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CAST YOUR VOTE AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE. YOU MUST RANK NO. 1 TO NO. 4 WITH NO. 1 BEING YOUR TOP PICK.
Madison Hicks, Crane
Hicks had her season marred at the end by a hamstring injury but that didn’t take away from the stellar season the sophomore posted. She was unable to compete in either long or triple jump at the Class 2 state meet due to the injury but still finished with the area’s No. 1 long jump (18’09.5”) and No. 3 triple jump (36’09”). She finished fourth at the state meet in the 400-meter dash. She had the area’s No. 2 time in the event at 58.68.
Claire McCune, New Covenant
McCune was the star of the Class 2 state meet, bringing home three individual golds in a sweep of the distance events. She ran season-best performances in all three events at state. Her 3,200-meter finish time of 11:16.86 was the fastest in the area this year. Her 800-meter (2:19.24) and 1,600-meter (5:05.21) times were the area’s second-best in 2017. Those 30 points were key in helping New Covenant bring home the Class 2 state championship.
Jaden Wiley, Kickapoo
Wiley was just a freshman, but she quickly established herself as the area’s most versatile track athlete. She shines in the hurdles where she won the Class 5 state championship in the 300-meter hurdles. She paired that with a fourth-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles. Wiley posted the No. 1 time in the area in both events with a sprint-hurdle best time of 14.66 and a 300 hurdle best of 43.26. In addition, Wiley finished with top 15 marks in the all three sprints (100, 200 and 400) and the long jump.
Grace Wormek, Camdenton
Wormek can stake claim to southwest Missouri’s fastest girl. She didn’t bring home any individual gold from state, but finished with the No. 1 100-meter dash time (12.23) and 200-meter dash time (25.12) in the area. She was all-state in both events, finishing fourth and third, respectively. She also was a part of Camdenton’s champion 1,600-meter relay and third-place finishing 800-meter relay that helped the Lady Lakers win the Class 4 team title. Both of those relays finished as the fastest in southwest Missouri.
