ARKANSAS ROUND-UP by ArkansasTrackStats.com

Week 7 October 24, 2002

 Week 7 featured the always tough Chile Pepper Festival (10/19) on the home course of the University of Arkansas at Agri Park in Fayetteville.  With cool, wet conditions the course still ran fast and, as always, was the site of surprises.  In addition to some hot NCAA university races, the Chile Pepper includes both an Invitational and Open race for junior and senior high.  The Open race is run over the senior high distances of 4K for Girls and 5K for Boys and includes a junior high division and a senior division with smaller high schools and larger high school JV squads.  The Invitational draws the top schools from Arkansas and Oklahoma.

 In the Boys Open/Junior Division, Russellville (AR) won 42-61-84-103-135 over Fayetteville (AR) Woodland, Van Buren (AR), Lake Hamilton (AR) and Rogers (AR) ElmwoodRussellville was led by overall winner James Roach who posted a solid 17:43 to edge out Willy Pickhardt of Woodland who crossed at 17:45.  Average team times spreads were: 

Russellville  

18:27 / 1:39

Woodland  

18:41 / 1:22

Van Buren  

19:03 / 1:50

Lake Hamilton  

19:21 / 2:14

Elmwood  

19:49 / 3:01 

In the Boys Open/Senior Division, Rogers (AR) JV took a close 30-33-100-193-211 win over Edmond (OK) Memorial JV, Edmond (OK) North JV, Little Rock (AR) Lutheran and Siloam Springs (AR)Rogers took the two tops spots with strong performances by Aaron Jefferson (16:53) and Jordan Conley (17:04).  Tommy Hosman of Edmond Memorial was 3rd at 17:10.  Average team times spreads were: 

Rogers JV  

17:18 / 42

Edmond Memorial JV  

17:25 / 25

Edmond North  

17:55 / 45

Lutheran  

18:30 / 2:10

Siloam Springs  

18:39 / 28

The Boys Invitational turned out to be a cake walk for Edmond (OK) Memorial but a fight to the finish for the first three Arkansas schools which went a long way to set the stage for the State Meet.  Edmond won 80-147-154-176-181 over Russellville (AR), Rogers (AR), Fayetteville (AR) and Ruston (LA).  Chase Feltner led the way for Russellville taking the overall title in a course record of 15:07.40 in a race where the Top 66 runners finished under 17 minutes.  Russellville won the “Arkansas” race but only with a slim margin over the fast-improving Rogers and Fayetteville teams showing that the 5A State Meet is far from decided. Russellville’s upfront strength of Chase Feltner, Travis Feltner and Brian Garner was put to the test by the depth of Rogers and FayettevilleRogers, whose lead runner all year was their 6th runner in this race, placed their Top 5 within an excellent spread of only 25 seconds.  Fayetteville was close behind with a spread of only 37 seconds.  Average team times spreads were: 

Edmond Memorial  

16:02 / 1:17

Russellville  

16:12 / 2:14

Rogers  

16:33 / 25

Fayetteville  

16:36 / 37

Ruston  

16:38 / 36

The 5A Fantasy Race using only Arkansas Class 5A finishers in the Chile Pepper tells the story as to what to expect at Oaklawn Park in Hot Springs on 11/9.  The unofficial results in the fantasy tally shows a very close race:

Russellville  

1-3-5-23-35  

= 67

Rogers  

11-13-14-17-20  

= 75

Fayetteville  

8-12-18-21-24  

= 83

Conway  

6-9-16-22-43  

= 96

Lake Hamilton  

2-7-19-31-42  

= 101

Mt. Home  

4-10-28-34-40  

= 116

At this point the 5A State Meet is very much up for grabs. While it is still the Cyclone’s to lose,  Russellville needs to close the door with all five in the Top 30.  Rogers has to have another good outing with the Blue Mountie Wave running a pack plus have their normal first two runners move up into the Top 10-15 instead of the Top 25.  Likewise, Fayetteville has to get their 4th and 5th up into the Top 20.  Should Conway close the gate much better than 43rd, the Wampus Cats could pull the upse

At the Warrior Invitational at Hendrix College in Conway on 10/19, Vilonia won a close race over Cabot by 26-29.  Taylor Munro paced Vilonia win his overall title in 18:02.21 over the muddy and flat 5K course over the pine grove trails.  Vilonia average 18:54 with a spread of 1:37.

