State XC: Jackson boys take fourth in Class 5 state championships

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Cross Country is a team sport – from the No. 1 to the No. 7 runner.

Jackson needed almost everyone’s best showing that toed the line at the MSHSAA Class 5 Boys Cross Country Championships on Friday at Gans Creek Cross Country Course.

The Indians used those performances to accomplish something that last happened when Jimmy Carter was president – bringing home a team trophy.

Jackson tied for fourth place with Raymore-Peculiar – south of Kansas City – and won a tiebreaker to claim the final trophy handed out. The fourth-place showing matched what the Indians did in 1977 in Class A.

“It is absolutely crazy,” Jackson junior Zach Brazel said after the race. “We left it all out there. We are extremely excited for the results that came from that. It hasn’t sunk in yet, but it will.”

Jackson went up and down the leaderboard as the more than 160 runners were crossing the finish line. The announcement came down that it was the No. 6 runner’s finish that broke the tie between the two schools. Brazel finished in 87th place overall but for the team standings, he was the 65th runner to cross the line, besting the finish for Ray-Pec’s No. 6 runner.

MoMileSplit predicted the Indians would finish in sixth place. Jackson battled injuries throughout the season, but the veteran team – five of the seven runners are seniors – stepped up when it counted.

“It didn’t seem possible at times,” Jackson coach Andrea Talley said. “It seems things were stacked against us and trying to keep believing was so hard at times. For them to put it together at the right time ... is just an amazing, amazing feeling. This is a sport that really is a team sport with seven runners, and I know six and seven never get the credit they deserve. Our No. 6 won us a trophy today.”

Junior Bryce Gentry ran 16:00.2 to take 17th place for the Indians, the only All-Stater on the squad. Senior Hunter Wendel was 31st, missing the top-25 cut for medal honors.

__Class 4__

Central and Notre Dame each had an All-Stater out of the Class 4 races, which capped off the first day of the two-day event.

Junior Lauren Eftink became a repeat All-Stater for the Bulldogs, only the third girl in the program's history to be All-State more than once. She ran 19:26.7 to take 11th place – improving on her 22nd-place finish last year in Class 3.

“It means a lot to medal, especially in Class 4. The competition is hard,” Eftink said. “It was a dream to come to state my freshman year and last year I was all-state and this year cutting it in half, going from 22nd to 11th, is insane to me.”

Eftink started her year taking 11th place at the Memphis Twilight meet and ended her year taking 11th. In between, she won seven races in a row – a school record.

“This makes all the hard work pay off,” Notre Dame coach Richie Bohn said. “No matter how well she did in the year, she always had this, to be all-state gain, as the goal.”

Central senior Ryan Seabaugh ran the fastest time of his life in his final race – 16:20 to finish 10th overall. He entered the meet seeded 21st – still in the All-State range.

“It was a really special meet,” he said. “I had instant joy when I crossed the line. 10th (place) was higher than I expected, so I’m very pleased.”

This was his second trip to the state meet and this showing followed his taking 46th place last year.