Joe Shy Relays upcoming for Maryville track

CARSON BREMER Sports Reporter | @CBMissourian

Maryville boys and girls track and field are coming off a successful weekend at the Smithville Invitational March 31 with the boys taking home first place, and the girls earning sixth place.

Leading the charge for the boys was senior Keaton Stone who secured a first-place finish in triple jump and also a fourthplace in long jump. The boys’ side also won the 4x800-meter relay.

Freshman Sadler Viau took fifth in 110-meter hurdles, sophomore Dylan Meyer claimed first in the 400-meter dash and senior Jesus Flores-Hernandez came home with a win in high jump. Stone said he was proud of his performance, even if it is early in the season.

“I think I did pretty well at the Smithville Invitational,” Stone said. “On the triple jump, I got out there pretty far, and, on the long jump, I struggled a little bit, but I think I did really well overall.”

Leading the way for the girls side was junior Ella Shulte who placed 3rd in 100 meter hurdles and 5th in 300 meter hurdles. Other top placers for the girls include freshman Brylee Acklin taking 2nd in 300 meter hurdles and 6th in 100 meter sprint, and the girls relay team took 3rd in the 4x200 relay.

After the performance in the Smithville Invitational, the Spoofhounds are nearly a month away from the district and state tournaments in May. Coach Rodney Bade said every practice counts.

“Practices are getting more specific,” Bade said. “We are doing workouts here and there, but there are still specific parts of every event that we look at with each athlete to make sure that they are making late season improvements so those adjustments are made before we get into the conference, sectional and state meets.”

Coming into the later months of the season, avoiding anxiety and mental fatigue has been a focal point for high school athletes all over the country. An estimated 25% of athletes experience mental fatigue, anxiety, depression and being burnt out, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.

Bade said he and his coaching staff observe their athletes’ body language to see if there is

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Joe Shy Relays

2 p.m. April 6 Chillicothe, Missouri a sign of mental fatigue with any of his athletes.

“We try to be attune to that,” Bade said. “Our athletes — a lot of the time — have been doing the same event every single time, and we try to switch it up for them, even when sometimes they don’t like it. It is something we are aware of, and, if we see athletes plateauing their performances, then we try to give them as much help as we can.”

Stone said mental health can be a factor toward the end of the season, but he doesn’t let it get in the way of his performance or the team morale.

“I really don’t see it very much,” Stone said. “I think when it comes to the team, we get super pumped to get going in May for heavy competition, and, for me and the team, we are ready for it all the way.”

The Spoofhounds will be back in action April 6 for the Joe Shy Relays in Chillicothe, Missouri, and then they head off to the Winnetonka meet April 13 in Kansas City, Missouri.

Mhs Track And Field Boys Top Finishes

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“It’s hard to bounce back, but looking back on games like these where we get blown out, there’s always something to fix,” Allen said. “We had plenty of errors that we can always fix up, and practice makes perfect.”

Before the Spoofhounds’ rematch with the Savages, they host Cameron (3-4) and Lathrop (3-3). At home, Maryville is 3-0, while the Dragons are 2-2 on the road and the Mules are 1-1. Loe said

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“It just is what it is,” Peterson said. “There’s just the mindset, honestly in the spring of, ‘You’re battling probably the conditions in the golf course, more than you are the other programs.’ It’s mainly just going out there and competing, and playing the schedule that we set up.”

As the Bearcats look ahead to next week’s contest, this will be the first time Northwest has played at Eagle Creek Golf Club in Joplin.

This invitational is also in the same location as the MIAA Championship April 24-26. Speece and Peterson said the competition in Joplin is a big one for the team, leading up to the conference tournament in a few weeks.

“It’s an opportunity to get there and play it and see it, so that we’re prepared as best we can for conference,” Peterson said.

“It’s a great advantage, and we can’t wait,” Speece said. “Having that advantage before conference is great, and we can’t wait to learn from this tournament next week.” preparation will be the key for bouncing back from the loss against Savannah.

“I just think we’re gonna have to leave this one behind,” Loe said. “Keep doing what we’re doing everyday. Keep swinging the bats. I think we can’t let this one affect us, but we got to go in taking every team seriously, and we’re gonna be ready for Cameron on Thursday.”

During Maryville’s hot start to the season, the team became the Plattsburg Tournament champions April 1. The Spoofhounds defeated Maysville (53) — for the second time of the season — 6-2 in the semifinals and Plattsburg 16-0 in the championship.