Platte County pieced together the points needed to finish fifth out of 13 teams in Friday’s Darwin Rold Invitational at Lee’s Summit High School. A pair of returning state qualifiers in throwing events again led the way for the Pirates, while a deep group of runners continued to show progress.
Platte County senior Alexia Myer runs in the 800-meter race during the Darwin Rold Invitational on Friday at Lee’s Summit High School.
The relays haven’t quite gelled through two meets, but the contributors have started to sort out based on individual results.
Platte County freshman Tyler Stambersky posted a fourth-place finish in the 3,200-meter run as darkness set in on a cold evening featuring high winds. She posted a career-best of 13 minutes, 3.16 seconds, improving her time from the season-opening Ron Ives Invitational by almost exactly a second. The Pirates ended up with a top-five finisher in each of the 400, 800, 1,600 and 3,200 races.
A returning contributor at multiple distances, Platte County senior Alexia Myer finished fourth in the 400 (1:03.09), while junior Emily Huehl came in fifth in the 800 (2:33.49) to lead a trio of top-10 finishers for the Pirates. She transferred prior to this school year from Wakefield (Kansas) where she recorded a career-best of 2:27.88 in the event to place sixth and earn Class 1A all-state honors as a sophomore.
Platte County junior Maddie Stewart went under 6 minutes in the 1,600 for the first time this season and third time overall. She placed fifth in 5:59.73. Stambersky, Stewart and Huehl currently have led the way in stepping up in the long distance events after the graduation of Sisely Mitchell — the best long-distance runner in program history and two-time state medalist — and Carmen Gentilia.
The top relay for Platte County ended up being the 4×200 of Myer, Huehl, sophomore Adi Kern and freshman Addison Stone, but the Pirates have not had the full complement of options yet this season and might not for a while with junior Charley Sims out indefinitely with a foot injury.
Platte County junior Heaven Jale competes in the 300-meter hurdles during the Darwin Rold Invitational on Friday at Lee’s Summit High School.
Platte County juniors Adi Benninghoff (third, 18.78) and Heaven Jale (fourth, 18.78) posted identical times in the 100 hurdles despite big gusts of wind during the race that threw off the times. Benninghoff qualified for the Class 5 MSHSAA Track and Field Championships for the first time last year in the event and has gone under 16 seconds multiple times in her career.
Platte County senior Addy Schlake continues to chase her previous top form in the discus but still finished second Friday. A two-time state qualifier who owns the school record, she threw 35.13 meters and has not been over 36 meters yet this season. Her career-best came in mid-April as a junior when she posted a mark of 41.57 meters during the Licklider Relays in Jefferson City.
Schlake also set a PR of 11.02 meters in the shot put but just missed the top five.
A state medalist in Class 5 as a freshman, Platte County sophomore Kelly Bullano placed fourth in the javelin at 34.57 meters after throwing a season-best of 38.14 meters at the Ron Ives Invitational a week earlier. She set the school record multiple times last season, culminating with a sixth-place finish at state with a school-record distance of 41.55 meters.
