After an incredible weekend of indoor track & field, we are officially transitioning to the final season of the academic year, the outdoor track season. Over the weekend, the NCAA had their three indoor track & field championships, and it was a very successful showing from Kansas programs and athletes. At the DI level, the University of Kansas and Wichita State university both left Albuquerque, NM, with All-American honors, and Pittsburg State, Washburn, Emporia State and Fort Hays State also collected a lot of honors, as well as Pittsburg State winning their second indoor national title in program history. Similar to last week, a separate newsletter giving a much more in-depth recap of the championship meet, will be sent out this Thursday.
Over the next few weeks, we are going to dive into our track & field pre-season previews, breaking down all of the events, across all six classifications in Kansas. I’m breaking it down by event group, and we are starting with what I know best, distance.
Golden Plains’ Emma Weiner is just a junior, and already has four state titles to her name, as well as an additional three top-three finishes. Since she made the jump to the high school level, Weiner has won forty of her forty-six races, which is approximately a win percentage of 87%. She’s also only lost to six athletes in her high school career, and three of them have since graduated and now compete collegiately. The other three are either in 2A and 3A, meaning there is nobody in 1A that has crossed the finish line before Weiner in a head-to-head race. With that being said, I’d say the 3200-1600 double is hers to lose. On top of being the top returner in both, she is also coming off an undefeated cross country season, where she ran under twenty minutes four separate times and won her second consecutive state title on the grass. If Weiner is up for the challenge, she could always pursue the distance ‘triple-crown’ at Cessna, and go for gold in the 800m, 1600m and 3200m, which is not unheard of, although incredibly challenging. If Weiner were to pursue all three, she would have to go through Madison Butler of Macksville and Kylie Stapleton of South Gray. Butler is the top returner in the 1600m, with a 5:36.42 from early May 2022. Keep in mind that Weiner has never run a high school 800m, and may be content with sticking with just two of the three events for now. Stapleton is also the top finisher in the 800m a year ago, after a runner-up finish as a freshman.
1A Girls: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Twelve
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: Emma Weiner — Golden Plains
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Thirteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: No
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Twelve
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: No
With Spearville’s Corbin Ricke graduating last May, and the re-classification of Meade sending 1600m/3200m champ Logan Keith up to 2A, there will be three new state champions in the trio of distance events. However, after the fall, a name is already standing out among the rest, and that’s none other than Ellis’ Brenden Ellis. Ellis is coming off a great senior season of cross country, one that saw his first ever state title and his first time under seventeen. He also happens to be the fastest returner in the 1600m and 3200m, being one of two boys under 4:40, and the only high schooler in 1A under 10:40, as he ran 10:19.42 last May at Cessna. However, look for names like Grady Buessing of Axtell and Evan Pearce of Wallace County to be trying their hand at minimizing the gap between them and Ellis in the 1600m. In the 3200m, Ellis is in a land of his own, but Blake Yoder of Hutchinson-Central Christian and Logan Hammersmith of Solomon lead six other boys under eleven minutes into the 2023 season. The 800m is a different story, as Buessing returns as the highest finisher from a year ago, and the fastest athlete in general. His 2:01.97 from the Twin Valley League meet sits over three seconds ahead of the field, but a large pack of 2:06-2:07 athletes will look to try and close in on the 2022 runner-up.
1A Boys: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Nine
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Three
Returning State Champ: No
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Eight
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Three
Returning State Champ: No
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Four
Returning State Champ: No
As it has been for a while, 2A is Chesney Peterson’s world, and we’re all living in it. The 10x individual state champion hasn’t conceded a race since May 01, 2021, or 661 days. Since that loss at the Trial of Miles, Peterson has been one of the most dominant athletes we’ve ever seen. It’s not just the 2A realm, but all of Kansas. Peterson is the state’s fastest returner in the 400m, 800m and 1600m, as well as the second fastest returner in the 3200m. Peterson has the speed and talent to compete with any athlete at any division. Luckily for 1A and 3A-6A, they don’t have to face the Tennessee bound senior in the postseason. For the athletes in 2A, they will consistently go head-to-head with Peterson all Spring. Peterson will look to go back-to-back with her four state title performance, and increase her trophy collection to fourteen individual state titles. Although it will be tough for anyone to catch Peterson on the track, there are a lot of athletes who will be looking to get as close to her as they possibly can. Leading the charge is Wabaunsee sophomore Payton Wurtz, who has finished runner-up to Peterson five times at state and is the second fastest returner in the 400m, 1600m and 3200m. Last spring, Wurtz had a great freshman campaign on the track, putting up bests of 2:26, 5:19 and 11:19 in the 800-1600-3200. Behind Peterson and Wurtz, Ellis’ Madi Russell, along with Wabaunsee senior Rebekah Stuhlsatz and Sterling’s duo of Faith Ekart and Julia Kilgore, all look to continue their momentum from the fall and see if they can close the gap on 2A’s 1-2.
