By: Jason Peake
Abi Street and Evan Stevens were both all alone as they approached the finish line in their respective races at the 49th annual Carthage Invitational.
The Webb City duo claimed individual championships in convincing fashion on Thursday at the Carthage Golf Course.
The pair of Cardinals cruised to first place finishes in their 5K competitions, as there were no other runners close by when they finished touring the course.
A senior, Street won the girls race in 19 minutes, 40 seconds, nearly two minutes faster than the runner-up, as Rogers' Olivia Davis crossed the line at 21:23.
"I felt good today and our team did really well as a whole," Street said. "There's a lot of good girls here, so I'll be honest, I was pretty nervous. I stuck with my game plan and I just ran my race. I always hope to do as well as I can. I don't really realize that I'm all alone at the end because I'm just zoned in. I don't really pay attention to that. I just try to race my race."
Street went to the front early in the race and continued to pull away from the competition.
"Abi had some company for the first kilometer or so and that was great," Webb City coach Dustin Miller said. "Then she was solo once again by the end of the race. Abi is really fit right now. Hopefully next week at MSSU Abi will get to showcase her skills against some solid girls. I know she'll be ready to go, so it will be interesting to see how she does there."
Street is now 2-for-2 this fall, as she cruised to a first place finish at last Saturday's SWCCCA Invitational in Bolivar in 19:07. She won that race by 20 seconds.
"I'm excited about the start to the season," said Street, who placed fifth at last year's Class 4 state meet. "I think our team will be really strong this season. Our freshmen are really stepping up and that's motivating me, too."
Street wasn't the only local runner to perform well on a warm Thursday.
Webb City's Brooke Hedger finished fifth in 22:31, while Carthage's Maggie Boyd took sixth in 23:05 and Webb City's Rachel Miller placed ninth in 23:31.
Carl Junction's Alexis Carpenter finished 13th, Webb City's Kristina Bundy placed 15th and Carl Junction's Audrey Fletcher and Delaney Harris were 16th and 17th.
Webb City's Holly Capron finished 18th, Carl Junction's Sadie Burchett placed 20th, Webb City's Emily Countryman was 21st, CJ's Klohe Burk took 24th and Carthage's Katy Witherspoon placed 25th.
There were 50 runners in the girls race.
With four runners in the top 15, Webb City was the girls team champion with 35 points.
"We had three freshmen score for us today and sophomore Rachel Miller PR'd today on this course," Coach Miller said. "She's a monster and she has dedicated herself to the training. She has a positive mindset and it shows. Bundy, Hedger and Capron are starting to figure things out, so I'm proud of them. Our girls got out well, which was our big emphasis. We competed well and put ourselves in a position to get the team win. That's exciting for us."
Rogers (41) and Carl Junction (68) finished second and third in the team standings. Glendale (107) and Carthage (110) rounded out the standings, as Springfield Central, Hillcrest, Parkview, Willard and Thomas Jefferson did not have full squads competing.