In the Girls Open/Junior Division at Chile Pepper Russellville (AR) took a convincing win 39-85-117-127-144 over Rogers (AR) Elmwood, Harrison (AR), Rogers (AR) Oakdale and Bentonville (AR)Janie Blackmon and Britany Blackmon of Russellville paced the field in 15:26.26 and 15:33.13 to take the first two places.  Average team times spreads were: 

Russellville  

17:01 / 3:13

Elmwood  

17:40 / 3:27

Harrison  

18:02 / 4:07

Oakdale  

18:27 / 1:10

Bentonville  

18:24 / 4:08

The Girls Open/Senior Division was won by Siloam Springs (AR) in a close race 89-92-108-126-131 over Bishop McGuinness JV (Tulsa, OK), Eureka Springs (AR), Van Buren (AR) and Springfield (MO) Kickapoo JV.  Dianne Miller led the Lady Panthers to the win with a 16:09 for 2nd behind individual winner Amanda Henbest of Kickapoo who cruised to a 15:42 clocking.  Average team times spreads were: 

Siloam Springs  

17:34 / 2:05

Bishop McGuinness  

17:46 / 37

Eureka Springs  

17:53 / 2:20

Van Buren  

18:09 / 2:46

Kickapoo  

17:55 / 3:13

The Girls Invitational was nearly an Oklahoma sweep as Sooner state schools took four of the Top 5 team places with Broken Arrow (OK) won 103-160-169-196-202 over Edmond (OK) Santa Fe, Bishop McGuinness (Tulsa, OK), Fayetteville (AR) and Norman (OK).  Beth Madson of Lake Hamilton (AR) took individual honors with a swift 14:37.47 as she edged Jessica Eldridge of Broken Arrow who timed 14:45.49.  Average team times spreads were: 

Broken Arrow  

15:50 / 2:01

Edmond Santa Fe  

16:08 / 2:09

Bishop McGuinness  

16:24 / 54

Fayetteville  

16:28 / 2:09

Norman  

16:26 / 1:51

The Girls 5A Fantasy also gives a hint of what the State Meet may foretell.  Although No. 1 ranked Bryant and 4th ranked Mount St. Mary’s did not run at Chile Pepper, the remaining top 5A schools competed.  Discarding all of the non-5A teams from the actual results and adding in some runners from the Girls Open race yields some eye-popping possibilities:

Rogers  

7-9-11-19-20  

= 66

Fayetteville  

3-13-15-16-35  

= 82

Russellville  

4-6-18-24-30  

= 82

Lake Hamilton  

1-2-25-32-48  

= 108

Mt. Home  

5-22-23-34-43  

= 127

Bentonville  

8-10-12-52-55  

= 137

Springdale  

14-21-36-39-44  

= 154

The junior high runners who move up at State could well be the deciding difference as to who takes home one of the trophies from Hot Springs.  Bryant has to take care of business like they are capable to win but they have little margin with the field behind them closing fast.  Rogers continues to improve and has to make one more step up to challenge.  Fayetteville has to close the gate much better than 35th while Russellville will need help from their two top junior high runners and try to get their 5th runner into the Top 25.  Lake Hamilton has a powerful front two but has exposure at the 4th and 5th positions.  The others will be hoping for everyone’s best day and for the rest of the field to falter.

At the Warrior Invitational at Hendrix College in Conway on 10/19, Cabot claimed a close 41-47-64 win over Vilonia and Harding Academy. Jaala Spencer on Conway took honors with a 16:55.38 win.  Cabot won with an average time of 18:17 and a spread of 43 seconds while Vilonia averaged 18:23 with a 2:43 spread.

STARS OF THE WEEK:

GIRLS ---  Beth Madson of Lake Hamilton took an impressive win at the Chile Pepper with a 14:37.47 over the 4K course.  All performances below are from the Chile Pepper Girls Invitational race unless otherwise indicated.

Other notables were: 

Eldridge, Jessica  

Broken Arrow, OK  

14:45.49

Land, Mica  

Edmond Sante Fe, OK  

15:00.01

Bradbury, Patricia  

Lake Hamilton, AR  

15:11.8

Ensler, Katherine  

Norman, OK  

15:20.48

Williams, Niki  

Fayetteville, AR  

15:23.67

Blackmon, Janie  

Russellville, AR Junior High  

15:26.26  (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Cowden, Mallory  

Guthrie, OK  

15:26.62

Ray, Heather  

Edmond Sante Fe, OK  

15:27.57

Broederdorf, Laura  

Mountain Home, AR  

15:31.76

Blackmon, Britany  

Russellville, AR Junior High  

15:33.13 (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Peerson, Andrea  

Rogers, AR  

15:34.56

Goste, Megan  

Broken Arrow, OK  

15:36.09

Young, Zapporah  

Broken Arrow, OK  

15:39.23

Ingram, Rachel  

Willard, MO  

15:39.75

Young, Tia  

Harrison, AR Junior High  

15:41.48 (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Henbest, Amanda  

Kickapoo, MO High School  

15:41.83 (Chile Pepper Sr Open)

