1. Olathe East girls take aim
The Olathe East girls dominated the Class 6A Blue Valley regional and have a chance for a strong showing at state as well. The Hawks have two defending champions in Jasmine Thomas, who won the 100 and 200 meters, and Kelsey Lathrop, who owns the title in the 800.
2. Braden Smith in shot put, discus
Olathe South’s Braden Smith, who is the Class 6A defending state champion in the shot put and discus, is the favorite to win both again. He has the top seed mark of 59 feet in the shot put and 185 feet, 9 inches in the discus.
3. Megan Vanderpool in pole vault
Shawnee Mission West’s Megan Vanderpool finished second in the state last season, but she enters this year’s Class 6A championships with the top seed mark of 10-6, which earned her the regional title last week at Blue Valley.
4. Aquinas, St. James battle in javelin
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Margaret Jacobs and St. James’ Academy’s Allie Webb will both head into the Class 5A meet with an identical seed mark of 127-6 in the javelin. There is more than a 4-inch difference between them and the third place competitor, so it will likely come down to Jacobs, who placed eighth last year, and Webb, who finished 11th, for the title.
5. Mill Valley 800-meter contenders
In Class 5A, Mill Valley currently holds the top two seed times in the boys 800 meters. Kurtis Loevenstein leads all qualifiers with 1:59.13, and Clifford Meeks is right behind him at 1:59.49 seconds.