Joplin boys take 2nd at Class 5 Sectional 3 track and field meet

May 24—WAYNESVILLE, Mo. — The Joplin boys track and field team will be well-represented at the MSHSAA Track and Field Championships this weekend in Jefferson City, Mo.

The Eagles claimed four individual titles and qualified for state in eight events en route to a second-place team finish at the Class 5 Sectional 3 meet on Monday at Waynesville High School.

Joplin amassed 79 team points on the day and finished only behind boys team champion Capital City, which led the field with 98 points. Lafayette-Wildwood (55) and Republic (55) tied for third while Nixa (54) and Waynesville (54) tied for fifth.

University of Oklahoma commit Donovyn Fowler led the way individually for the Eagles with two event wins and one runner-up finish. He broke his own program record in the long jump as he won the event with a distance of 7.48 meters, and he also claimed the crown in the triple jump with a mark of 15.07 meters. His second-place finish came in the 200-meter dash as he clocked a time of 22.78 seconds.

Hobbs Campbell had a busy day for Joplin as well. Also a state qualifier in golf this spring, he picked up an individual title in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 4 minutes, 21.54 seconds and finished second in the 800 run with a time of 1:54.54, which was just behind Capital City's Keion Grieve, who set a state-best time of 1:53.73.

Campbell also joined Evan Matlock, Nick Horton and Zaben Barnes on Joplin's 4x800 relay team that qualified for state with a fourth-place finish. The Eagles' 4x100 team, which featured Orion Norris, Davin Thomas, Luke Vieselmeyer and Fowler, also qualified with a second-place finish in a time of 43.45 seconds.

Donovahn Watkins rounded out the state qualifiers for Joplin as he won the sectional title in the shot put with a mark of 17.73 meters.

The Neosho boys team had a pair of state qualifiers in Tyrese Hill, who placed third in the 100-meter dash, and Kaden Cole, who was runner-up in the 1,600-meter run.

Micah Lindsey headlined the day for the Carthage boys with a fourth-place finish in the shot put.

On the girls side, Joplin had state qualifiers in five different events and totaled 36 points to place ninth as a team.

Leading the way for the Eagles was double state qualifier Jennalee Dunn, who finished runner-up in both the 1,600 run (4:57.61) and 800 run (2:18.93).

Maria Loum led the Eagles in the field events with a second-place finish in the pole vault (2.9 meters). Joplin's 4x200 team of Allie Lawrence, Abigayle Lowery, Amaya Montgomery and Brynn Driver placed third with a finishing time of 1:46.93.

The Carthage girls had a state qualifier in Joey Hettinger, who placed second in the high jump with a leap of 1.65 meters.

Capital City won the girls team title with 102 points and was followed by second-place Lafayette-Wildwood (96) and third-place Nixa.

CLASS 4 SECTIONAL 3

The Carl Junction girls track and field team won four individual titles and qualified for state in seven events to tie for third in the team standings on Monday at Waynesville High School.

West Plains won the team title with 113 points and was followed by runner-up Marshfield (75). CJ and Rolla tied for third with 73 points apiece.

The Bulldogs were led by Sydney Ward, who won event titles in the 100- and 200-meter dashes with finishing times of 12.38 and 25.49 seconds, and Alanza Montez, who won titles in the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles with times of 14.87 and 44.82 seconds.

Olivia Vediz highlighted the field events for CJ, placing second in the long jump with a leap of 5.21 meters and placing fourth in the triple jump with a distance of 10.66 meters.

The Bulldogs' 4x400 relay team rounded out the state-qualifying performances, placing second with a time of 4:07.11.

The Webb City girls, placing fifth in the team standings with 69 points, qualified for state in seven events.

Riley Hawkins accounted for an event win for the Cardinals in the 800-meter run as she bested the field with a time of 2:23.14. She also placed second in the 1,600 with a time of 5:16.07.

Webb City's Samantha Mancini finished runner-up in the shot put (11.33 meters), while Ripley Shanks, Dawsyn Decker and Abi Street placed fourth in the pole vault, javelin and 3,200-meter run, respectively.

The Cardinals' 4x800 team of Sophia Crane, Isabella Lopez, Alanna Bundy and Elliett Capron placed fourth with a time of 10:11.35.

Monett had one state qualifier in Vayla Smith, who placed third in the 400-meter dash.

The Webb City boys also fared well in the meet as they amassed 65 points to finish third in the team standings. The Cardinals had one event champion and qualified for state in six total events.

Grayson Smith accounted for the event win for Webb City in the pole vault as he claimed the sectional title with a mark of 4.58 meters. His teammate, Justin Allen, placed second in the event with a mark of 4.0 meters.

Also for the Cardinals, Trey Roets took second in the javelin (51.75 meters) while Nathaniel Miller placed fourth in the discus (42.58 meters).

In the relay races, Webb City took third in the 4x800 and fourth 4x200. Evan Stevens rounded out the team's state qualifiers with a fourth-place finish in the 3,200 run.

Konner Poynter had a big day for Monett as the qualified for state in three events, placing third in the 400 dash (51.39 seconds), third in the 110 hurdles (15.77) and fourth in the 200 dash (22.84).

McDonald County had a pair of state qualifiers in Joshua Pacheco, who took third in the triple jump, and Andrew Moritz, who placed fourth in the javelin.

The Class 5 and Class 4 MSHSAA Track and Field Championships will run Friday through Saturday, May 27-28, at Adkins Stadium in Jefferson City.