LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. — Platte County coach Courtland Ingram asked runners to pick a word for inspiration in the Class 5 District 4 meet, and senior Blake Herron made a wise choice. The Pirates’ senior star turned in one of the best and most impressive performances of a consistently improving career Saturday at Lee’s Summit North High School.
Platte County senior Blake Herron runs in the Class 5 District 4 race Saturday at Lee’s Summit North High School in Lee’s Summit.
Herron finished fifth overall at the back end of a breakaway lead pack to earn a fourth straight trip to state, albeit on a bigger stage.
“I picked desire,” said Herron, now a four-time qualifier but going to the Class 5 MSHSAA Cross Country Championships for the first time after Platte County moved up from Class 4 this season. “I think the most important thing to me is thinking about how bad I want it, because like I said, everyone else here wants the same thing, so I’ve got to just want it a little bit more.”
Platte County’s run of four straight team berths to state ended at five years with the Pirates placing sixth. The top four teams earned spots along with any other runners in the top 30, inclusive of those from the qualifying teams.
However, five of Platte County’s seven runners set PRs on a flat and relatively fast-paced course. The Pirates totaled 185 points but were 62 behind fourth-place Park Hill South for the fourth and final automatic team berth to state.
Liberty North claimed the top four individual spots with Herron right behind in 15 minutes, 44.69 seconds. He previously finished sixth twice and 14th as a freshman in three previous district races at the Class 4 level.
Platte County senior Donavin Ness nears the finish line in the Class 5 District 4 race Saturday at Lee’s Summit North High School in Lee’s Summit.
“I feel really good,” Herron said. “It was my best individual performance at districts yet and about as good of weather as I could have asked for. It felt really nice. (I had) good support.”
Platte County senior Donavin Ness set a PR at 16:54.60, going under 17 minutes for the third time in his career, to place 36th. He came in a little more than 18 seconds behind the 30th and final individual state qualifier.
Ness finished his career as a three-time state qualifier, while Platte County senior Elijah Jackson went each of the past two years. He placed 70th in his final race at 18:03.39 — a season-best — but did not factor into the team score. The Pirates’ total also included sophomores Landon McKinzie (42nd, 17:12.39) and Tate Stone (48th, 17:17.39) and junior Nick Flowers (54th, 17:42.35).
Platte County’s top five runners were all in the top half of more than 120 runners to help the Pirates’ finish in a field of 17 teams with Ness, McKinzie, Stone and Flowers all setting career-best times.
“Wish the team could go with me, but it is what it is. Class 5 is pretty hard, and we competed really well so I’m proud of all of them,” Herron said.
In a tightly packed start, Herron immediately established himself in the front pack and stayed consistent throughout the race. He ended up with the second-fastest time of his career, just off of the 15:36.20 from earlier this year in the Gans Creek Classic at Columbia’s Gans Creek Cross Country Course, which will host the Class 5 state race on Friday, November 7.
Platte County senior Elijah Jackson runs in the Class 5 District 4 race Saturday at Lee’s Summit North High School in Lee’s Summit.
Herron entered off of the first individual victory of his career two weeks earlier in the Suburban Conference White Division Championships.
“(The win) meant a lot to me, not so much that the meet was that big of a deal but just the fact I was able to keep myself mentally in a race for that long to just realize that I can win; I can be one of the people on top,” said Herron, who also helped Platte County win the team conference title for a second straight year. “If I can tell myself I deserve to be there, I know that I do. I’m working toward that more and more each week, but it definitely meant a lot for this week.”
Ness found himself in contention for a state spot and improved his time from the Gans Creek Classic by less than a second, while McKinzie — the fourth returning state qualifier in Platte County’s lineup — set a PR by over 8 seconds. Stone shaved more than 18 seconds off his previous best mark from this season, while Flowers went under 18 minutes for the first time. The Pirates’ roster this season included five runners from last year’s state team but only four ran at districts.
In addition to the seniors and McKinzie, Stone, Flowers and freshman Haddon Newsome (72nd, PR of 18:05.22) all earned spots in Platte County’s lineup, while junior Jacoby Keith ended up as an alternate after being part of a fifth-place state team last year in Class 4. The Pirates were state runnersup in 2023 with the fastest collection of runners in program history.
Herron becomes Platte County’s first state qualifier in Missouri’s largest class since Matthew Sullivan in 2019. He advanced in Class 4 before the state added a fifth classification for the fall of 2020, which coincided with the start of the Pirates’ run of five straight team berths.
The only others from Platte County to go in Class 4 before the split to five classifications were Nathan Straubel (2014) and Jackson Letcher (2015-2018).
Herron earned all-state honors (top 25) each of the past two years in Class 4, placing 23rd as a sophomore and moving up to ninth last season. He came in 111th as a debuting freshman.
“I’d say it’s the people around me, definitely my teammates that have been so successful and such hard-workers,” Herron said of the key to his development over the past four seasons to become one of the fastest runners in Platte County history. “But also just the culture of the sport. The people around us in track meets and cross country meets have just been getting better and better. I realized if I want to be one of the best, so does everyone else here.”
