High School Cross Country

SEMOBALL BOYS CROSS COUNTRY TEAM (11/30/07)
The top seven runners in Southeast Missouri:

Bluff's Blalock runs to state medal (11/04/07)
The freshman finished 10th in the MSHSAA Class 3 state meet.

Blalocks use 'easy' workouts to prepare for state meet (11/02/07)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor As the Poplar Bluff wrestling team warmed up with a few laps around the parking lot Tuesday, Travis and Hannah Blalock were running down the street to Hendrickson Park. That was just the beginning of what the pair called "an easy day" as they prepared for the MSHSAA cross country championships on Saturday...

Poplar Bluff's Blalocks, Van Buren girls team headed to state meet (10/29/07)
By DAR STAFF Poplar Bluff's Hannah and Travis Blalock qualified for the MSHSAA Class 3 state cross country championships, each finishing in the top nine Saturday, while the Van Buren girls team qualified with a second-place finish at the Class 1 District 5 meet...

Goalie change has Poplar Bluff surging (10/26/07)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor A resurgent Poplar Bluff soccer team and a trio of cross country runners will try to extend their seasons as they enter district play Saturday. Jasmin Sumrall along with Travis and Hannah Blalock will compete in the MSHSAA Class 3 District 1 cross country meet in Potosi early Saturday while the Mules soccer team faces Northwest at 3 p.m. at Cape Central...

Left speechless: Mules run down three medals, lower times (10/12/07)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor BENTON -- Poplar Bluff cross country coach Beth Lewis was speechless after seeing her runners’ times Thursday at the SEMO Conference meet. “When they all have PRs, you can’t ask for anything more,” said Lewis in a voice so soft from screaming that she couldn’t help but laugh at herself mid-sentence...

Poplar Bluff's Blalock wins at Notre Dame Invitational (10/01/07)
By DAR STAFF CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Hannah Blalock broke up West Plains' bid for a perfect team score Saturday by winning the Notre Dame Invitational. The Poplar Bluff freshman won with a time of 19 minutes, 27.80 seconds, beating defending Class 3 champion Brittani Johnson and her four West Plains teammates. The Lady Mules finished fourth, 13 points behind the host...

Crafton leads Van Buren runners to home win (09/20/07)
By ALEX ABATE ~ DAR Sports Writer VAN BUREN -- Van Buren's Matt Crafton was dripping with sweat as he pushed toward the finish of the 3.1-mile course Wednesday afternoon. Crafton placed second overall with a time of 20 minutes, 50 seconds and was one of three Bulldogs to finish in the top 10 in the event as Van Buren took first place overall with a score of 51...

Kelly boys, Poplar Bluff girls win team titles at Kelly Invitational (09/10/07)
Staff Report ~ Standard Democrat BENTON -- Two area high school cross country teams are celebrating championships after competing Saturday at the Kelly Invitational. In the varsity boys race, Kelly won the team title as Cody Kern finished second overall. Poplar Bluff runner Travis Blalock won the boys competition in 16-minutes, 25 seconds...

Twin Rivers softball pounds Neelyville 12-0 (09/07/07)
By DAR STAFF Carlee Vancil struck out 14 of the 18 batters she faced in five innings to record her second no-hitter of the season as Twin Rivers won 12-0 at Neelyville Vancil helped herself by going 3-for-3 at the plate with two triples and a single and driving in four runs. Samantha Leutert and Kayla Cunningham each scored twice for the Lady Royals. Senior catcher Kelci Scott crossed the plate three times and also drove in three runs...

Poplar Bluff rallies past Scott City in softball (09/07/07)
Meanwhile, Poplar Bluff cross country runner Travis Blalock won a meet at Webster Groves.

Blalocks fare well in opening cross country meet (09/04/07)
Poplar Bluff's Travis Blalock wins the sophomore boys division at the Jackson Invitational, while Hannah Blalock is second among freshman girls

Younger runners pace Poplar Bluff cross country (08/31/07)
By BRIAN ROSENER ~ DAR Sports Editor Poplar Bluff cross country coach Beth Lewis is trying everything from games and post-practice Popsicle to "bring a friend to practice" to inject some fun in her first season. "In a couple of years, we'll have the numbers," said Lewis, noting that there are 15-20 junior high runners who will compete this fall...

Sikeston cross country team has 10 runners (08/31/07)
Jeff Arenz ~ Standard Democrat SIKESTON -- Ten cross country athletes have committed to running for the Sikeston Bulldogs in 2007. Coach Gregg Holifield has a group of four seniors (Matt Rushing, Charlie Jones, Ethan Riley and Amanda McReynolds), two juniors (Rafael Johnson and Jacob Cole), one sophomore (Amos Helms) and three freshmen (Jacob Alsip, Jacob Murphy and Will Holifield)...

Kelly Cross Country Places Two in St. Louis Meet (09/28/06)
ST. LOUIS -- The Kelly cross country team had two medalists in the Hancock Invitational on Monday after having the meet rescheduled from its original date on Saturday due to lightning.

Gibson paces Jackson in winning effort (09/03/06)
Jackson sophomore Greg Gibson and Central sophomore Brittany Moreland highlighted a strong day for local runners at the Jackson Invitational cross country meet with a pair of individual championships Saturday at Jackson City Park. Gibson covered the 2.35-mile course in 12 minutes, 49 seconds, bringing home his second straight title at the Jackson Invitational...

Bearcats look strong in only their second year of cross county competition (08/31/06)
Dexter coach Jill Becker has Dexter's second-year cross county program moving in the right direction and looks for the Bearcats to be much improved this year heading into the season's first action Saturday at the Jackson Invitational. "I think we'll be better this year, so I'm pretty excited about it (the season)," said Becker, who also serves at the Bearcats track coach. "We have a lot kids that work hard and want to win."...

Woodland opens first season on Saturday (08/31/06)
If you live in Marble Hill, chances are you've seen the Woodland cross country team jog by your home at some point in the last few weeks. The team is preparing for its inaugural season. "The students are enjoying it," Cardinals coach Ryan Layton said. "It's hard work, and they're finding that out. But I think they're enjoying it on the whole."...

A run at state title No. 3 (08/30/06)
Saxony Lutheran has the top returning Class 1 cross country runner, three returning all-state runners, four runners returning from last year's state championship team and back-to-back state championships. The question heading into this season is not whether they can win again, but "can anyone stop them?"...