Day one was a big success for MPCHS. The very first event was the shuttle hurdle prelims, where the Panthers qualified for the finals with Beth Byrum, Brittany Melloy, Laura Alderson and Ashley Eaves. Their time of 1:06.49 was the second fastest of the field. Their first actual points of the day came when Melissa Erickson edged a field of mainly SEC competitors to become a state champion in the 3,000-meter run. "This is so important to me, we really want the team title," she said after the win, "I knew we needed as many points as possible so I just tried to deliver."
"Melissa was a big reason why we did so well," coach Hutchcroft said. "We knew she could really motivate the rest of the team with a good performance. I am really, really happy for Melissa."
The Panthers also qualified Mwale Kapande for the open 100 Thursday with the third-fastest time. Kapande delivered big on Saturday when she took second in the event with a 13.01. In individual events, Kapande brought home 16 points with the eight-point finish in the open 100 and a second-place finish in the long jump.
Brittany Melloy was crowned the state champion in the 400 hurdles with a 1:03.89 running of the event. It was the third-straight MPCHS win at the state level in that event. Lindsey Boldt won it twice in 2005 and 2006. "They were expecting a win," she said, "It feels good that I didn't let them down and I got that ten points for the team." Melloy added a point in the open 400 with an eighth-place finish.
Erickson would add another three points with a sixth-place finish in the 1,500. The sprint medley team did the same with Alicia Kokaly, Eaves, Kapande and Melloy. Another 13 points were added to the total with a second-place finish in the finals with the shuttle hurdle relay, and a fourth-place finish in the 4x100 finals. Kapande, Eaves, Shelby Brumbaugh and Kokaly made up that team.
The Panthers just missed scoring points in several events. Kokaly narrowly missed qualifying for the open 100 with a tenth-place prelims finish. The 4x800 team was one place out with a 9:58.47 running, and Ashley Eaves took ninth in the 100 hurdle prelims.
"We either improved on or hit our seeds in every event," coach Hutchcroft said. "We ran well all three days. It is a grind to stay on top." The Panthers led about halfway through on Friday, and were able to hold that lead until the very last event. Benton finished second in the 4x400 to overtake the Panthers. The final event was imperative for Benton. Third would have tied the Panthers, and fourth would have given the Panthers the win. "Initially we were disappointed that we didn't get that state title," Hutchcroft said. "But I think when we were called up to the blue track to receive our trophy, we were happy with the result."
The Panthers did everything they could at the state track meet, but came up just two points short. Expectations were high for them and there was a target placed appropriately on their collective back for the entire season. It is doubtful there is any other team in the state that ran with as much pressure as MPCHS did in 2007. "The girls didn't give it up easily," Hutchcroft told the News. "We defended our title with everything we had. I am very proud of the girls, particularily the seniors."
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Place Event Name Time/Distance qualified/points
2 shuttle hurdle prelims (B. Byrum, B. Melloy, Laura Alderson, A. Eaves) 1:06.49 (qualified)
1 3,000 Melissa Erickson 10:47.47 (10)
3 100 prelims Mwale Kapande 12.91 (qualified)
10 100 prelims Alicia Kokaly 13.18
9 4x800 (Samantha Norton, Sherea Knudsen, Kaytlin Moeller, Joslyn Haffarnan), 9:58.47
8 400 Melloy 59.51 (1)
2 long jump Kapande 8-01.25 (8)
1 400 hurdles Melloy 1:03.89 (10)
9 100 hurdles Eaves 15.95
4 4x100 (Kapande, Eaves, Shelby Brumbaugh, Alicia Kokaly) 50.77 (qualified)
6 sprint medley (Kokaly, Eaves, Kapande, Melloy) 1:50.61 (3)
11 800 Haffarnan 2:25.46
2 shuttle hurdle finals Byrum, Melloy, Alderson, Eaves 1:05.34 (8)
2 100 finals Kapande 13.01 (8)
6 1,500 Erickson 5:03.94 (3)
4 4x100 finals (Kapande, Eaves, Brumbaugh, Kokaly) 50.49 (5)