2A Girls: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Four
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Nine
Returning State Champ: Chesney Peterson — Stanton County
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Four
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Ten
Returning State Champ: Chesney Peterson — Stanton County
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Eleven
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Seven
Returning State Champ: Chesney Peterson — Stanton County
The race for a 2A state title is going to be a highly contested one, and that was true even before Meade made the jump last fall. Berean Academy’s Andrew Harder is the defending champ in the 3200m and 1600m, while the 800m is with Sedgwick’s Ryan Stucky since graduating. Nearly a year ago, Harder broke ten in a nine second victory in the eight lap grinder, following that up with a two-second margin of victory in the 1600m, as the lone guy under 4:40. He also owns the top returning times in both events, with 4:34.97 and 9:59.04 tentatively being the times to beat. However, the reigning 3200m and 800m champ in 1A may have something to say about that. Meade junior Logan Keith comes into the season as the second fastest returner behind Harder in the 3200m, and the fastest returner in the 800m, with a quick 1:57.99 to his name. Other names to look out for include Jonah Godina of Hutchinson-Trinity Catholic, Kansas City Christian’s Spencer Mumford, along with the 2x state title winner in cross country, Stanton County’s Kamryn Golub, with many others close behind.
2A Boys: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Fourteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Seven
Returning State Champ: Andrew Harder — Berean Academy
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Twelve
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Andrew Harder — Berean Academy
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: No
With the six-time state champion Jentrie Alderson off running fast at Pittsburg State, the opportunity for the next 3A star is up for grabs, but it might already be spoken for. Last October, Prairie View sophomore Bree Allen capped an undefeated cross country season, with a sub-nineteen performance at state, propelling her to a forty-one second win. Yes, cross country and track are far from the same, but that doesn’t matter for Allen. As a freshman, Allen collected four All-State finishes, including three runner-up finishes to Alderson. For Allen to be running with such confidence and composure in her first season, meant she could only go up from there. Flash forward to today, and Allen is fresh off of a state title, and owns the fastest returning time in all three distance events. In the 800m, Columbus’ Montana Ohmart is the top returning finisher from 2022, after a runner-up performance last May. However, Allen owns the fastest returning times in both the 1600m and 3200m, with a 5:15.22 in the 1600m, and an 11:33.74 in the 3200m. However, veterans like Southeast of Saline’s Ashley Prochazka, West Franklin’s Emma Bailey and Cheney’s Abbye Hudson, along with freshmen such as Saline’s Breckyn Alderson and Halstead’s Addisen Wills, will all look to challenging Allen on the track.
3A Girls: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Fourteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: No
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Twelve
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: No
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Thirteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: No
Last year, 3A belonged to a man named Dylan Sprecker, you may have heard of him. This year, Sprecker is in the midst of his first year in Pittsburg, and all three distance titles are looking for a new owner. I’m going to say it because we’re all probably thinking it, but that guy is at least 99% Wichita-Trinity Academy’s Clay Shively. For a multitude of reasons, the junior is the man to beat, not only in 3A, but in the state. Flash back to his sophomore year, where Shively made a tremendous jump to the top tier, throwing down 1:55.17, 4:10.08 and 9:15.99 in the 800-1600-3200. Besides being the runner-up in the 1600m and 800m last year, his 2023 indoor season sets him apart from the rest. Shively ran an incredible 4:04.95 record mile in January, and then ran 4:09.71 in February, and a 4:06.51 over the weekend at New Balance Indoor. He also ran 8:30.64 in the 3000m this winter, which at the time was a new state record. Personally, I think we are about to witness one of the fastest high school track and field seasons the state has ever seen, and Shively is one of the athletes leading the charge. However, the star power behind Shively is still a force to be reckoned with. The pair of brothers from Wichita Collegiate, CJ and Will Meyer will be in play, along with Girard’s Tanner Ulbrich, Council Grove’s Kodi Downes and Marysville’s Silas Miller. A consistent 3A power, Southeast of Saline is bringing four hungry competitors of their own, as Levi Allen, Damion Jackson, and Cayden and Brayden Walker all will surely be in the mix. I can’t leave out Shively’s training partners, as Sam and Wes Ferguson, Caleb Tofteland, and Jacob Hobson all return as contenders as well. Additionally, there are plenty of guys I didn’t name who will certainly end their season on the podium, and that shows how competitive 3A is shaping up to be.
