Cross Country roundup: Smithville, Benton send teams to state

Andy Meyer
Sports Reporter - St. Joseph News Press

RICHMOND, Mo. - Not even Ben Barrows could outrun the shaving cream celebration.

Try as he may, the Smithville sophomore eventually lost a footrace to teammate Trey Crawford and ended up with a scalp full of foam.

"We finally caught up with him," Crawford said.

No one could claim the same when it mattered during Saturday's Class 2 District 8 meet at Richmond, where Barrows cruised to a first-place finish of 17 minutes, 26 seconds and led Smithville's dominant charge to a team victory. The Warriors scored 19 points, placed five runners in the top 11 and qualified for next week's state meet in Jefferson City for the second straight year.

"I'm proud of Ben and of our whole team," said Crawford, who finished 14 seconds behind Barrows. "We've really developed since last year, and now you can see it start to show."

After a fairly conservative first mile, Barrows gradually pulled away during the next half mile and kept a comfortable cushion between himself and Crawford the rest of the way. Zack Bargman and Dakota Olson soon wrapped up the team title by finishing back-to-back in 10th and 11th.

Smithville's girls displayed a similar level of dominance during their district title win.

Payton Hartman, who took first in 20:42, flip-flopped the normal pecking order with Jessie Johnson (2nd, 20:44) to give their team a quick leg up in the standings.

Kymie Roland and Paige Yates, who finished third and fourth respectively, weren't far behind.

"They're always after each other because they want to better themselves," Smithville coach Eric Klingensmith said. "That's the kind of mentality everyone has, and that's what makes them a great team."

With effective blends of talent and experience, Klingensmith expects both teams to be in medal contention next Saturday.

Several area athletes, including Bishop LeBlond's Erin Crotty, also qualified for state by posting top-15 performances.

A first-time qualifier, Crotty established herself among the leaders early on and cemented her trip to Jefferson City by placing seventh in 21:30 and surprised herself.

"I didn't expect to do that," Crotty said. "Not at all."

Led by sophomore Josh Elliott, two of Maryville's three boys turned in state-worthy times. A recent strategy shift helped Elliott gain ground during the last half of the race.

"At the beginning of the year, I was starting out a lot faster," Elliott said. "The last couple races, I've started slower and done well on my last two miles."

Alex Thompson (13th, 18:40) will join Elliott at state.

Class 3 District 8

A furious, last-ditch effort propelled Benton ahead of Platte County and into the state meet for the sixth time in seven years at Kearney.

"They just turned on the jets," Benton coach Duane Kimble said. "They just decided they were going to turn it around and not let it slip away.

"It was pretty special to watch."

After losing No. 5 runner Spenser Cambron to an ankle injury early in the day, the Cardinals' chances looked bleak entering the third and final mile.

Freshman John Beamon (4th, 17:48) and senior Andrew Kennedy (6th, 17:52) started the comeback by holding off a pair of Platte County runners during the final stretch.

Ryno Releford, meanwhile, turned in the most dramatic effort and rocketed from 18th to ninth place over the final mile.

"He gets into that last mile, and he just takes off," Kimble said. "They all just kept digging away."

Even without Cambron, Benton finished just 10 points behind a favored Kearney team that finished with two runners in the top three.

Taylor Woodruff (6th, 20:55) was the only girl to qualify for the Cardinals