By Brennan Stebbins (For OzarksSportsZone.com)
It didn’t take long for Joplin head coach Nick Reid to get soaked.
As soon as the announcer declared Joplin the boys team winner at Friday’s Central Ozark Conference track and field meet in Carthage, the athletes waiting around him quickly doused him in water.
It was the last of several celebrations on the day for the Eagles, who won five events and continued a string of strong showings at the conference meet.
“Everybody just showed up,” Reid said. “Our distance kids did a great job, our field events, we had some sprints show up. Just a total team effort.”
Joplin won a conference title for the third time in four years, which includes the school’s final year in the Ozark Conference (2018) and first in the COC a year later. Last year the Eagles finished second to Webb City by just two points.
“We had worked out the numbers,” Reid said. “We knew it was going to be a battle between about four teams. The COC is really deep top to bottom. Our kids just showed up, competed and got it done.”
Joplin finished with 112 points, besting second-place Willard by 15, while Republic placed third and 20 points back.
Donovyn Fowler had the best showing, scoring 34 points and winning three individual events. He broke his own school record in the long jump with a winning distance of 7.45 meters. He also won the triple jump and the 200-meter dash, and was the first leg on the 4×100 relay that finished fifth to score four more points.
“Donovyn Fowler showed up,” Reid said. “He’s won double gold in the jumps, long and triple, all year. He did that again today and also won the 200. He was 30-some points today which was huge for us. School record in the long jump, he had a good day.”
Donovahn Watkins also won the shot put for the Eagles, and Hobbs Campbell won the 800.
Overall, Joplin scored points in all but four events.
“Donovahn Watkins, Hobbs Campbell … our whole distance crew did great in the 800, 1600, 3200, 4×8,” Reid said. “Total team effort. It was fun to be a part of.”
Luke Vieselmeyer took sixth in the high jump for three points, Aidan Sampson added three in the long jump with a sixth-place finish; Watkins placed seventh for two points in the discus, Dontrell Holt was seventh for two points in the shot put, Drew VanGilder was seventh for two points in the javelin throw, Joplin was third for six points in the 4×800 (Evan Matlock, Ian Horton, Zaben Barnes, Nicholas Horton), Joplin was sixth for three points in the 4×200 (Tayshaun Palmer, Luke Vieselmeyer, Davin Thomas, Orion Norris), Campbell was second and Matlock seventh in the 1600 for 10 total points, the 4×100 was fifth for four points (Fowler, Thomas, Vieselmeyer, Palmer), Orion Norris took eighth for a point in the 400, Horton was sixth for three points and Matlock seventh for two in the 800, Norris took fourth for five points in the 200; Campbell was second, Barnes fifth and Ian Horton eighth for 13 points in the 3200; and the 4×400 was sixth for three points (Norris, Matlock, Asher Mobley, Nicholas Horton).
Branson and Ozark each won three events. Ozark’s Ryan Dotson won the javelin, Gabe Bauer won the 3200 and the Tigers won the 4×200 relay. For Branson, Colsen Conway won the 110 hurdles, William Thornton won the 400 and Conway won the 300 hurdles.
Neosho had two champions: Jared Siler in the high jump and Kaden Cole in the 1600. Webb City’s Grayson Smith won the pole vault and the Cardinals won the 4×100 relay. Willard won the 4×800 relay and Walter Jones-Luster won the 100. Nixa’s victory was Tony Perez in the discus, and Republic won the 4×400 relay.
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Nixa girls repeat as COC champions
Same story, different year for the Nixa girls track and field team.
Last year the Eagles and Ozark finished first and second, respectively, at the Central Ozark Conference championship meet. It was the same order this year, but Nixa built an even bigger lead. The Eagles finished with 163.50 points, besting the Tigers by 64.
“It’s fantastic,” Nixa head coach Lance Brumley said. “It’s just a great group of kids that’s really fun to coach. I’m fortunate as a dad because my daughter is a senior on the team so I get to be her coach. It’s definitely a blessing.”
“I think it was our depth,” he said. “We scored in just about every single event and we’ve got some spots, we’ve got some really solid distance runners and they scored several. We scored two girls in the 100 and the 200. We scored two girls in both hurdles races. We scored in the relays, in the jumps. Our depth is a strength of our program right now.”
Nixa came away with four individual winners. Jena Medearis won the high jump, Ashlyn Allison won the discus, Taylor Hopper won the 400 and Alicen Ashley won the 3200. The Eagles scored in every event but the 800, and scored multiple times in 10 of those.
Chloe Holgate added two-and-a-half points in a tie for sixth in the high jump, Mya Coalson took fifth for four points and Eva Williams was seventh for two points in the pole vault; Faith Chepkondol was third for six points and Allie Erickson eighth for one in the long jump, Chepkondol placed sixth for three points in the triple jump, Halle Hanna was fourth for five points in the shot put, and Dakota Hale (fourth) combined with Christena Berry (fifth) and Lauren Loney (sixth) for 12 points in the javelin throw.
On the track, the 4×800 of Brookelyn Bidinger, Emily Harris, Cassidy Williams and Ashley placed second to score six, Carlee Brumley was fourth for five points and Camila Figueroa earned three in sixth place in the 100 hurdles, Chepkondol scored six by placing third and Taylor Hopper scored five in fourth place in the 100, the 4×200 of Natalya Bradley, Lily Holmes, Kaedyn Pierce and Adrienne Roberts scored three by placing fifth, Ashley finished second to score eight and Harris was fifth for four points in the 1600, the 4×100 of Brumley, Figueroa, June Collins and Allison kamies took fourth for five points, Bidinger added two by placing seventh in the 400, Figueroa finished second and Brumley fourth for a combined 13 in the 300 hurdles, Chepkondol (second), Hopper (third) and Kamies (eighth) combined for 15 in the 200, Harris added four by placing fifth in the 3200, and the 4×400 of Bidinger, Figueroa, Kamies and Hopper finished third to score six.
“We needed to score in every event and we talked about how if we could do that we’re going to be really tough to beat,” Brumley said. “Not only that but we were able to put multiple people on the board. Really impressed with the depth of our program and how kids aren’t afraid to go out and score points in sixth, seventh, eighth place.”
Carl Junction led all schools with six first-place finishes and placed third in the team standings. Alanza Montez won the 100 hurdles and 300 hurdles and Sydney Ward won the 100 and 200. The Bulldogs also won the 4×100 and 4×400 relays.
Joplin’s Jennalee Dunn won the 800 and 1600, and the Eagles also won the 4×200 relay. Branson’s Cali Essic won both the long and triple jumps. Webb City’s Samantha Mancini won the shot put and Dawsyn Decker won the javelin throw. Ozark’s Abby Beats won the pole vault, and Republic won the 4×800 relay.
Girls team scores
Nixa 163.50
Ozark 99.50
Carl Junction 87
Branson 85
Webb City 80
Republic 75
Joplin 74
Carthage 33
Willard 23
Neosho 21
Boys team scores
Joplin 112
Willard 97
Republic 92
Ozark 84.50
Nixa 82.50
Neosho 78
Webb City 70
Branson 68
Carthage 52
Carl Junction 5
