Woodland boys, Chaffee girls take team titles at Johnny Merrick Invitational track meet

BENTON, Mo. -- Depth proved to be the key for the Woodland boys and Chaffee girls on Thursday, both of which finished atop the team standings at the inaugural Johnny Merrick Track and Field Invitational at Kelly High School.

The Cardinals notched 174 points to claim the boys title, leaving Kelly (116.5) and Chaffee (55.5) in a distant second and third, respectively.

"We had a lot of kids that did a good job today," Woodland coach Ryan Layton said. "We had several firsts and seconds, but we also had a lot of sixths, sevenths and eithths -- just kids chipping in a little bit of points here and there. That makes a big difference when you're trying to win a track meet and get a lot of team points."

Cole Schlief took first in the triple jump (39 feet, 9 inches) and long jump (20-5) to lead the way for the Cardinals, who combined to place first in eight of the 17 events.

"He hadn't even been triple jumping until we had a couple injuries, and he came out today and won the triple jump," Layton said about Schlief. "... That was really big for us, for him to step in and fill those points in."

Runners compete in the 1600-meter run during the Johnny Merrick Invitational at Kelly High School on Thursday, April 14, 2016.Laura Simon

Woodland's Brandon Sitzes took first in the 400 meters with a time of 55.64 seconds, and Logan Thomsen paced the Cardinals in the 800, finishing with a top time of 2:11.95.

Woodland also received a pair of first-place finishes from Tyler Massa, who swept both the 110 hurdles (18.28) and the 300 hurdles (47.96), while teammate Zach Beel led the way in the discus with a throw of 123-8. The Cardinals concluded the meet with a top finish in the 1,600 relay, finishing with a time of 3:52.02.

"Right now we're blessed with talented jumpers and some fast kids, but I think our bread and butter is typically going to be the distance and mid-distance because we've got a strong cross country program," Layton said. "Those kids work hard in the summer. They work hard in the fall with cross country. Most of them are playing basketball in the winter, so they have to kind of take a break from the distance. But they're still working hard.

"I think that's definitely what I would call the backbone of our team right now, and I would expect it to stay that way."

The Cardinals are only in their second year as a track and field program, but Layton said he's excited about the direction it's heading.

"We had a lot of strong performances. It was definitely a team effort," Layton said. "... We're happy any time we can get out and run against good competition, and we got to do that here today. This is exactly the kind of meet we need."

Kelly's Maurice Davis showed why he was crowned the Class 2 state champion a year ago in the 100. He finished first in the event with a time of 10.87 and also took first in the 200 (23.14).

The Hawks finished first in the 400 relay (47.75), while Charleston (1:43.75) and Zalma (8:51.50) placed first in the 800 relay and 3,200 relay, respectively.

Zalma's Alex Steinberg finished first in the 1,600 (4:53.27), while teammate Peyton Ford had the top time in the 3,200 (10:44.34).

Augie Knutson won the shot put for the Red Devils with a throw of 48-11, and Dawson Ross finished as Kennett's lone first-place finisher with a victory in the high jump (5-8).

Chaffee claimed only four events on the girls side but was able to utilize a deep roster to come away with a first-place team finish. The Red Devils tallied 151 points, followed by Woodland (120) in second and Crystal City (81.5) in third.

Kelly's Shane Goering gets ready for his throw during the Johnny Merrick Invitational at Kelly High School on Thursday, April 14, 2016.Laura Simon

"It's always fun to win an invitational," Red Devils coach Travis Calkins said. "I think it was just a lot of girls in a lot of events. We filled out almost every event. As a matter of fact, I think we had at least two girls in every event, so we're scoring points all over the place."

Alyssa Lunsford paced Chaffee with a pair of first-place finishes in the 800 (2:42.34) and 1,600 (5:57.20), while teammate Mary Beth Knutson took top honors in the discus (92-8 1/2).

