, Briley Bieser, Eva Rolfe) 53.77; 4. Jefferson (Courtney Eisenbeis, Elizabeth Steller, Claire Welker, Holly Welker) 55.82

800 relay -- 1. Kelly (McKynlee Neumeyer, Taylor Lasater, Dakaria Johnson, Samantha Ratledge) 1:50.94; 2. Valle Catholic (Chelsey Operle, Lacey Marschel, Briley Bieser, Eva Rolfe) 1:51.00; 3. Carnahan (Imani Denton, Ariel Thompson, Tiana Tolen, Joy Burton) 1:52.94; 4. Jefferson (Ashley Perry, Claire Welker, Holly Welker, Hilah Fish) 1:54.11

1,600 relay -- 1. Valle Catholic (Chelsey Operle, Lacey Marschel, Briley Bieser, Eva Rolfe) 4:20.54; 2. Grandview (Kelly Cooper, Danika Eaker, Kaitlin Fitzsimmons, Kim Huskey) 4:21.47; 3. Jefferson (MacKenzie Null, Hilah Fish, Holly Welker, Ashley Perry) 4:25.64; 4. St. Vincent (Kelsie Graham, Kassidy Kassel, Madison Hoehn, Delia Lowman) 4:34.83

3,200 relay -- 1. Jefferson (Alyssa Becherer, Madalynn Brown, Kristen Keeney, MacKenzie Null) 10:29.61; 2. Valle Catholic (Allison Bahr, Briley Bieser, Sally Heil, Eva Rolfe) 10:34.25; 3. Grandview (Kelly Cooper, Veronica Eultgen, Sarah Kelly, Sydney Thomlinson) 10:45.10; 4. Crystal City (Abby Foster, Josie Miller, Jessica Reynolds, Virginia Rice) 10:54.51

High jump -- 1. Katelyn Fuller (He) 5-2; 2. Cailey Metcalf (He) 4-10; 3. Danika Eaker (G) 4-8; 4. Morgan LeDure (K) 4-8

Pole vault -- 1. Mackenzie Roney (He) 11-0; 2. Maddie Shadowens (He) 8-6; 3. Kenzie Graham (SV) 8-0; 4. Taylor Kirn (SV) 8-0

Long jump -- 1. Samantha Ratledge (K) 16-3 3/4; 2. Dakota Arnold (EP) 15-11 1/2; 3. Sydney Patterson (C) 15-9 1/2; 4. Emily Flecke (CC) 15-3 1/2

Triple jump -- 1. Emily Flecke (CC) 34-2 1/2; 2. Samantha Ratledge (K) 33-11 1/2; 3. MacKenzie Null (J) 33-8; 4. Rae Andrews (He) 32-10

Shot put -- 1. Caitlyn Wehner (J) 33-6; 2. Julia Sutterfield (Chaf) 32-2; 3. Rachel Perry (SC) 31-7; 4. Kaitlin McFerron (Chaf) 31-6 1/2

Discus -- 1. Rachel Perry (SC) 102-2; 2. Stefanie Cliver (G) 95-0; 3. Caitlyn Wehner (J) 93-7; 4. Kennedy Gollihue (G) 92-5