Jackson's Nicole Humphreys nabs 2 individual titles at track and field sectional meet

Jackson junior thrower Nicole Humphreys enjoyed dual championships Saturday, finishing atop the podium in both the shot put (38 feet, 1 inch) and discus (113 feet, 7 inches) at the Class 5 Sectional 1 meet at Kirkwood High School in Kirkwood, Missouri.

She was joined in state qualification by teammate Olivia Brown (113-06) in the discus and teammate Katherine Schumer (10-06) in the pole vault.

On the track, the Jackson girls team will be represented at the state championships by Carli Knott in the 800-meter run (fourth; 2 minutes, 20.38 seconds) and the 3,200 relay squad of Megan Barnum, Kaylee Wilson, Chelsea Drum and Knott. The team finished third at the sectional meet with a time of 9:27.50.

The Jackson boys crowned one sectional title winner, with Dakota Maddox's pole vault mark of 14-9 good enough to win the event.

Justin Crane landed in second in the discus with a throw of 148-2, while Dane Evans was third in the shot put thanks to a throw of 49-7.

The track events saw the 3,200 relay team of Caleb Bess, Ean Buffington, Gabriel Dudley and Jackson Givens qualify for state with a second-place result (8:04.17).

Individually, Bess advanced with a 1:57.63 in the 800, good enough for the fourth and final qualification slot.

In the girls team standings, Jackson finished third with 66 points, behind winner Lafayette Wildwood (122) and Kirkwood (115).

In the boys team standings, Jackson finished in fourth with 57 points. Lafayette Wildwood topped the meet with 149 points, and St. Louis University High was second with 148.

Class 4 Sectional 1

Eric Roth had a banner day for the Perryville boys team on Saturday at Lutheran South High School in St. Louis.

The freshman won a sectional championship in the in the 300 hurdles with a time of 39.21, qualified for state with a fourth-place finish in the 200 (22.95) and ran on two state-qualifier relay squads -- the 400 and 800.

Those groups also included Payton Besand, Pablo Mattingly and Emilio Mattingly.

The Pirates qualified for state in the 1,600 as well, with Kyle Wood replacing Roth on that unit.

Notre Dame is moving on in the 3,200 relay thanks to a fourth-place result from the team of Matt Gibbs, Rudy McClellan, Weiguo Wu and Gabrial Meadors.

In the boys' field events, Cape Girardeau Central put in a strong show, qualifying three athletes for state.

The Tigers will be represented by Rico Flye in the high jump (second place; 6-4), Christian Mitchell in the shot put (fourth place; 48-03) and Patrick Buck in the discus (second place; 143-03).

Central had the best showing of any local schools in the girls' competition, qualifying in three individual events and a pair of relay races.

Alexus Walker led the way, finishing third in the 100 with a time of 12.97 and fourth in the long jump with a mark of 16-2 1/4.

Teammate Quetaja Martin landed in third in the shot put with a throw of 35-8 1/4.

Central's relay squads earned state qualification in the 400 (Kylie Lane, Jaleria Dent, Brittnee Blackmon, Walker) and 800 (Lane, Salia Hamilton, Blackmon, Walker) with second- and third-place results, respectively.

Notre Dame qualified in four events, with Courtney Jones moving on in the high jump (third; 4-11) and Jaden Barnes in the pole vault (second; 10-03).

The Bulldogs' 800 relay team (Lilly Edwards, Jones, Claire Morrill, Megan Jansen) finished third, while the 1,600 team (Edwards, Katie Hanners, Jansen, Morrill) grabbed second.

In the boys team standings, Perryville finished eighth with 40 points, Central 14th with 21 and Notre Dame 19th with 5.

Rockwood Summit won the team title with 107, comfortably ahead of second-place finisher Poplar Bluff (67).

In the girls team standings, Central finished sixth with 37 points, Notre Dame ninth with 35 and Perryville 19th with 4.

Webster Groves won the girls event with 104 points.