Sectional Track Results and State Bound Track Athletes

On Saturday, the El Dorado Springs Class 3 Sectional Qualifying Athletes loaded the bus at 6:45 am to head to Odessa for the Class 3 Section 4 Sectional Track Meet. At stake, were tickets to move on to the Class 3 State Track and Field Championships, which would be held in Jefferson City on Friday, May 27 and Saturday, May 28 at Jefferson City High School. They would have to finish in the top 4 to move on. We loaded and traveled through storms on the way there, which began to subside closer to Odessa. By the time we arrived the rain had stopped and stayed away for the remainder of the day. So with the cooperation of the rain, we got the day started.
Junior, Kuliath Kephart, got the day started for the El Dorado Springs team, at 10:30 with high jump. This is the first year that Kuliath has competed in the sport of track and field, and he didn’t join until the middle of the season. Despite that, Kuliath has worked hard and improved each and every week, and was able to get to sectionals, which was a major accomplishment with such little time of work in such a technical sport. Despite that, Kuliath, although being in contention, fell just short of qualifying, finishing 5th. He had a great season though and we are looking forward to what he can do next season. He learned a great deal in such a short time.
Next up was the boys 4 x 800 meter relay, followed by the girls 4 x 800 meter relay. The boys relay, consisting of James King, Braxton Watts, Connor Goatley and Daelen Ackley, finished 1st with a time of 8:28.37 to punch the first tickets to state. They will be joined by alternates, Logan Fisk and Ryan Griffin. Next up on the track was the girls 4 x 800 meter relay, consisting of Morgan Mitchell, Audrey Goatley, Kenli Rader and Hannah Klaiber.. Like the boys, they didn’t run their fastest time, but they got it done and in the end finished 4th place, with a time of 10:27.75. They will be joined by alternates Colbie Wood and Gracie Mead. Next up on the track was Daelen Ackley in the 1600 meter run. This was his 2nd of 4 races on the day. Daelen went on to win the 1600 meter run with a time of 4:34.21. Next up on the track was Morgan Mitchell in the 300 meter hurdles. Morgan just started hurdles this year. Morgan had an incredible race at Districts to get to the sectional meet going in ranked 8th and finishing 4th to get to this day. Unfortunately, Morgan’s good fortune ran out and she finished 8th at Sectionals, however, she will still be competing at State in the 4 x 800 meter relay. Then came the 800 meter run which included both Daelen Ackley and Connor Goatley. Daelen Ackley went on to win it in a competitive race with a time of 1:55.71. Shortly behind, teammate Connor Goatley, had an impressive, exciting finish down the final stretch, to finish 3rd with a personal best time of 2:02.43, just edging out 4th and 5th by a couple of tenths of a second. Right after this exciting race, Hannah Klaiber tried to match the excitement in the girls 800 meter run. That she did, using her strong finish to move into the lead in the last 100 meters and go on to win the race with a time of 2:25.93. Then to wrap up the day for the El Dorado Springs Bulldogs was the boys and girls 3200 meter runs. Daelen, after a short turnaround from the very fast 800 meter run, started a little conservative in the boys 3200 to get his legs under him, before pushing the pace in the second half of the race and pulling away to win with a time of 9:36.77. Last up, was Audrey Goatley in the girls 3200 meter run. Audrey went back and forth with a girl from Clinton in the first half of the race, before pulling away and going on to win the race with a personal best time of 12:22.39.
This was an incredible day for the Bulldogs, seeing 7 of their 9 events advancing on to the Class 3 State Track and Field Championships. Qualifiers are as follows: the boys and girls 4 x 800 meter relays, Daelen Ackley in the 800, 1600 and 3200 meter runs, Connor Goatley in the 800 meter run, Hannah Klaiber in the 800 meter run and Audrey Goatley in the 3200 meter run. This was a big day and we are looking for an even bigger day as the season comes to a finale, starting Friday, May 27 at 10:30 am with the boys 4 x 800 meter relay. It’s a great time to be a Bulldog. GO BULLDOGS!