Notre Dame races into inaugural track season

The calendar still says winter and basketball, but anticipation is building for spring sports.

The high school girls swimmers are already getting their feet wet with practice having started Wednesday, and the rest of the spring teams will begin preparations Feb. 25.

When practices start, there will be one more program on the map -- Notre Dame track and field.

Notre Dame Regional High School is putting the finishing touches on its facility, an asphalt eight-lane 400-meter track with long jump and pole vault pits inside the oval.

Former Kelly coach Bill Davis will guide the program into its first season with Ben Johnson -- not the ex-Canadian sprinter -- as his assistant.

"We modeled it off Southeast Missouri State University," Davis said, referring to the Abe Stuber Track & Field Complex.

The track, which may have a rubber surface added in the future, does allow for a football field in the middle, although the school doesn't have immediate plans for a football program.

The final touch will be adding athletes, an element that has surprised Davis and athletic director Chris Janet.

Forty-six boys and 31 girls are signed up for the maiden season.

"It's kind of an overwhelming response to the new addition," Janet said.

Davis said he was accustomed to 40 to 55 athletes turning out at Kelly.

"I'm sure we'll be on the low rung of the totem pole," Davis said. "We should have some good athletes, but it will take some time."

Notre Dame will participate in its first meet March 21 at East Prairie, and will hold its inaugural home meet April 13.

"We're going to try to have an opening ceremony," said Davis, of the first home meet that will have Jackson, Cape Girardeau Central, Fredericktown and Egyptian, Ill., as guests.

Notre Dame, which will have one other home meet April 29, also plans to participate in the Jackson Invitational, Cape Relays and Poplar Bluff Invitational. Other highlights will be participating in a triangular with Jackson and Central and hosting the 2A district meet at Southeast Missouri State University.

Thompson goes with Irish

Central senior Jon Mark Thompson made school history last week when he signed to play college soccer at Notre Dame. Thompson, Central's all-time leading goal scorer with 60, became the first Tiger to sign with a Division I program straight out of high school.

Davidson, a strong Division I program, offered Thompson an even more attractive scholarship, but he opted for the Irish.

"I liked Notre Dame a little better because they have one of the best coaches in the country," Thompson said.

Thompson was referring to coach Bobby Clark, who just finished his first season at Notre Dame after turning Stanford into one of the elite programs in the nation. Thompson said playing for Clark was a priority and he would have seriously considered Stanford if Clark was still coach.

In his first year at Notre Dame, Clark led a sub-.500 team he inherited to a 14-7 season and was chosen Big East coach of the year in the process.

Thompson said he believes Clark can bring out his best.

"I want to see what I can do," he said. "I don't want to look back and say 'What did I miss?' I think I have the best chance of playing after college if I go there."

Besides being a two-time all-state player, Thompson is tied for the top ranking in his class with a 4.0 grade point average. He's undecided on a major, but has his eyes on dental or medical school.

"He obviously, with his smarts and soccer sense, can do whatever he wants to do," Central coach Tom Doyle said. "His worth ethic and desire to succeed are very good."

Playing midfield, Thompson tied Mark Scheer's single-season record with 26 goals his senior season.

"Jon Mark has a very good feel for the game," Clark said. "He makes excellent decisions with the ball and will contribute as a scorer in the midfield for us."

Up for grabs

A lot is at stake with district 3A-4A tournaments this week, but the 1A-2A schools, which hold districts next week, still have some unfinished regular-season business.

Among the agenda is still deciding boys champions for the Scott-Mississippi and Mississippi Valley conferences.

The Scott-Mississippi crown will be decided Friday night when Oran visits Benton, Mo., to play the Kelly Hawks. While Oran (17-6) holds a much better overall record than Kelly (6-14), both teams will enter their final regular-season game with 5-0 conference records.

Leopold (9-13, 4-1) can clinch the Mississippi Valley title with a win Tuesday at Oak Ridge. Meadow Heights (13-9, 3-1), which encountered its one conference loss to the Wildcats, closes with conference games against Chaffee and Zalma. The Panthers, led by first-year coach Tom Brown, are already assured of their first winning season in 12 years.

Jeff Breer covers high schools for the Southeast Missourian