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CROSS COUNTRY: Neosho sending three runners to state meet; Cole making third trip

By:
Jason Peake

 

In a grand finale to a stellar prep career, Neosho senior Kaden Cole will compete at the state cross country meet for the third straight season.

Cole will be one of three Neosho High School athletes competing alongside the state’s best later this week in Columbia.

Cole finished sixth in the varsity boys race at the  Class 5 District 2 meet on Saturday at the Bolivar Municipal Golf Course. He crossed the line at 16 minutes, 42 seconds.

Neosho’s Kaden Cole runs next to Joplin’s Hobbs Campbell late in Saturday’s district event at Bolivar. Photos by Jason Peake.

“I thought Kaden ran a really smart race today,” Neosho coach Emily Abell said. “He established his position early in the race and stuck with it. It was an extremely wet and muddy course, so I thought he did a great job conserving and running smart so that we can put the hammer down next week.” 

Cole took 14th at last year’s state meet, earning all-state honors. He also qualified as a sophomore. 

Cole is having a stellar senior season, as he won the Central Ozark Conference championship last week in Nixa. 

At the district meet, the top 30 individuals advanced to state. 

Pictured is Neosho’s Chloe Wood.

Neosho had two girls advance to state with their respective showings, as freshman Chloe Wood finished 10th in 20:09 and sophomore Riley Kemna was 13th in 20:25. 

“I’m very proud of the two girls who qualified today,” Abell said. “They have been working hard since June putting in the miles to prepare for this moment.  Having a freshman and a sophomore qualify is great for the future of the girls program. After the boys race, the girls and I had a talk about how important it is to establish early and hang on, especially on a course like that. They answered the call and got into great spots early on and then brought it home. I’m excited to see what they will do next week.” 

Kemna will run at state for the second straight season. 

At last week’s COC Meet, Kemna was eighth and Wood finished 16th.

The 47th MSHSAA Cross Country Championships begin on Friday in Columbia.

The Class 5 boys race is scheduled for 11:15 a.m. on Friday at Gans Creek Cross Country Course. The Class 5 girls race is slated for noon.

 

FULL RESULTS: MSHSAA Class 5 – District 2 2021 – Meet Results (milesplit.com)

 

Neosho’s Riley Kemna competes at Saturday’s district cross country meet in Bolivar. Kemna advanced to state for the second straight season.

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