To say the least, Savannah Manthey was feeling it Saturday, May 27.
Manthey, a senior, knew she would have to have perhaps her finest day as a thrower of she was going to win the Missouri Class 3 Track and Field Championships girls’ javelin competition.
She responded with a school-record performance. Not once, but four times!
As a result Manthey indeed captured the Class 3 javelin championship Saturday at Jefferson City High School’s Adkins Stadium.
Her winning throw came on her first attempt in the finals, 42.70 meters, or 140 feet, one inch.
She was solid throughout the competition, topping the 40-meter mark in five of her six attempts. Bowling Green’s Grace Deters passed Manthey with the top throw going into the finals, getting off a 42.48-meter effort on the final try of Heat 2.
However, Manthey regained the lead on the next attempt and was able to keep it. Deters ended up second on the all-state podium with 139 feet, four inches while Maryville’s Ava Dumke was third at 128-6.
During the competition Manthey broke her own school record by nearly nine feet. In fact, she passed that old school mark four times at the state competition.
“It was all kind of like, ‘oh my gosh! I did that!’” Manthey said. “It was really a good day. Everything really went perfect and there was good competition pushing you.”
The weather was a little on the hot side of mild, but it was dry and there was little wind. And obviously the conditions worked in Manthey’s favor.
“It was definitely my best day,” she said. “It was a great battle, and I took over first with my second throw.”
Then Deters passed her heading into the finals.
“That made me very nervous,” said Manthey, who will now go on and throw at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar. “But I knew it would be a battle before I got here.”
Manthey’s first-place performance gave Salem 10 points, allowing the Lady Tigers to tie for 30th place in the girls’ team standings. Lutheran St. Charles was the girls’ team champion with 51 points while Eldon was second with 37, Centralia third with 36 and Palmyra fourth with 35.
Bowling Green won the boys’ team title with 74.5 points while East Newton was second with 37.
Salem’s lone competitor in the boys’ meet was junior Bryson May. May, a first-year track athlete, finished 13th in the triple jump at 40-0 ½ feet.
May 26-27
Class 3 State Championships
At Jefferson City
Boys
Top-5 Team Standings: 1. Bowling Green 74.5, 2. East Newton 37, 3. Herculaneum 30, 3. Lutheran North 30, 5. Pembroke Hill 29.
Event winners
100-meter dash: 1. Brett Schwanke, Buffalo, :10.49.
200-meter dash: 1. William Gaines-Parker, Kennett, :21.60.
400-meter dash: 1. Kaden Hamner, Clark County, :48.70.
800-meter run: 1. Chase Sorrell, East Newton, 1:53.60.
1,600-meter run: 1. Connor Burns, Southern Boone, 4:13.52.
3,200-meter run: 1. Burns, Southern Boone, 9:20.14.
110-meter hurdles: 1. Kaiden Snyder, St. James, :14.36.
300-meter hurdles: 1. Kaiden Snyder, St. James, :38.74.
4x100-meter relay: 1. Lutheran North, :42.68.
4x200-meter relay: 1. Lutheran North, 1:28.70.
4x400-meter relay: 1. Lutheran North, 3:23.51.
4x800-meter relay: 1. Dexter, 8:03.05.
High jump: 1. Marcus Starks, Bowling Green, 6-6 ¾.
Pole vault: 1. Caelan Harland, Macon, 15-0 ¾.
Long jump: 1. Jason Williams, 23-0.
Triple jump: 1. Bleyne Bryant, Bowling Green, 44-7 ½. Salem: 13. Bryson May, 40-0 ½.
Shot put: 1. Trace Wooldridge, Lamar, 55-0 ¼.
Discus: 1. Devin Rue, Bowling Green, 167-7.
Javelin: 1. Dylan Dalton, Bowling Green, 168-8.
Girls
Top-5 Team Standings: 1. Lutheran St. Charles 51, 2. Eldon 37, 3. Centralia 36, 4. Palmyra 35, 5. Summit Christian Academy 32. T-30. Salem 10.
Event winners
100-meter dash: 1. Alexis Summers, Ewing Marion, :12.25.
200-meter dash: 1. Summers, Ewing Marion, :25.06.
400-meter dash: 1. Elle North, Lutheran St. Charles, :57.75.
800-meter run: 1. Zoe Martonfi, Eldon, 2:16.02.
1,600-meter run: 1. Martonfi, Eldon, 5:04.59.
3,200-meter run: 1. Elsa Henry, St. Michael, 11:09.84.
100-meter hurdles: 1. Jersy Nelke, Winfield, :14.69.
300-meter hurdles: 1. Martonfi, Eldon, :44.61.
4x100-meter relay: 1. Lutheran South, :49.32.
4x200-meter relay: 1. Lutheran St. Charles, 1:43.93.
4x400-meter relay: 1. El Dorado Springs, 4:06.47.
4x800-meter relay: 1. El Dorado Springs, 9:57.03.
High jump: 1. April Phillips, Summit Christian, 5-3 ¾.
Pole vault: 1. Madison Kessler, Osage, 10-9.
Long jump: 1. Phillips, Summit Christian, 18-3.
Triple jump: 1. Phillips, Summit Christian, 37-6 ¾.
Shot put: 1. Candra King, Palmyra, 44-8 ¼.
Discus: 1. King, Palmyra, 131-1.
Javelin: 1. Savannah Manthey, Salem, 140-1.
