CARTHAGE, Mo. — When the Carthage High School boys cross country team gathered for a group photo at the conclusion of Thursday’s Carthage Invitational, it was a meaningful moment for all those involved.
Why? The Tigers were posing with the team championship plaque, something that had eluded the program for more than two decades.
The Tigers claimed the team title at their own invite, edging Rogers 60-62 for the top spot in the standings.
The team title was a long time coming—21 years to be exact.
“I couldn’t be happier with our boys team,” Tigers coach Brian Crigger said. “This is the first time in 21 years we’ve won the boys division here. They knew they had a shot and they really wanted to do it. They ran great today and I’m really proud of them. This is special.”
Carthage’s Caleb Fewin (89), Eddy Fuentes (90) and Miguel Solano (96) are pictured during Thursday’s Carthage Invitational at the Carthage Golf Course. Photo by Jason Peake.
Carthage had three runners finish in the top 10 and five in the top 23.
Tigers senior Caleb Fewin finished seventh in 18:11, senior Miguel Solano was ninth in 18:23 and junior Eddy Fuentes took 10th in 18:25. Senior Michael Lanyon was 17th and freshman Devin Smith was 23rd.
“I had some kids step up,” Crigger said. “Caleb ran great today. The top five all ran really well. This is a tough course and there was really good competition. Our No. 5 (Smith) closed the deal for us.”
Also for the Tigers, Javen Byrd finished 43rd, Indiana Gray was 48th and Skyulor Honeycutt finished 50th.
On the girls side, Carthage was led by sophomore Maggie Boyd’s sixth place finish.
Katy Witherspoon finished 25th, Jennifer Rodas-Gomez was 27th, Jenna Wilson was 40th and Diana Pichardo took 42nd. Sonia Lopez-Gramajo (44th) and Alyssa Williams (45th) also competed for the Tigers.
“Maggie ran real tough,” Crigger said. “We have some work to do on the girls side. It’s a tough, challenging course for the girls, but they ran hard. Sometimes the results don’t show how hard they ran. They’ve improved a ton since last year. That’s all we can ask for.”
Crigger noted the program enjoys hosting the annual event at the Carthage Golf Course.
“I appreciate all the teams that come out and support this meet,” Crigger said. “This is the 49th year for the meet. It has to be one of the longest running meets in the area. And it’s just a fun meet to host.”
Carthage will be among the teams competing at the Southern Stampede on Sept. 17.
CARTHAGE INVITATIONAL
Boys team standings: Carthage 60, Rogers 62, Webb City 77, Willard 84, Glendale 86, Carl Junction 153, Springfield Central 173. Incomplete teams: Bolivar, Hillcrest, Parkview, Thomas Jefferson.
Girls team standings: Webb City 35, Rogers 41, Carl Junction 68, Glendale 107, Carthage 110. Incomplete teams: Springfield Central, Hillcrest, Parkview, Thomas Jefferson, Willard.
Carthage’s Maggie Boyd (81) and Webb City’s Hally Philpot are pictured during Thursday’s Carthage Invitational cross country meet.
Runners take off at the start of the varsity boys race on Thursday at the Carthage Invitational at the Carthage Golf Course. Photos by Jason Peake.
CARTHAGE, Mo. — Abi Street and Evan Stevens were both all alone as they approached the finish line in their respective races at the 49th annual Carthage Invitational.
The Webb City duo claimed individual championships in convincing fashion on Thursday at the Carthage Golf Course.
The pair of Cardinals cruised to first place finishes in their 5K competitions, as there were no other runners close by when they finished touring the course.
A senior, Street won the girls race in 19 minutes, 40 seconds, nearly two minutes faster than the runner-up, as Rogers’ Olivia Davis crossed the line at 21:23.
“I felt good today and our team did really well as a whole,” Street said. “There’s a lot of good girls here, so I’ll be honest, I was pretty nervous. I stuck with my game plan and I just ran my race. I always hope to do as well as I can. I don’t really realize that I’m all alone at the end because I’m just zoned in. I don’t really pay attention to that. I just try to race my race.”
Webb City’s Abi Street was all alone late in Thursday’s varsity girls race at the Carthage Invitational. Street cruised to a first place finish. Photo by Jason Peake.
Street went to the front early in the race and continued to pull away from the competition.
“Abi had some company for the first kilometer or so and that was great,” Webb City coach Dustin Miller said. “Then she was solo once again by the end of the race. Abi is really fit right now. Hopefully next week at MSSU Abi will get to showcase her skills against some solid girls. I know she’ll be ready to go, so it will be interesting to see how she does there.”
Street is now 2-for-2 this fall, as she cruised to a first place finish at last Saturday’s SWCCCA Invitational in Bolivar in 19:07. She won that race by 20 seconds.
“I’m excited about the start to the season,” said Street, who placed fifth at last year’s Class 4 state meet. “I think our team will be really strong this season. Our freshmen are really stepping up and that’s motivating me, too.”
Street wasn’t the only local runner to perform well on a warm Thursday.
Webb City’s Brooke Hedger finished fifth in 22:31, while Carthage’s Maggie Boyd took sixth in 23:05 and Webb City’s Rachel Miller placed ninth in 23:31.
Carl Junction’s Alexis Carpenter finished 13th, Webb City’s Kristina Bundy placed 15th and Carl Junction’s Audrey Fletcher and Delaney Harris were 16th and 17th.
Webb City’s Holly Capron finished 18th, Carl Junction’s Sadie Burchett placed 20th, Webb City’s Emily Countryman was 21st, CJ’s Klohe Burk took 24th and Carthage’s Katy Witherspoon placed 25th.
There were 50 runners in the girls race.
With four runners in the top 15, Webb City was the girls team champion with 35 points.
“We had three freshmen score for us today and sophomore Rachel Miller PR’d today on this course,” Coach Miller said. “She’s a monster and she has dedicated herself to the training. She has a positive mindset and it shows. Bundy, Hedger and Capron are starting to figure things out, so I’m proud of them. Our girls got out well, which was our big emphasis. We competed well and put ourselves in a position to get the team win. That’s exciting for us.”
Rogers (41) and Carl Junction (68) finished second and third in the team standings. Glendale (107) and Carthage (110) rounded out the standings, as Springfield Central, Hillcrest, Parkview, Willard and Thomas Jefferson did not have full squads competing.
Webb City’s Evan Stevens went to the front early in Thursday’s varsity boys race at Carthage.
STEVENS SHINES
Webb City’s Evan Stevens is off to a great start to his junior season.
Stevens went to the front right away and never looked back on the way to a first place win on Thursday.
Stevens toured the course in 16:46. The runner-up, Willard’s Nolan Hansen, finished in 17:23.
“Overall, I thought I ran all right,” Stevens said. “I went out a little fast and faded on the hills a little bit, but I guess that’s to be expected. I went to the front right away and wanted to make people race me. It feels good to be all alone like that at the end. It makes me feel like I came out and did my job. It’s always awesome to finish first.”
The individual win comes after Stevens placed third overall at last weekend’s SWCCCA invite in Bolivar.
“Evan had a great day,” Miller said. “He’s fit. I’m really excited to see what he can do next week with some top athletes competing at Missouri Southern. We’ll see if he can hang with some of those guys. There were some great athletes competing here today, too.”
After Stevens and Hansen, Webb City’s Mason Hedger finished third in 17:31.
“Mason went out harder than he did last week, and it paid huge dividends for him,” Miller said. “He had a shot at second, but Nolan held him off. I’m really proud of Mason. He’s figuring out how to race.”
Thomas Jefferson’s Kip Atteberry was fourth with a time of 17:40, Carthage’s Caleb Fewin finished seventh in 18:11, Carl Junction’s Jack Lawson placed eighth in 18:20 and Carthage’s duo of Miguel Solano (18:23) and Eddy Fuentes (18:25) finished ninth and 10th, respectively.
Jack Lawson
Also, Carthage’s Michael Lanyon and Devin Smith finished 17th and 23rd, Webb City’s Dakota Grove was 26th, Carl Junction’s Alexander Allison took 28th and Webb City’s Andrew Dawson was 30th.
There were 73 runners in the boys race.
Carthage (60), Rogers (62) and Webb City (77) were the top three teams. See a related story on Carthage’s team victory.
Willard (84), Glendale (86), Carl Junction (153) and Springfield Central (173) rounded out the top seven.
Miller noted his squad’s finish in the standings will provide extra motivation going forward.
“I was really proud of the way the guys got out,” Miller said. “Our back end, our No. 3-4-5, they got out well but didn’t move up. We had some self-doubt creep in. We didn’t perform well in the last mile and it showed. We deserved to get beat today. It’s unfortunate, but it’s early in the year and we’ll learn, and we’ll be better.”
TJ’S ATTEBERRY FARES WELL IN ’22 DEBUT
Competing against athletes from much larger schools, Thomas Jefferson’s Kip Atteberry fared well on Thursday, placing fourth in 17:40.
“I’m always more interested in my time and I wasn’t super happy with it today,” Atteberry said. “This is a tough course. And this is my first 5K of the season. I was unhappy with my time, but I’m very happy with my place. That’s a lot better than I did last year.”
Atteberry finished fourth at last year’s Class 1 state meet and earned all-state honors in three events at last May’s state track meet. With that, Atteberry has the goals set high for his senior campaign.
To Atteberry, Thursday’s performance is a solid starting point.
“It’s a pretty good start to the season,” Atteberry added. “I’m almost a minute faster than I was here last year. And I’m pretty excited about this season. I have big goals in mind.”
Atteberry will be among the local athletes who will compete at the Southern Stampede on Sept. 13 at the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course. Squads from Webb City, Carthage and Carl Junction will also compete at MSSU’s annual event.
Thomas Jefferson’s girls tennis team earned a 5-4 non-conference victory over Joplin on Wednesday.
Joplin won the No. 1 doubles match by injury forfeit, but the Cavaliers pulled out close wins in the other two doubles matches.
At No. 2 doubles, Thomas Jefferson’s Kyla Yang and Mayson Solum edged Jensen Vowels and Mya Ndedi Ntepe 8-6.
Thomas Jefferson’s Warda Morsy and Jessica Joseph defeated Alex Carson and Bonnie Smith 8-5 at No. 3 doubles.
At No. 1 singles, Joplin’s Emma Watts defeated Allison Ding 8-5.
Ndedi Ntepe beat Emalee Ro 8-2 at No. 2 singles.
TJ’s Yang edged Vowels 9-7 at No. 3 singles, but Joplin’s Brynn Driver beat Morsy 8-3.
The Cavaliers earned wins at No. 5 and No. 6 singles to secure the dual victory, as Joseph defeated Carson 8-5 and Solum topped Jadyn Elder 8-1.
MONETT 8, NEOSHO 1
NEOSHO, Mo. — Neosho’s lone win of the dual came at No. 2 singles, as Lyndsey Doke defeated Deleny Rueda 8-4.
The Cubs won the other five singles matches and the three doubles contests.
In other singles matches, Elizabeth Smith defeated Claudia Martensen 8-4, Vayla Smith beat Georgia Housh 8-0, Jocelyn Hernandez-Salas topped Keely Keeton 8-4, Serenity Laning beat Sydnee Minton 8-0 and Emma Parrigon edged Lauren Nageotte 8-6.
In doubles, Smith-Smith defeated Martensen-Keeton 8-2, Rueda-Hernandez-Salas edged Doke-Housh 9-7 and Laning-Parrigon topped Minton-Nageotte 8-6.
SENECA, Mo. — Joplin scored five runs in the middle innings and built an eight-run lead on the way to a 9-1 win over Seneca on Wednesday.
The Eagles’ winning streak is at six games with Joplin’s record standing at 12-2.
Jill McDaniel earned the win in the circle for Joplin after pitching six scoreless innings, allowing three hits, three walks and striking out 14. Caelyn Bobski allowed one run on two hits in one relief inning.
Abigail Jamros took the loss after allowing nine runs, five earned, on 10 hits, four walks and four strikeouts in seven innings.
Joplin reached the scoreboard in the second inning with a single tally scoring on a Seneca error before adding three more runs in the third frame on another Indians’ error, a bases-loaded walk by Izzy Yust and an RBI groundout from Kirsten McMillen to push the lead to 4-0. Jadyn Pankow added a run with an RBI groundout in the fourth inning for a 5-0 lead.
Joplin put the game out of reach in the sixth inning with Libby Munn driving in a run with a single to center field before McMillen followed with a two-run single to right for an 8-0 cushion.
Pankow added a run-scoring single to left in the top of the seventh and Seneca got on the scoreboard with an RBI groundout from Callie Rhoades.
Joplin is at Branson on Thursday.
CASSVILLE HOLDS OFF CARL JUNCTION
CASSVILLE, Mo. — Cassville broke a 5-5 tie with two runs scoring in the fifth inning and held off Carl Junction for a 7-6 win on Wednesday.
The Bulldogs (3-4) trailed 4-1 early before a four-run fourth inning gave CJ a 5-4 advantage. The Wildcats tied the game up with a run in the bottom of the fourth before scoring twice in the fifth for a 7-5 lead. Carl Junction rallied for a run in the top of the seventh inning but the final out was made before the tying run could score.
Stoufer earned the win after allowing six runs, five earned, on 11 hits and four strikeouts in seven innings pitched.
Kiley Spencer took the loss for CJ after allowing seven runs, four earned, on eight hits and three strikeouts in four innings of work. Hannah Cole pitched two scoreless innings in relief and allowed two hits.
Madi Olds, Izzie Southern and Dezi Williams all had two hits for Carl Junction. Olds, Southern, Cole and Ryleigh Palmer all doubled, while Sammie Sims recorded a triple. Olds, Spencer and Southern all finished with one RBI, while Olds scored a pair of runs. Spencer, Sims, Southern and Williams all scored a run.
NEOSHO, Mo. — The Neosho Wildcats improved to 6-2 overall and won their third straight game with a 15-0 victory in three innings on Wednesday against the New Covenant Academy Warriors at the Neosho Athletic Complex.
Senior pitcher Chloe Patterson tossed a perfect game and the Wildcats plated three runs in the first, four in the second, and eight in the third during a game that lasted just under an hour.
Neosho returned home Wednesday for a non-conference game between Central Ozark Conference road games Tuesday (Nixa) and Thursday (Republic).
“You throw a perfect game and run-rule them in three innings, it’s the shortest amount that you can play,” Neosho coach Catie Cummins said. “You hope to feel pretty good. … We feel good. I just felt like we did not hit the ball as hard as we could, and there were just a few things. I realize we got the outs available, and Chloe had a great game, but we need to be a little bit sharper with our effort in other areas.
“It’s hard when you play a big game the night before and win and come home and it’s not the same caliber of team. I understand that, but we got the win and got the job done. I sound a little nitpicky, but with great teams, you’ve got to be a little nitpicky.”
Patterson struck out seven Warrior hitters and Grace Johnson’s two-run triple in the third highlighted Neosho’s offensive production.
The Wildcats recorded 13 hits—two apiece from Autumn Kinnaird, Beclynn Garrett, Abbie Carpenter and Olivia Emery.
Carpenter drove in three runs, while Kinnaird scored three times.
Neosho vies for a 2-0 start in conference play when the Wildcats visit Republic on Thursday.
“Another big game,” Cummins said. “If we go in and get that game, we’re up 2-0 in conference and sitting pretty good after playing two of the toughest teams in the conference. I’m excited to go on the road again and play well. I think we should win that game and continue on a roll.”
Additionally, the win against Nixa and the potential win against Republic would also benefit Neosho in district seeding because they are three of the six COC schools in the eight-team Class 5 District 5.
Neosho defeated Nixa 2-1 on Tuesday in a game that will be remembered for the duel between Neosho freshman Olivia Emery and Nixa senior Madison Meierer in the circle.
“I can’t say we’re surprised by that (win), because we know what we’re capable of, but I know when that score was tweeted, others were surprised,” Cummins said. “It was huge for us, huge for our program. Our seniors, they wanted that one and they went and got it. Olivia was nails on the mound. We had some diving plays. We had line drives caught that could have easily been hits. We played very well, and I was so pleased. We got a lot of messages from other coaches around Neosho, a lot of teachers, so it was nice for them to realize how big of a win it was, as well.”
