The Republic girls track team won its first district championship since 1993,* overcoming a one-point deficit on the final race of the day to edge Nixa, 130-127. Republic’s convincing win in the 4x400m relay — with Gracie Woods, Kristin Probst, Rilynn Finley, and Alaina Norman — gave Republic the team championship.
Sophomore Gracie Troester had a perfect day for the Lady Tigers. She entered four events and won all four, earning 40 of Republic’s 130 team points. Troester won the 800m, the 1600m, and the 3200m individual races. She also contributed to the 4x800m relay win with Probst, Woods, and Cali Thompson.
Troester had run four events earlier this season at the Central Ozark Conference meet. She remembers her reaction to the idea when coach Tori Mooneyham first suggested it.
“I thought ‘Absolutely no way.’ I thought she was crazy, no offense to her,” Troester laughed. “I did not think I was capable of running four. I really thought I would die.”
Alaina Norman was the other Republic girl to win a district championship, winning the shot put.
Zion Allen won two district championships of his own, winning both the high jump and the long jump.
With such a close team finish in the girls standings, Mooneyham said everyone had a hand in the championship. “Every point counted today,” she said. “We won by three, and we had some events where we didn’t finish where we thought we would, but we had some kids step up and score points where it wasn’t expected.”
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The top four finishers in each event qualified for sectionals Saturday at Springfield Parkview:
- Probst finished second (behind Troester) in the 800m run.
- The 4x200m relay team —Woods, Brooklyn Douglas, Norman, and Belcher — finished fourth.
- Finley finished second in the 300m hurdles.
- Kailey Manes finished second in the high jump.
- Jenna Belcher was fourth in the long jump and second in the triple jump.
- Norman finished third in the javelin.
- The boys 4x800m relay team — William Payne, Aslan Ebisch, Joey Mullins, and Brady Purcell — finished fourth.
- Kendell Curbow finished fourth in the pole vault.
- Cooper Douglas finished second and James Rexroat finished third in the javelin.
Several other athletes scored points by finishing in the top eight in their events:
- Addison Fanning was eighth in the 400m dash.
- Misora Nambara was sixth in the 1600m run and eighth in the 3200m run.
- Chloe McCann was fifth in the 300m hurdles.
- The girls 4x100m relay team — Woods, Douglas, Reese Frey, and Belcher — finished sixth.
- Finley was seventh in the long jump.
- Riley Brown finished fifth in the pole vault.
- Avery Rossow finished fifth in the discus and eighth in the shot put.
- Mason Cole finished fifth in the 400m dash.
- Brady Purcell was seventh in the 3200m run.
- William Payne was fifth in the 300m hurdles.
- The 4x100m relay team — Cole Gimlin, Braden Ghys, Andrew Burgess, and Daniel Phillips — finished fifth.
- The 4x200m relay team — Burgess, Ghys, Mason Cole, and Treyton Gray — finished seventh.
- The 4x400m relay team — Gray, Cole, Mullins, and Payne — finished seventh.
- Daniel Fair finished seventh in the pole vault.
*Republic Tiger Sports previously reported the last COC championship for Republic girls track was in 1994, but some new research indicates that happened in 1993, also.
