Platte County junior Donavin Ness runs in the Gans Creek Classic on Saturday at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia.
Platte County finished a solid ninth in the Gold Division of the Gans Creek Classic on Saturday in Columbia. Top-10 finishes were good enough to earn medals for junior Blake Herron and Tanner Jenks — two of the four runners for the Pirates to make their first return to the state course since last year’s second-place showing in the Class 4 MSHSAA Cross Country Championships.
Herron (fifth, 16 minutes, 4.40 seconds) and Jenks (ninth, 16 minutes, 7.40) seconds were key parts of the fastest collective team in program history last year but have assumed the top two spots int eh lineup after the graduation of all-state performers Andrew Johnson and Kade Meinke.
Platte County brought back five of the seven state runners from a year ago, but Ben Letcher has yet to run this season due breathing issues. However, the Pirates also put junior returning qualifiers Donavin Ness (49th, 17:00.30) and Elijah Jackson (81st, 17:38.10) in the top five Saturday, along with senior Ethan Smith (104th, 17:57.40).
Teams were allowed to enter 10 runners total, and there were 22 in the Gold Division race.
Herron and Jenks were part of a fairly tight pack of runners well back of the top two — Raymore-Peculiar junior Gabriel Voelker (15:08.30) and Shawnee Mission South (Kansas) senior Max Larson (15:15.20). Herron and Jenks both set a season-bests and just missed going under 16 minutes for the second time in their careers and first since putting up PRs on the same course last season.
Platte County junior Elijah Jackson runs in the Gans Creek Classic on Saturday at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia.
Both were all-state performers with Jenks 22nd (15:57.70) and Herron 23rd (15:58.40).
Ness did set a PR and nearly went under 17 minutes for the first time in his career, bettering his second state run from his sophomore season by less than a second. He also scored points for the Pirates in 2023 to cap the best season ever for the program.
Minus Letcher, Platte County continues to utilize different combinations to try and determine the top seven. Jackson bounced back and showed off his potential again as a second-year contributor with another PR and going under 18 minutes for the second time this season. Smith continued a strong run of finishes in four races for the Pirates and just missed the PR he set (17:56.10) the first week of September in the Todd Warner Kickoff Classic, which hosted last year’s Class 4 District 8 race.
Platte County freshmen Landon McKinzie (18:15.40) and Tate Stone (18:25.40) were again in the top seven. Stone cut nearly 26 full seconds off his previous PR in the fastest of his four races this season. The Pirates also brought sophomores Jacobi Keith (18:38.20), Drake White (19:20.40) and Nick Flowers (19:24.50).
Keith made his varsity debut, and he and White both set PRs in the 191-runner race.