3A Boys: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Fourteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: No
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: No
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: No
For the past two years, Clearwater’s Hayley Trotter has had an incredibly dominant hold on 4A, and honestly I feel like she doesn’t get enough credit for the feat. Since her first competition in a Clearwater uniform, Trotter has accumulated eight All-State performances, with five of those being state titles, ranging from the 800m to the 5000m in cross country. Last summer, Trotter erupted for a 2:12.00 800m PR when she traveled to Sacramento, CA, where she competed in the USATF Junior Olympic Championships with Stanton Count’s Peterson, Topeka-Seaman’s Bethany Druse and 2022 Doniphan West graduate Elle Williams. Last fall, Trotter lowered her cross country PR to 18:43.00, making me wonder if her success in cross will prompt her to go for the triple crown. But Chapman’s Elyssa Frieze ran away with the state title last year in a deep field, nearly breaking eleven in the process. Until anyone challenges her in eight laps, she’s the girl to beat. Whichever combination of events Trotter does decide to pursue, there are a number of girls who would like to spoil her senior year. Two of those being Eudora’s Hanna Keltner and Sydney Owens, along with Winfield’s Kayli Myers, Abilene’s Eden Bathurst and Clay Center Community’s Lauren Smith.
4A Girls: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Sixteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Eight
Returning State Champ: Elyssa Frieze — Chapman
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Fifteen
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Eight
Returning State Champ: Hayley Trotter — Clearwater
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Twelve
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Six
Returning State Champ: Hayley Trotter — Clearwater
With the departure of the trio of Topeka-Hayden’s Tanner Newkirk, Augusta’s Sawyer Schmidt and Buhler’s Tanner Lindahl, 4A is seemingly up for grabs this Spring. But, with the breakout dominance of Tonganoxie’s Eli Gilmore, it may be his to lose. Last May, Gilmore only ran the 1600m, where he took 3rd in 4:26.03. He got down to 4:22 a year ago, along with a sub-two 800m. But after a great cross country season where he won all but one in-state race on his way to his first state title, I’d say he’s a contender across the board. He’s the fastest returner in the 1600m and 800m, but the 9th fastest in the 3200m. Wamego’s Brady Stegman isthe top returner in the 3200m, with a 9:50.86 doing his talking for him. Eudora’s Zach Arnold, Buhler’s Kaden Lohrentz, Grant Waite, Wamego’s Emery Wolfe and Harrison Cutting, Grant Smith of Clay Center and Chapman’s Drew Elliott are just a few of the names that will be in the mix in all three events as well.
4A Boys: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Nine
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Four
Returning State Champ: No
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Six
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Two
Returning State Champ: No
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Eight
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Four
Returning State Champ: No
5A girls distance running has historically been one of the most competitive and toughest classes in the state, and that rings true in 2023. This year, 5A is home to one of the best in the state, as Salina Central’s Katelyn Rupe has won three state titles in two seasons. In case you studied abroad in the fall, Rupe had one of the most historic seasons in recent memory, including an undefeated in-state season, an average of 17:45.55 through seven races, and a state title and course record at Rim Rock, where she crossed in 17:13.84. She also won the 3200m and 1600m last year at Cessna, taking down multiple state champions in the process, introducing herself to the 5A scene. This year, Rupe returns for her sophomore season as the fastest in both the 1600m and 3200m, running 5:08.08 and 10:47.60. While Rupe controls her fate in the 3200m and 1600m, Topeka-Seaman’s Bethany Druse will look to defend her 800m title from her junior year, as she returns with a 2:15.19 PR. Both Rupe and Druse will have to hold off the likes of Blue Valley Southwest’s Izzy Ross, Kansas City-Piper’s Grace Hanson, Kapaun Mt. Carmel’s Addie Curtis, Great Bend’s Addy Nicholson and St. Thomas Aquinas’ Sophia Spinello.
