Our look back at the top stories of the year is sponsored by the Republic Mud Run, southwest Missouri’s only mud run that’s exclusively for youth! The first got Mud? Run will be held Saturday, August 29, at Brookline Park. It will feature three age divisions (5-7, 8-10, and 11-15), with age-appropriate obstacles for each. Get more information at RepublicMudRun.com, or get registered online right now.
#5: Record-breaking Track Season
The track season started with a bang for the Tigers and Lady Tigers, setting the tone for what would be a record-breaking season. On the very first night of the year, at the Republic Classic, two long-standing school records fell.
The first was the girls long jump record, as Brooke Stanfield became the first Lady Tiger to go over 5’5″ when she cleared 5’5 1/4″. That broke the old record that had first been set in 1978 by Kathy Gloyd, then tied again in 1987 by Kim Messier.
Not long after that, the boys 4×100 relay team of Jerney Jones, Jace DuVall, Jake Jones,and Tryston Ellison ran their race in 43.82 seconds. That was 17-hundredths better than the old mark of 43.99, set in 1991.
The 2015 went on to set a new record later in the year, with a time of 43.51.
Another longstanding record fell at Branson, when Jerney Jones jumped 22’6” in the long jump, breaking the mark of 22’3” set in 1986.
Haven Lander also matched a school record–her own–when she cleared 11’0″ in the pole vault at sectionals. She matched that mark again at state, finishing fourth.
The season ended with four all-state performances. In addition to Lander, Tryston Ellison took 3rd in the 100-meter dash, Stanfield finished 4th in the high jump, and Jones won the long jump (which will get its own story later in this Top Ten series).
From beginning to end, you voted the 2014-15 track season the #5 story of the year in Republic Tiger Sports.