Hurley, Andrea  

Edmond North, OK  

15:42.90

Lamb, Petrina  

Guthrie, OK  

15:46.36

Snider, Rachel  

Edmond North, OK  

15:47.31

Barnes, Jessi  

Bentonville, AR  

15:48.49

Gaylor, Sarah  

Tahlequah, OK  

15:52.53

Fiedler, Stephanie  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

15:55.52

Cowherd, Stephanie  

Ozark, MO High School  

15:55.82 (Chile Pepper Sr Open)

Wardlaw, Erika  

Eureka Springs, AR Junior High  

15:58.35 (Chile pepper Sr Open)

Papageorge, Staci  

Rogers Elmwood, AR Junior High  

15:59.33 (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Owensby, Alicia  

Bentonville, AR  

16:00.23

Sneddon, Rachel  

Carthage, MO  

16:01.27

Horton, Vikki  

Willard, MO  

16:05.14

Bryant, Hanna  

Bentonville, AR Junior High  

16:05.72 (Chile pepper Jr Open)

Salinas, Ana Laura  

Rogers, AR

16:05.75

Miller, Dianne  

Siloam Springs, AR High School  

16:09.95 (Chile Pepper Sr Open)

Prince, Becky  

West Monroe, LA  

16:12.45

Plasited, Brittany  

Grove, OK Junior High  

16:16.98 (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Jones, Hilary  

Norman, OK 16:17.63

Reichert, Katie  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:18.25

Wilson, Ashley  

West Monroe, LA  

16:18.69

Shipman, Kayla  

Carthage, MO  

16:19.48

Parker, Kristy  

Bentonville, AR  

16:20.10

Land, Amanda  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:22.51

Gulliams, Ana  

Springdale, AR  

16:23.07

Reihart, Sarah  

Broken Arrow, OK  

16:23.57

Bird, Alee  

Willard, MO  

16:23.96

Smith, Lauren  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:24.2

Bragg, Amanda  

East Newton, MO  

16:24.93

Vaughan, Shannon  

Oark, AR  

16:26.20

Bourke, Megan  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:27.80

Pastor, Arely  

Carthage, MO  

16:28.21

Johnston, Kelsey  

Edmond Sante Fe, OK  

16:28.72

Bublis, Elizabeth  

Norman, OK  

16:29.02

Bundren, Shelly  

Holland Hall, OK  

16:29.46

Massarelli, Callie  

  

16:30.06

Carey, Ellen  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:30.74

Scott, Sara  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:32.46

Kendrick, Krissi  

Republic, MO  

16:34.46

Bird, Janine  

Willard, MO Junior High  

16:34.84 (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Wallace, Heather  

Edmond Sante Fe, OK  

16:34.99

Hopper, Rachel  

Republic, MO  

16:35.60

Armstrong, Aston  

Ft. Smith Southside, AR  

16:35.99

McCulley, Kacee  

Grove, OK  

16:37.33

Brown, Laura  

Russellville, AR  

16:38.41

Neely, Jessica  

DeQueen, AR  

16:43.62

Martin, Amber  

Casady, OK  

16:44.45

Dalbey, Erin  

Rogers, AR  

16:44.93

Thomas, Tasha  

Broken Arrow, OK  

16:45.93

Estevey, Blanca  

Rogers, AR  

16:47.00

 Cox, Jessica  

Springdale, AR  

16:48.41

Beck, Brittany  

Mountain Home, AR  

16:48.71

McClennon, Claire  

Edmond North, OK  

16:48.97

Hogan, Kayla  

Grove, OK  

16:49.82

VanZandt, Crystal  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:50.84

Wallis, Becca  

Eureka Springs, AR High School  

16:51.02 (Chile Pepper Sr Open)

Matty, Megan  

Mountain Home, AR  

16:51.84

Greene, Brianna  

Harrison, AR  

16:52.08

Krug, Mary  

Heber Springs, AR Junior High  

16:52.50 (Chile Pepper Jr Open)

Johnson, Jennifer  

Edmond North, OK  

16:52.74

Clark, Tia  

Sapulpa, OK  

16:53.62

Casso, Stephanie  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:53.97

Martin, Britney  

Casady, OK  

16:54.47

Hardy, Sylvia  

Kickapoo, MO  

16:54.70

Biddick, Drew  

Norman, OK  

16:55.01

Arnold, Melissa  

Decatur, AR  

16:55.21

Jaala Spencer  

Conway  

16:55.38 (Warrior Invitational)

White, Linnsey  

Russellville, AR  

16:57.19

Ohl, Devan  

Lake Hamilton, AR  

16:58.07

Cornett, Cassie  

Heber Springs, AR High School  

16:58.29 (Chile Pepper Sr Open)

BOYS --- Chase Feltner of Russelleville set the pace for Arkansas runners with a Chile Pepper race record at 15:07.40.  All performances below are from the Chile Pepper Boys Invitational race unless otherwise indicated.