5A Girls: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Nine
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Katelyn Rupe — Salina Central
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Katelyn Rupe — Salina Central
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Bethany Druse — Topeka-Seaman
Colby King, a St. Thomas Aquinas senior and the 2022 Gatorade Runner of the Year, returns this spring to defend his 2022 3200m title, and potentially add some more titles to his name. With King returning, he remains the man to beat in the track’s longest event, especially after his historic cross country season. King’s 9:17.91 came last May at state, and puts him twelve seconds ahead of the next fastest returner. In the 1600m, Kapaun Mt. Carmel’s Luke Brock is the defending champion, and owns the fastest PR for returners, with a 4:21.69, which came at Cessna last May. The 800m belongs to the fastest 800m runner in the state, King’s teammate, Alex Waldie. Now a senior, Waldie is the only 5A athlete with a PR under 1:56.00, and is capable of going even faster, after splitting 1:50 in a 4x800m last year. Waldie was absent during the cross country season, so I’m unsure if he plans on competing this season. If the reigning champ ends up not going out for track, Great Bend’s Kaiden Esfeld, DeSoto’s Palmer O’Connor and Bishop Carroll’s Trent Zimbelman are all sub-1:58 athletes and capable of taking the title for themselves. For the 1600m and 3200m, a few of the other 5A contenders include Jackson Esquibel and Kory Sutton of Shawnee Heights, as well as Topeka West’s Lenny Njoroge and Leavenworth’s Jonathan Purvis. Blue Valley Southwest’s squad has multiple contenders as well, including but not limited to Micah Paschke.
5A Boys: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Eleven
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Colby King — St. Thomas Aquinas
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Seven
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Three
Returning State Champ: Luke Brock — Kapaun Mt. Carmel
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Eight
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Alex Waldie — St. Thomas Aquinas
Olathe North standout Anjali Hocker-Singh missed almost the entirety of her sophomore season, missing out on the opportunity to defend her 2021 3200m state title. This spring is looking to be different for the four-time state champion, as the junior raced a full season, missing just the first week of competition. Hocker-Singh didn’t quite get back to the times she saw as a sophomore, but after a long winter of training, I can imagine we’ll be seeing even more out of her on the track. Someone who took advantage of Hocker-Singh’s absence last spring was Shawnee Mission Northwest senior Paige Mullen, who won the 3200m title in a blazing 10:39.99. That opened up the door for Mullen, who would follow that up with a runner-up finish to Hocker-Singh at state last fall. The other lone returner that has broken eleven in the 3200m is Shawnee Mission South’s Hannah Gibson, who had a breakout season herself during cross country. Charlotte Caldwell (Shawnee-Mill Valley), Payton Fink (Topeka-Washburn Rural), Maddie Carter (Topeka-Washburn Rural) and Lida Padgett (Shawnee Mission East) are some of the other contenders among 6A, who don’t run for Olathe West. The Owls are in the midst of a dynasty, and they return four of the ten fastest returners in the 800m, led by Charis Robinson, and the 4-5-6-7-8-10 ranked returners in the 1600m. It’ll be a fun one in 6A.
6A Girls: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Three
Returning State Champ: Paige Mullen — Shawnee Mission Northwest
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Twelve
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: No
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Eight
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Three
Returning State Champ: No
After winning a pair of state titles last May, Shawnee Mission East’s Wyatt Haughton took it up a notch, absolutely dominating his senior cross country season. He broke fifteen three different races, one of those being a state record, and another being a Rim Rock course record, and state title. Haughton has also been very busy this indoor season, running 8:25.35 for a state record 3000m, and a 4:10 mile in February. Haughton brings in the fastest times in the 1600m and 800m, while Shawnee Mission North’s Micah Blomker is the fastest 3200m returner, in 9:07.12. Garden City’s Devin Chappel and Shawnee Mission Northwest’s Henry Born, along with Haughton, are the next three fastest in 6A. In the 1600m, Parker Walion of Gardner-Edgerton and Trenton Sandler of Blue Valley North are two quick milers that will look to contend with Haughton. Both are coming off great indoor seasons. Carter Stewart (Olathe East), Prabhav Pagadala (Blue Valley North) and a huge group of guys are all in the mix for any of the three events, which means there will certainly be deserving athletes who get left off of the podium.
6A Boys: By the Numbers 🧮
3200
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Four
Returning State Champ: No
1600
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Five
Returning State Champ: Wyatt Haughton — Shawnee Mission East
800
2022 State Qualifiers Returning: Ten
2022 All-State Finishers Returning: Four
Returning State Champ: Wyatt Haughton — Shawnee Mission East
Just writing about the upcoming season was exciting in itself, and I’m super pumped to see what this spring holds in store for us. As a Kansan, I’m not eagerly awaiting the warm weather that’s going to accompany the track season, but you can’t win them all.
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