The 16th annual Mansfield Tiger Relays played host to 24 schools this past week. Teams spanning the region from Clarksville to DeQueen made the March 29 trip. Through it all, Mansfield’s senior girls showed their worth with a high finish against the largest field of competitors so far this outdoor season.
The MHS Lady Tigers went event for event with the top ranked teams. In the end, the group finished in a tie for second with Scott County rival Waldron. DeQueen, a 4A school with a history of outstanding runners, won the meet.
DeQueen took the top team prize with 141 points. Mansfield and Waldron closed, all knotted up with 106 points. Ozark came in fourth (103) followed by Clarksville (87) in fifth.
Similar standings prevailed on the men’s side with DeQueen (163) taking first place. Waldron (122.5) was second followed by Ozark (57), Mena (52), and Clarksville (47) for the top five scoring teams.
Acorn, Magazine, and Mansfield peppered the middle of the men’s standings as the top teams within Mansfield’s own 2A-4 league.
For the Mansfield women, Darby Jones was fifth in the overall individual points standings. The senior totaled 21 points with high valued marks in the 800m, 1600m, and 3200m runs.
Jones looked to prequalify to state in the 1600m run but fell 9 seconds short of the AAA standard. She did however set a personal record for the four lap race at 6:05.74.
Jadelynn Wood, also of Mansfield, ranked ninth among 95 individual scorers. The junior hurdler accumulated 17.5 points through a six event schedule.
Among Wood’s best mark was a 18.4 finish in the 100m hurdles. The measure was 0.8 seconds off the state standard. She also ran 52.56 in the 300m hurdles. That personal record was 1.14 seconds off the prequalification mark.
Close calls seemed a theme among the Lady Tiger entries. Seven Sanderson was another among the group that was close to meeting a state standard.
Sanderson pushed the 4kg shot 31’ 2.5” for the first place award. The measure was 5.5 inches away from automatic qualification to the class 2A state prelims.
Throws teammate Brooklyn Adams made her 2021 debut. The junior softball player came over from the diamond field to compete in the discus and shot put. Her efforts were solid with an 80’ 2” discus toss and a 28’ 6.5” shot put giving the home team an additional 14 points.
Natalie Allison also came over from the softball arena. The junior pointed in the triple jump with a mark of 31 feet.
Seniors Faith Rainwater, Hope Rainwater, McKenzie Griffin, and Katlynn Moore contributed in the distance relay. Sadie Roberts, Raine Hecox, Sarah Fisher, and Shelby Cole did likewise in separate sprints relays.
Fisher also took silver in the women’s discus throw at 87’ 10”. Faith Rainwater pointed in the pole vault, 400m, and three relays.
Ryan Hayslip highlighted Mansfield scoring in the men’s division with an 11’ 0” pole vault. Sammy Sellers ranked fourth in the discus at 103’ 10” while three Tiger relays all scored in the top 8.
