Senior Mariona Ward qualified for the state track meet in four events, setting school records in two of them as the Smith-Cotton High School track and field program saw six athletes advance in 10 events Saturday, May 23, in the District 5, Sectional 3 meet at Blue Springs High School.

Ward finished third in the long jump, with her leap of 18 feet, 2.5 inches breaking her previous school record of 18 feet. Ward and teammates Mekeba Nash, junior; Saige Peterson, freshman; and Monique Grant, freshman; also set an S-C record in the girls 4x100 meter relay, posting a time of 48.3, which was good for fourth place. Ward finished second in the 100-meter hurdles and third in the 300-meter hurdles.

Grant also will compete at the state meet in the 100-meter and 200-meter events; she finished fourth in both, posting a school record time of 12.21 in the 100. Nash moves on the triple jump, where she was second. Peterson came just short of advancing in the 800 meters, finishing fifth, but she did set a school record of 2:18.45.

For the boys, junior Chance Johnson won the high jump with a leap of 6 feet, 3 inches; he also was fourth in the long jump to move on in both events. Sophomore Keoni Hale set a school record in the triple jump. His effort of 43 feet, 2.5 inches was good for third place.

Coach Brad Hagedorn said, “It was an unbelievable day. I’m very proud of this deserving bunch of kids.”

The 2015 MSHSAA State Track and Field Championships are May 29-30 at Dwight T. Reed Stadium at Lincoln University in Jefferson City.

(Courtesy of Sedalia School District)

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