"We have a lot of girls out -- a strong freshmen class. We've got good numbers," Calkins said. "... Our big goal is to compete for a conference title, compete for a district title and get as many kids to state as possible."

Chaffee's Katie Glueck, Saxony Lutheran's Courtney Bangert and Woodland's Krista Rhodes all tied for first in the high jump with a leap of 4-6.

Woodland won three of the four relays, besting Chaffee in the 800 (2:02.27), 1,600 (4:45.28) and 3,200 (11:13.93), while Kelly took top honors in the 400 relay with a time of 56.15.

Shelby Sawyer paced the Cardinals with a top finish in the shot put (34-1), Kelly's Natalie Groves placed first in the triple jump (29-9) and Hannah Bode had a first-place finish for Scott County Central in the long jump (13-9) to round out the field events.

Jamie Hodge was the lone first-place finisher for Delta with a time of 13:41.78 in the 3,200, while SCC's Trinity Thomas placed first in the 100 in 13.26.

Crystal City was led by Emma Shirley, who took first in the 200 (27.89) and 400 (1:05.78), and Michaiah Fels, who placed first in the 100 hurdles (18.27) and 300 hurdles (54.69).

Scattered clouds and 75-degree weather accompanied the inaugural event, which is dedicated to the memory of former Kelly standout Johnny Merrick. A three-sport letterman who competed in baseball, track and field and basketball, Merrick graduated from Kelly in 1966 and went on to serve on the school board.

"We couldn't ask for a better day on the track," first-year Kelly coach Ryan Adams said. "This was my first invitational that I've put on. We had several schools come that helped me out. Overall, I think it was a success. The meet ran very smoothly once it got going."

GIRLS

Team scores -- 1. Chaffee 151; 2. Woodland 120; 3. Crystal City 81.5; 4. Kelly 76; 5. Kennett 47; 6. Scott County Central 44; 7. Bell City 27.5; 8. Delta 22; 9. Charleston 17 (tie); 9. Saxony Lutheran 17 (tie); 11. Malden 1

Top three finishers

100 -- 1. Trinity Thomas (SCC) 13.26; 2. Natalie Groves (Kel.) 13.58; 3. Taylor Green (Ken.) 13.62

200 -- 1. Emma Shirley (CC) 27.89; 2. Trinity Thomas (SCC) 28.05; 3. Bridgette Swinford (Chaf.) 28.57

400 -- 1. Emma Shirley (CC) 1:05.78; 2. Hannah Bode (SCC) 1:08.82; 3. Anderson (Char.) 1:11.05

800 -- 1. Alyssa Lunsford (Chaf.) 2:42.34; 2. Rebekah Page (W) 2:42.76; 3. Hannah Glueck (Chaf.) 2:47.63

1,600 -- 1. Alyssa Lunsford (Chaf.) 5:57.20; 2. Cheyenne Wells (W) 6:09.14; 3. Jamie Hodge (D) 6:10.00

3,200 -- 1. Jamie Hodge (D) 13:41.78; 2. Sarah Burch (Chaf.) 13:48.53; 3. Cheyenne Wells (W) 13:50.96

100 hurdles -- 1. Michaiah Fels (CC) 18.27; 2. Jaci Crank (Kel.) 18.56; 3. Alysa Moore (Kel.) 18.86

300 hurdles -- 1. Michaiah Fels (CC) 54.69; 2. Jaci Crank (Kel.) 54.78; 3. Johna Martin (W) 59.07

400 relay -- 1. Kelly 56.15; 2. Chaffee 56.51; 3. Woodland 56.60

800 relay -- 1. Woodland 2:02.27; 2. Chaffee 2:03.73; 3. Kennett 2:05.91

1,600 relay -- 1. Woodland 4:45.28; 2. Chaffee 4:47.15; 3. Crystal City 4:56.84

3,200 relay -- 1. Woodland 11:13.93; 2. Chaffee 11:17.52; 3. Crystal City 11:49.08

