Sikeston boys track team primed for run at state meet

sports@standard-democrat.com

JEFFERSON CITY -- Finishing with a state championship in one event last year, the Sikeston boys track team would like nothing more than to repeat that performance.

Unless of course it meant finishing with a team championship.

After qualifying for the Class 3 state track and field meet in eight events, the Bulldogs stand an outside shot at a team championship.

The Bulldogs will be sending three relay teams, a sprinter, a hurdler and three jumpers to Dwight T. Reed Stadium on the campus of Lincoln University in Jefferson City today for the first day of the Class 3 and 4 state meet.

The 4x100, 4x200 and 4x400 relay teams all finished first at their respective sectional last Saturday.

The 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams consist of Steven Baker, Spenser Clark, Kyland Gross and Nick Nichols. That same team won last year's 4x200 state championship.

The 4x200 team is seeded first at the state meet and the 4x100 is seeded second. The 4x400 relay team (Deterio Newman, Nichols, Zach Harrison, Baker) is seeded third.

Along with those three relay's, Baker also qualified in the 100-meter dash. He's seeded 10th.

Clark qualified with a third place finish at sectionals in the 300-meter hurdles with a time of 41.72. He's seeded 14th at state.

Jumpers Gross, Tyler McClinton and Earnest Fobbs all qualified in the three different jumping events.

Gross, who finished forth at sectionals, qualified for state in the long jump with a leap of 20-3 1/2. He's seeded 14th at state.

McClinton finished second at sectionals and is seeded ninth in the high jump at state. In the triple jump, Fobbs, a freshman, is seeded ninth at state after a third place finish at sectionals behind a jump of 42-10.

Their toughest obstacle standing in their way for a state championship is Grandview.

Grandview is the defending state champions and return nearly every piece to their team from a year ago.

On the girls side, Sikeston qualified in four events.

Allisha Oglesby leads the way in three events including the triple jump as well as serving as the anchor on the 4x100 and 4x200 relay teams.

Oglesby is seeded third in the triple jump at state while the relay's are seeded 10th and sixth.

The 4x100 team consists of Brandy Peet, Chazeton Redd, Tyra Bonner and Oglesby. Ailena Stovall takes the spot of Redd in the 4x200 relay team.

Peet also qualified in the 200-meter dash where she's seeded 11th.

Other local qualifiers include Dexter's Makayla Waldner and New Madrid County Central's Rashaundra Summers.

Summers is seeded third at state in the shot put. Waldner qualified in three events: the 100 and 300-meter hurdles and the long jump. She's seeded seventh in the 300, eighth in the 100 and 10th in the long jump.