Boys sweep first, Girls runner-up at Conference meet

Last week’s Park Hill Invitational was the last opportunity for the Trojan track teams to prepare themselves for this week’s all important Conference meet at Staley. While the boys took first place against a tough field of competition, both teams have reason to be optimistic down the final stretch.

Near the top of the leader board in almost every event, the boys racked up 185 points compared to Fort Osage’s second place total of 126 team points. The Trojans were led once again by Nick Smith in the shot put and discus. Smith has provided a high level of consistency for Park Hill throughout the season. Other areas of strength for the boys are the 4x400 and 4x200 relay teams which edged out North Kansas City in both races along with other hurdle and long-distance events including Adrien Esaw in the 110 meter hurdles (1st), Dondrell Hardiman in the 300 meter hurdles (1st), and Nathan Kohler (1st), Fernando Garcia (2nd), and Cain Winebrenner’s (1st) performances in the 800 and 1600 meter runs.

The quality outcome against teams with athletes like those of Fort Osage and Raytown sets Coach Mark Gourley’s boys team up for what they hope will be a conference championship this Thursday in the second and final day of the conference meet. Their ability to not necessarily win every event, but score high in a wide range of those events will be an advantage that could pay off for the Trojan boys.

On the girls side, after placing fourth in the PH Invitational Coach Tari Garner doesn’t think she’s seen the best out of her team yet, but sees a lot of potential. Junior Helena Hudson has been a consistently high performer. She placed first in the 100 meter hurdles last week and joined the 4x100 relay team of Rodnisha Willard, Angie Reagan, and Anesia Jamerson which finished third. Also finishing third were Nikki Collwell in the discus and Stephanie Atkinson in the pole vault. Jordan Cox and Kyleesha Weston also continue to excel in the throw events.

Although the girls haven’t been finishing first in as many events as they’d like, Garner has promoted the overall team as motivation at the individual level.

“We consistently talk about the fact that each individual has to give their best performance… it doesn’t have to be about winning the event but improving and placing in the highest possible spot to achieve team success,” Garner said.

Distance hasn’t been their strength, but recent performances from freshmen Chelsea Lewis and Shari Grayson have provided quality additions to this year’s team. One thing Garner isn’t denying is the improvement she’s seen across the board as the season has gone on despite injuries that have affected overall team results.

“We will continue to improve and perform our best,” Garner said. “The Conference Championship is our next goal and we plan to qualify at least three events to the State Championship Meet.”

Spring Roundup: April 26-30

Park Hill Baseball
The Trojans improved to 9-4 on the season last week with wins against St. Joe Central, Winnetonka, and Grain Valley before their two remaining games in the Kearney Tournament were rained out. On Thursday against Grain Valley, Adam Vanderpool hit a three run homer in his third of the week. James Vega, Vanderpool, and Alex Otto all contributed doubles good for two runs each. Pitchers Nathan Shores, Marcus Cross, and Otto were able to piece together a close 9-8 victory. Earlier in the week, Park Hill beat St. Joe Central 4-2 behind Clay Smith’s seven strong innings on the mound and the two home runs accounting for three runs from Vanderpool. It was followed by another victory against Winnetonka by a score of 15-3. With a 5-0 record in conference, the Trojans will play Platte County Wednesday and Truman on Friday.

Park Hill Girls Soccer
Lady Trojans soccer is hoping to rebound after a rough week where they lost to both Truman and Platte County, but between were able to edge out a 2-1 victory against Winnetonka on goals from Sydney Hultz and Holly Maier. Park Hill’s Emma Gossett continued her scoring spree against the Pirates, but her one goal would be the only against Platte County as Kelsey Knox’s four goals was too much to overcome in the 4-1 loss. It was a similar story earlier in the week, when Heather Scheiber’s assist to Gossett accounting for the only goal in a 2-1 loss to Truman. They’ll return this week with home games against Oak Park and Kearney. The Trojans are now 7-7.

Park Hill Boys Golf
After a third place finish in the Conference Tournament last Monday, the boys golf team followed it up with a first place finish at Drumm Farm in a triangular match against William Chrisman and North Kansas City with a team score of 342. Almost 20 strokes separated the first and second place team, William Chrisman scored a 361. Victor Soderholm medaled with his score of 78.

Park Hill Boys Tennis
A busy week for Park Hill Boys Tennis leads into an opportunity to add another Suburban Conference Championship to their resume. This past weekend they participated in the Suburban North Tournament with Park Hill South, Platte County, and other Northland schools. Performing solidly against almost the entire field, they weren’t able to top their rivals from Park Hill South as they finished second to the Panthers overall, falling short three points with their 47 compared to PHS’s 50. In the B flight of the singles tournament, Michael Jones took second after being defeated 10-5 by PHS’s Zach Royle. In the A flight doubles bracket, Sam Barth and Mike Merchant also took second after losing to Liberty 10-6. Brian Willis and Austin Caldwell took first place in the B flight doubles bracket after defeating Liberty’s other doubles duo 10-8. Earlier in the week, they took a tough loss when they traveled to Columbia Rockbridge 8-1, but Brian Hillix won a big match when he defeated a two-time state champion in Rockbridge’s Jimmy Hunter 6-4, 6-1. A win against Truman this week will clinch the conference championship. The Trojans are also looking forward to the 5th Annual Brandon McPherson Doubles Classic held at the Plaza Tennis Center this Wednesday afternoon.