Southeast Missourian player of the week: Jackson's Brannon Wright

Jackson senior Brannon Wright won the 100 and 200 meters and ran the opening leg on the Indians' victorious 1,600 relay at the Class 4 District 1 meet Saturday at Fox High School.

The first-place finishes were three of five events won by the Jackson boys, who won their first district track title since 1982.

Wright will compete in four events at this weekend's Class 4 Sectional 1 meet after also posting a second-place district finish in the 400, an event in which he took third at the state meet as a junior.

"In the world of sprinting, that's as full a load as you're going to get, and boy he answered the bell on it and did a great job," Jackson coach Steve Wachter said about Wright's district performance.

The speedster has been ending his senior year in a blaze of glory after earning first-team all-state honors as a receiver in football last fall. He recently won the 100, 200 and 400 at the SEMO Conference North meet.

At district, Wright won the 100 in 10.94 seconds and the 200 in 22.33. He bettered his winning time at the conference meet by clocking 50.97 in the 400.

Wachter said a cold spring prevented Wright from running a full schedule until recently, but he believes his sprinter is peaking at the right time.

"He's blessed with some really good speed, but on top of that he has two other ingredients," Wachter said. "One, he has tremendous work ethic, and two, he's very intelligent. He's smart about how he trains and he listens really well."

Wright signed a letter of intent earlier this year to compete in track at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo.