NIXA, Mo. — For the second straight week, the Joplin High School cross country program made history.
Joplin’s full boys squad and three members of the girls team qualified for the MSHSAA Cross Country Championships with their respective performances at Saturday’s Class 5 District 6 meet at Inman Elementary School.
The top two teams and the top 15 individuals advanced to the state meet. Joplin’s boys finished second in the team standings with 67 points. Kickapoo was first with 38.
Now, for the first time in program history, Joplin will have a full team at the state championships.
“Our boys ran really well,” Eagles coach Dustin Dixon said. “They looked like they were driven after last week’s disappointment of getting third. I’m just really proud of them. This is the first team we’ve ever had make it to the state championships, so it’s going to be fun to take a bus instead of a van.”
Joplin’s girls made history last week by winning a conference championship, and Dixon noted his boys team accomplished a lofty preseason goal.
“In August, we thought we had a good team,” he said. “Year after year, we’ve come up short. They didn’t come up short this year. That means a lot. It’s hard to get there for the first time.”
Joplin’s seven boys all finished in the top 23. The Eagles were led by junior Zaben Barnes, who finished seventh in 16 minutes, 44 seconds.
“Zaben had a great day,” Dixon said. “Zaben and Hobbs Campbell are training partners. Hobbs has been our No. 1 all year, and we’ve told Zaben he’s capable of racing with Hobbs. He showed that today.”
Joplin’s Campbell (16:53) and Evan Matlock (16:54) finished 13th and 14th, respectively, while Ian Horton (17:03) and Micah Bruggeman (17:04) were 16th and 17th. Bruggeman gave the Eagles a boost, as he did not compete at last week’s COC meet.
“I thought Micah ran really well,” Dixon said. “He’s coming out of some sickness, but he closed the door for us today. He did exactly what we needed him to do for us.”
Also for the Eagles, Kane Brooks and Nicholas Horton took 22nd and 23rd, respectively. Kickapoo’s Tyler Harris was the individual medalist with a time of 15:48.
DUNN LEADS JHS GIRLS
Joplin junior Jennalee Dunn had a day to remember. And now, she’s heading back to the state meet for the second straight year.
Dunn was the district runner-up with a time of 19:20.
“I’m really glad I was able to qualify and I’m really proud of how our team did today,” Dunn said. “I’m just really happy right now.”
Kickapoo’s Klarie Brown crossed the line first with a time of 19:11. Dunn finished second, ahead of Nixa’s Alicen Ashley (19:25), who won the COC race last week.
“The Nixa girl had beaten me by about 10 seconds last week,” Dunn said. “Today, I knew I had to really fight to try to get my team qualified. I just tried to fight really hard.”
“Jennalee beat the conference champion and she looked determined,” Dixon said. “She ran really well. From the gun, she ran really well. We’re hoping she can bring a medal home next weekend.”
Two other Eagles qualified for state by finishing in the top 15. Freshman Allie Keizer placed 10th in 20:09 and sophomore Sage Mitchell took 12th in 20:32. Dixon noted both girls performed well with the season on the line.
Also competing for the Eagles on Saturday were Mairi Beranek (19th), Cylee Gilreath (20th) and Jackaline Triplett (27th). Alexandra Carson began the race, but was unable to finish. Carson finished fifth at last week’s Central Ozark Conference meet.
This year’s COC champions, Joplin’s girls were unable to advance the entire squad to state, as the Eagles finished third with 56 points. Nixa (46) and Kickapoo (51) were the qualifying teams.
“The girls won the conference championship last week against the team that won the district today, so that’s disappointing,” Dixon said. “We were winning, but we struggled in the last mile. But we feel good about where our program is. We have a junior, a sophomore and a freshman going to the state meet and every girl that ran today is coming back next year. We’re ready to take the next step.”
CARTHAGE PAIR ADVANCE
Carthage’s duo of Malcolm Robertson and Mariques Strickland placed eighth and ninth, respectively, in the boys race, qualifying for the state meet in the process.
A senior, Robertson crossed the line at 16:45, with Strickland, a junior, recorded a time of 16:50. They were the only two Tigers able to advance to state.
Carthage’s Joseph Wyrick finished 18th, while Richard Contreras was 27th. Also competing for the Tigers were Ty Lewis (41st), Eddy Fuentes (44th) and Landen Schrader (45th). Carthage’s boys were third in the team standings with 103 points.
The Carthage girls did not have a state qualifier. Keysli Elias finished 21st, Hadley McBride was 29th, Kimberly Hernandez took 31st and Allyssa Williams finished 42nd. The CHS girls finished sixth in the team standings.
WHAT’S NEXT?
The MSHSAA Cross Country Championships will be held Nov. 5-7 at Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia.
The Class 5 races are Saturday, with the girls running at 8:30 a.m., with the boys to follow at 11.
Due to restrictions in Boone County, attendance at the state meet is limited to two spectators per runner in each race, a MSHSAA press release said.
Class 5 District 6
Boys team standings: Kickapoo 38, Joplin 67, Carthage 103, Ozark 106, Branson 138, Nixa 139, Republic 210, Glendale 213, Parkview 248, Springfield Catholic 250.
Girls team standings: Nixa 46, Kickapoo 51, Joplin 56, Ozark 95, Parkview 146, Carthage 152, Branson 158.
PHOTO GALLERY: https://somo-sports.com/highlights/photo-gallery-district-cross-country-at-nixa/