Other notables were:

Sayko, Daniel  

West Monroe, LA  

15:19.69

Bowling, Kenneth  

Republic, MO  

15:21.49

Schmiedeberg, Tyler  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

15:24.14

Gosnell, Brian  

Tahlequah, OK  

15:28.03

Hicks, Burt  

Lake Hamilton, AR  

15:35.30

Shumate, Marc  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

15:43.40

Feltner, Travis  

Russellville, AR  

15:44.81

Curry, Derek  

Mountain Home, AR  

15:52.05

Garner, Bryan  

Russellville, AR  

15:54.05

Siler, Ryan  

Tahlequah, OK  

15:56.94

Miller, Dustin  

Carthage, MO  

16:03.69

Kaserman, Scott  

Edmond Sante Fe, OK  

16:04.64

Carter, Casey  

Carthage, MO  

16:05.64

Henry, Keith  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

16:06.42

Fuller, Raven  

Conway, AR  

16:11.09

Garvin, Ryan  

Lake Hamilton, AR  

16:11.79

Kalega, Ronald  

Searcy, AR  

16:13.54

Reinert, J. T.  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:14.87

Carswell, Hunter  

Ruston, LA  

16:15.69

Woodside, Christian  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

16:16.22

Harris, Eric  

Conway, AR  

16:16.94

Dilbeck, Casey  

Mountain Home, AR  

16:20.87

McCullough, Michael  

Rogers, AR  

16:22.19

Thill, Jesse  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:22.55

Gordon, Caleb  

Rogers, AR  

16:22.94

Mueller, Stefan  

Rogers, AR  

16:23.80

Akers, Adam  

Willard, MO  

16:24.91

Taylor, Stephen  

Casady, OK  

16:26.21

Tower, Matthew  

Stillwater, OK  

16:27.16

Gold, Cody  

Nixa, MO  

16:31.58

Otwell, Richard  

Ruston, LA  

16:33.15

Cagigal, Matthew  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:33.48

Swanson, Preston  

Guthrie, OK  

16:33.82

Ward, Josh  

Edmond Sante Fe, OK  

16:34.24

Boes, Kyle  

Carthage, MO  

16:34.59

Lagunas, John  

DeQueen, AR  

16:35.65

Wheeler, Brandon  

Ft. Smith Northside, AR  

16:37.07

Isom, Elliot  

Conway, AR  

16:38.14

Talbot, Chris  

Guthrie, OK  

16:39.07

Adams, Ruben  

Guthrie, OK  

16:39.86

Waltz, Phillip  

Ruston, LA  

16:40.29

Dempster, Nate  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

16:41.22

Hines, Zach  

Rogers, AR  

16:41.61

Hicks, Dan  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:42.92

Woodside, John  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

16:43.53

Penland, Andrew  

Edmond Memorial, OK  

16:44.61

Cannon, Tim             

Lake Hamilton, AR  

16:46.25

Grimes, Matt  

Rogers, AR  

16:46.99

Soto, Ryan  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:47.75

Johnson, Chris  

Conway, AR  

16:49.00

Canfield, Owen  

Bishop McGuinness, OK  

16:49.44

Smith, Nathan  

Russellville, AR  

16:50.00

Crain, Sean  

Ruston, LA  

16:50.58

Cordaro, Nick  

Ruston, LA  

16:51.25

Blair, Matt  

Fayetteville, AR  

16:51.94

Aaron Jefferson  

Rogers JV  

16:52.97  (Chile Pepper Open/Senior)

Hamel, Rex  

DeQueen, AR  

16:53.73

Sutrick, John  

Sapulpa, OK                            

16:54.34

 Kirkpatrick, Matt  

Sapulpa, OK  

16:54.89

Rodriquez, Nicholas  

Bentonville, AR  

16:55.24

Hemphill, Michael  

 

16:55.72

Tilford, Shaun  

Edmond North, OK  

16:56.28

Frie, Matthew  

Edmond North, OK  

16:56.94

Sherwood, Derek  

DeQueen, AR  

16:57.64

Garcia, Miguel  

Capitol Hill, OK  

16:58.26

Breland, Clint  

West Monroe, LA  

16:59.93

 

PRIOR WEEK RANKINGS:

Girls 1A/2A/3A

Berryville, Dover, DeQueen, Magnet Cove, Eureka Springs

Girls 4A/5A

Bryant, Lake Hamilton, Rogers, Mount St. Mary’s, Fayetteville

Boys 1A/2A/3A

DeQueen, Heber Springs, Berryville, Little Rock Lutheran, Dover

Boys 4A/5A

Russellville, Rogers, Conway, Lake Hamilton, Fayetteville