Simon Ketter saved his best run for his last one at the MSHSAA Class 5 State Track and Field Championships on May 30.
After a hard push in the second half of the 1,600-meter run, Ketter earned himself the biggest reward he could get: a state championship medal. It was the first time a Park Hill South student-athlete had ever won state in the 1,600.
Simon Ketter is Park Hill South’s first-ever 1,600-meter state champion, setting a school record with a time of 4:09.78 on May 30 in Jefferson City.
“I’m still in disbelief,” Ketter said after the race. “That was the most insane race.”
Ketter crossed the finish line second in 4 minutes, 9.78 seconds, but was crowned as the state champion after SLUH’s Jackson Miller’s had his first-place finish disqualified. Ketter’s time broke the school record previously set by senior teammate Thomas Garrett at last year’s state meet.
With Thomas also competing in the run, the plan was for Ketter and Thomas to remain in close proximity. The start of the race did not meet those expectations. Ketter got off to a slow start, suddenly finding himself in 13th place after the first 400 meters while Garrett remained in the top five.
“I actually thought it was over; it was bad,” Ketter said. “I was thinking to myself, ‘Maybe this won’t happen.’ Then, every lap, I made more moves.”
Ketter moved back towards the middle of the pack with Garrett slightly ahead as the race hit its midway point with two laps to go. With the encouragement of Garrett, Ketter pushed even harder for the final 700 meters.
“I was just thinking to myself the whole time, ‘I should just do it,’” Ketter said. “I know it hurts so much, but let’s make it the 200. I pretended like it’s the 200s finish. I decided to go for it.”
Ketter moved into the top five going into the final lap, where he made another big jump down the home stretch.
“I had the adrenaline rush coming down that back stretch,” Ketter said. “I thought, might as well just do it.’ I didn’t really care if someone passed the last lap, as long as I pushed where I wanted to go.”
Park Hill South’s newest state champion defied the pre-race seeding expectations, going from No. 11 seed to state champion. A truly emphatic way to close out a high school career.
“This is all I could have ever hoped for and so much more,” Ketter said.
David Meyer battled the rainy elements in Park Hill South’s opening track event, the 4x800 run on May 29. The remainder of the day was postponed due to weather.
Park Hill South began the state championships on May 29, when a torrential downpour disrupted the 4x800 boys relay. The relay served as the first and only event on the track during the first day before MSHSAA postponed the remainder of the day due to inclement weather.
The Panthers’ boys 4x800 team of David Meyer, Ketter, Cole James and Garrett finished fourth in 7:59.04. After dropping to 14th on the opening lap, Meyer battled back to get South within the top 10. Ketter continued South’s ascendancy to fifth, a spot that James kept before Garrett took South up a notch in the final 800 meters.
Senior pole vaulter Logan Hild narrowly missed the medal stand, clearing 4.25 for a ninth-place finish. Garrett, who entered the weekend with hopes of winning the 800, was last to cross the finish line in frustration with one boot missing after 2:09.01.
The lady Panthers had each of their three state qualifiers earn all-state medals, led by freshman high jumper Lynnae Warfield.
Making her state debut in Jefferson City, Warfield tied for third place in the high jump. Warfield passed the first four levels, clearing 1.67 meters but was unable to clear 1.69 to tie Helias Catholic’s Nicki Franck for third while Lindbergh’s Katelyn Watson finished runner-up and North Kansas City’s D’Mya Newton won the state title after clearing 1.69.
Freshman high jumper Lynnae Warfield tied for third at state, clearing 1.67 meters.
“It’s not what I wanted to do because it’s not my PR, but it’s still good,” Warfield said. “There were a lot of nerves. Just breathe, and know it will be okay.”
Warfield, who also competed in sprint races throughout the season, set a school record of 1.75 on April 16 and hit 1.70 in the sectional meet on May 23. She won the high jump at six of 11 meets throughout the spring, an inaugural mark of success she hopes to build on.
“I was not expecting any of it,” Warfield said. “Last year wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t the best I could have done. So, coming into freshman year, I just popped out with all this talent, which is crazy.”
Zari Martin also had a standout performance in her final discus competition as a Panther.
Madilynn Conklin earned her final state medal in the 1600, breaking her own school record time with a run of 4:58.30 for a seventh-place medal.
Martin, who was also a sectional javelin qualifier, earned a seventh-place medal after a 36.91-meter toss with her final throw, setting a new PR and the second-longest discus throw in program history.
Madilynn Conklin also brought her well-decorated Panther career to an end, finishing with a seventh-place medal in the 1,600. Conklin, the only runner in program history to finish the 1,600 in under five minutes, earned a state medal with a time of 4:58.30, her second straight sub-five-minute time to conclude her high school career.