SIX AREA PREP RUNNERS PICK UP ALL-STATE CROSS COUNTRY HONORS

JEFFERSON CITY -- Six area high school runners earned all-state honors Saturday by placing in the top 25 of their respective races during the Missouri State Cross Country Championships.

Two girls from Jackson, two boys and one girl from Perryville and one boy from Kelly all garnered all-state accolades.

Only two entire local teams advanced to state. Cape Girardeau Central's girls placed 13th in Class 4A while Kelly's boys were sixth in Class 2A.

Following is a rundown of how the local runners fared in the 5,000-meter races:

Cape Central (4A)

The Lady Tigers had 282 points to place 13th. West Plains won with 59 points.

Central's top finisher was freshman Brittany Ballard, who was 30th in 20:12. Other finishers were: 60. Myka Bohnsack 20:39; 90. Rachel Sprigg 21:08; 94. Leanne Lee 21:16; 138. Elizabeth Meyr 23:02; 142. Lori Bittle 23:28; 149. Lainie Bohnsack 24:22.

Central's boys had three participants, with the following finishes: 61. Mark Stone 17:17; 106. Justin Hawkins 17:45; 117. David Stahr 17:52.

Notre Dame (2A)

Rick Smith was 50th on the boys side in 18:13 while Susan Judd placed 71st in the girls meet in 22:14.

Jackson (4A)

The Lady Indians' Julie Wunderlich and Jennifer Brown earned all-state honors. Wunderlich was 24th in 20:03 while Brown was 25th 20:05.

Also for the Lady Indians, Sarah Stiegemeyer was 59th (20:38) and Sarah Schlick was 113th (21:47).

"Julie and Jennifer did outstanding," said Jackson coach Jim Stoverink. "That was their best times of the season."

Kelly (2A)

The Hawks had the highest area team finish, scoring 196 points for sixth. Willow Springs won with 45 points.

Nathen King placed 18th (17:30) to earn all-state honors.

Other finishes for the Hawks were: 49. Lucas Choate 18:13; 57. Daniel Mothershead 18:18; 75. Ashley Hahn 18:34; 98. C.O. Scheffer 18:53; 119. Jobi Berry 19:19; 130. Jamie Essner 19:37.

Kelly's girls got a 49th from Jenny Riley (21:47) and an 84th from April Cousins (22:38).

"It was a real tough race," said Kelly coach Bill Davis. "I thought we ran pretty well against some very tough teams."

Perryville (3A)

The Pirates' Jared Tanz and Nathan Davis made all-state, Tanz placing 13th in 17:11 and Davis finishing 17th (17:14). Also Nathan Moore was 48th (17:56).

For the girls, Jen Hadler was 24th (20:52) to make all-state. Renee Schlichting was 32nd (21:09) and Andrea Weibrecht 93rd (22:16).

"We really ran well," said Perryville coach Dean Lewis. "It was an exciting day."

Advance (1A)

Advance had two boys in the meet. Ross McFerron was 90th (19:29) and Chad Johnson 126th (20:11).