MOKANE, Mo. -- New Bloomfield boys track and field did what it had done three times this season, winning its fourth team title in 2024 in the 17-team South Callaway HS Invitational Thursday at South Callaway High School.
The Wildcats scored 137½ points, beating host, second-place South Callaway by 43½. Making it three Show-Me Conference teams in the top three, Russellville placed third with 91 points.
"It was a good meet. We've been running a lot in the last couple of weeks," New Bloomfield track and field coach Jacob White said. "So, the boys are in pretty good condition; good form right now. So, we're gonna come back next week and try to fine-tune some things that we got. We got three meets on the schedule; we're not gonna go all out next week. Just kind of get ready for the postseason coming up in two weeks."
Anytime Ben Speaks hits the track for New Bloomfield this year, it's all but guaranteed he'll earn gold, and he took home one individual and relay first-place medal on Thursday.
Speaks zoomed to the finish line in 52.39 seconds to win the 400-meter dash by 0.77 over Harrison Reid of Cole Camp. He did that after getting disqualified in the 100.
"It does a lot on your mental, so it's really important for me to push through because last year at this meet, I had a really bad meet, and my 400 was really bad," Speaks said. "So, today, it was really important for me to pursue it, and the competition was very serious today. So, I really wanted to perform and beat some people and get a gold, so it meant a lot for me for the rest of the season to really push through that struggle of that DQ and pull together and get a gold in the 400."
In the final event of the five-hour meet, under the lights, Speaks finished a winning 3:44.12 race for the Wildcats' 4x400 team. Hunter Rackers was the team's lead runner, followed by Conor Lawrence, Riley Connell and Speaks.
New Bloomfield beat rival Russellville's Keaton Schrimpf, Drake Armes, Rhett Fisher and Bryce Berendzen by 2.84.
"It was awesome; we worked as a team. We kind of cooked," Rackers said.
"I personally think we executed," Lawrence said. "We came out knowing, especially me coming out, we knew we had to keep it close the entire time, and our first two really did that. We were able to execute and get in the lead for our big guy, Ben, here. For him to come out here and work his lap, he did his thing. He's a specialist in the 4 (relays), and he did his thing and won us the race."
"Being ranked first in this race definitely brought up our confidence a lot," Speaks said. "Russellville is one of the toughest competitors in the area, so beating them always means something."
"You've got the greatest first leg in the nation in Hunter Rackers and greatest anchor in the nation in Ben Speaks, and just had to put in the work to put them in first," Connell said.
For the Wildcats, it wasn't just Speaks who received gold in an individual and relay event. Jacob Fuhriman did, too.
Jacob Fuhriman leaped to a 43.61 winning time in the 300 hurdles, .21 faster than second-place Schrimpf.
"That guy in front of me--he's just good," Fuhriman said. "He's been doing this for a couple of years. This is my first year doing it, so obviously, beating him feels amazing, but it's pretty good. This one definitely feels the best. Big PR, I think. But big PR for me."
Also, like Speaks, Jacob Fuhriman was the final runner on a Wildcat-winning relay team.
Beginning with Cameron Rohrbach, followed by JT Powell, Rackers and Jacob Fuhriman, New Bloomfield won the 4x200 at 1:37.72. The Wildcats won by 3.51 over Cole Camp's Evan Begshaw, Dalton Brandt, Harrison Reid and Kolton Phillips.
Making it a trio of Wildcat-winning relay teams, New Bloomfield's 4x800 squad of Lawrence, Porter Hurt, Jayson Locke and Connell took first at 9:30.78. The Wildcats were 4.82 ahead of second-place Vienna's Cooper Auten, Thomas Douglas, Brayden Ewers and Jackson Kilmer.
"I think we executed well, especially with the weather," Lawrence said.
It wasn't just New Bloomfield winning relays.
South Callaway's 4x100 of Owen Rees, Cole Brewer, Tayber Gray and Colten Crocker finished first at 46.21, .16 in front of the Wildcats' Powell, Rackers, Rohrbach and Jacob Fuhriman, who placed second.