High jump -- 1. Katie Glueck (Chaf.) 4-6 (tie); 1. Courtney Bangert (SL) 4-6 (tie); 1. Krista Rhodes (W) 4-6 (tie)

Long jump -- 1. Hannah Bode (SCC) 13-9; 2. Michaiah Fels (CC) 13-6; 3. Krista Rhodes (W) 13-6

Triple jump -- 1. Natalie Groves (Kel.) 29-9; 2. Mary Beth Knutson (Chaf.) 28-3 1/2; 3. Jaci Crank (Kel.) 28-2 1/2

Discus -- 1. Mary Beth Knutson (Chaf.) 92-8 1/2; 2. Shelby Sawyer (W) 83-5; 3. Julia Sutterfield (Chaf.) 79-5

Shot put -- 1. Shelby Sawyer (W) 34-1; 2. Julia Sutterfield (Chaf.) 32-8; 3. Kiley Wicker (D) 30-9

BOYS

Team scores -- 1. Woodland 174; 2. Kelly 116.5; 3. Chaffee 55.5; 4. Saxony Lutheran 55; 5. Kennett 50; 6. Zalma 44; 7. Charleston 34; 8. Bell City 28.5; 9. Delta 23; 10. Crystal City 14; 11. Oran 9; 12. Scott County Central 7.5

Top three finishers

100 -- 1. Maurice Davis (Kel.) 10.87; 2. Gavin Hutson (Kel.) 11.50; 3. Tate (Char.) 11.67

200 -- 1. Maurice Davis (Kel.) 23.14; 2. Cole Schlief (W) 23.99; 3. Quntes Parsons (Ken.) 24.75

400 -- 1. Brandon Sitzes (W) 55.64; 2. Cole Shelby (Z) 56.47; 3. Kolten Siebert (BC) 56.50

800 -- 1. Logan Thomsen (W) 2:11.95; 2. Johnny Watkins (Kel.) 2:18.46; 3. Caleb Cornelius (SL) 2:21.35

1,600 -- 1. Alex Steinberg (Z) 4:53.27; 2. Jacobs (SL) 4:54.83; 3. Caleb Cornelius (SL) 4:59.00

3,200 -- 1. Peyton Ford (Z) 10:44.34; 2. Thomas Grindstaff (W) 11:16.90; 3. Joseph Andrews (CC) 12:46.77

110 hurdles -- 1. Tyler Massa (W) 18.28; 2. Kolten Siebert (BC) 18.92; 3. Wyatt Standridge (Kel.) 19.50

300 hurdles -- 1. Tyler Massa (W) 47.96; 2. Sam Elfrink (SL) 48.88; 3. Wyatt Standridge (Kel.) 51.19

400 relay -- 1. Kelly 47.75; 2. Charleston 49.35; 3. Woodland 51.22

800 relay -- 1. Charleston 1:43.75; 2. Kennett 1:44.34; 3. Woodland 1:47.03

1,600 relay -- 1. Woodland 3:52.02; 2. Chaffee 4:03.00; 3. Kelly 4:14.03

3,200 relay -- 1. Zalma 8:51.50; 2. Woodland 8:58.99; 3. Chaffee 10:09.84

High jump -- 1. Dawson Ross (Ken.) 5-8; 2. Paul Duncan (W) 5-4; 3. Dillon Holmes (O) 5-2

Long jump -- 1. Cole Schlief (W) 20-5; 2. Gavin Hutson (Kel.) 17-9; 3. Quintin Lara (Kel.) 16-10 1/2

Triple jump -- 1. Cole Schlief (W) 39-9; 2. Maurice Davis (Kel.) 39-3; 3. Cesar Fraire (Kel.) 33-9

Discus -- 1. Zach Beel (W) 123-8; 2. Bradyn Swinford (Chaf.) 121-0; 3. Augie Knutson (Chaf.) 109-10 1/2

Shot put -- 1. Augie Knutson (Chaf.) 48-11; 2. Tucker Robinson (D) 41-10; 3. Jacob Long (W) 40-10