"As weird as it sounds, our 4x2(00) getting DQ'd because they're out of the zone, and basically the same group turned around and them going and winning the 4x1(00)," South Callaway track and field coach Stephen Wisch said. "We talked a lot about that with those kids as a team that when you have bad things happen, you have two choices: you either choose to get after it and do it right the second time, or you can wallow in self pity. And those guys respond to adversity so well. So, very proud of those guys, specifically."
In the triple jump, the Bulldogs' Cole Lee and Andrew Bell placed first and second, respectively. Lee won at 37 feet and 0.88 inches, while Bell went 35-9.53.
"Cole Lee had a huge PR in the triple jump," Wisch said.
Rounding out South Callaway's three first-place performances, Nathan Hecktor won the javelin at 152-1.2, Hallsville's Aedan Benskin placed second at 141-10.76 and New Bloomfield's Trenton Boessen placed third at 140-2.28.
"Nathan had a couple of huge PRs and javelin, he won javelin -- had a huge PR," Wisch said. "He had a huge PR in discus, obviously didn't win there. But still, just kids getting better, which is what track and sports are all about. Getting better, having fun with each other and growing as athletes but also more importantly as people."
The Wildcats' individual silver medalists were Rohrbach in the 100 dash (12.44), Connell in the 3,200 run (11:20.78) and Rackers in the pole vault (11-1.07).
South Callaway's Tayber Gray placed second in the 200 dash at 24.75, while New Bloomfield's Powell took third at 25.13.
In the 110 hurdles, the Wildcats' Hunter Dawson placed third at 19.1 and the Bulldogs' Ayden Munford fifth at 19.37.
South Callaway's bronze medalists were Hecktor in the high jump (5-3.78), Caden Bohnert in the pole vault (10-7.17) and Lee Butcher in the shot put (40-8.19).
New Bloomfield's fourth-place finishers were Hurt in the 800 run (2:27.27), Lawrence in the 1,600 run (5:10.64) and Powell in the long jump (17-10.17).
The Bulldogs' Rees in the 100 dash (12.59) and Butcher in the discus (114-4.05) finished fourth.
Locke's 3,200-run performance (11:53.35) and Boessen's shot put performance (37-9.94) were the Wildcats' fifth-place performances.
South Callaway's fifth-place displays were Gray in the 100 dash (12.61), Tucker Jones in the 800 run (2:29.21), Munford in the 110 hurdles (19.37) and Caleb Hubbard in the pole vault (9-7.35).
Capping first place New Bloomfield's medalists were its sixth-place finishers, Locke in the 1,600 run (5:26.12), Rohrbach in the long jump (17-3.87), Hurt in the triple jump (34-4.99) and Matthew Fuhriman in the pole vault (9-1.45).
The Wildcats compete in the Versailles Invitational at 4 p.m. Monday at Versailles High School.
"Hand-off and block starts will be our focus, making sure we get those things down and relaxed in those situations," White said. "I feel like it's an easy thing to do. We're struggling with some of that stuff right now."
After previewing its sectional venue, South Callaway will get a first look at the state site when it hits the track for the Licklider Relays at 9:45 a.m. Saturday at Adkins Stadium in Jefferson City.
"Incredibly fortunate here at South Callaway that we have a community that's very, very supportive," South Callaway track and field coach Stephen Wisch said. "If you looked up in the press box right off the time, our technology director, our assistant technology director, who's going to be the technology director, our athletic director, our high school principal was helping run off javelin. Our superintendent was down here. We have so much support. We had our school board member of Toronto Hyrdo Force, so much support.
"And, that's what makes South Callaway great is that we have a village of people that want to make our events amazing. First off, that allows us the opportunity to host something like sectionals. It also let's our kids go and compete at super high levels and a great place, and we're just very, very blessed."
New Bloomfield's first-place boys team poses for a photo after the South Callaway HS Invitational Thursday at South Callaway High School in Mokane. (Robby Campbell/Fulton Sun)