The Phil Brusca–Connie Strobach Invitational is one of the top late-season track and field meets in the St. Louis area.
Junior Bailey Hensgens of Incarnate Word Academy was one of the top individual performers at last weekend’s meet. She has already won multiple individual state championships in her career, but she has taken it to another level this year.
Hensgens won the long jump and triple jump events last Saturday at Ladue. She won the long jump with an effort of 18 feet, 11 inches and the triple jump with a mark of 38 feet, 6 inches. Hensgens did not compete in the high jump Saturday, but she has already established herself as one of the nation’s best in the event.
Earlier this season, Hensgens made history by clearing 6 feet in the high jump, becoming the first girl in Missouri to accomplish the feat. She also cleared 5 feet, 11 1/2 inches at the Nike Indoor Nationals in March.
Grace Murphy of Nerinx Hall had an excellent meet Saturday, winning the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs. She posted winning times of 5:01.5 in the 1,600 and 10:54.7 in the 3,200. She also ran a leg on the first-place 4×800-meter relay.
Host Ladue put together a pair of strong efforts in winning the girls 4×200- and 4×400-meter relays. The Rams won the 4×200 in 1:38.23 and the 4×400 in 3:48.39.
Cardinal Ritter College Prep had the top two finishers in the 400-meter dash. Mekenzie Rogers won in 57.58 seconds and Kauryn Durrah finished second in 57.82. Uyoyoghene Omunu of Parkway North won the 100 in 12.48 seconds, while Blake Borders won the 800 in 2:12.0. Sydney Lanton of John Burroughs won the 300-meter low hurdles in 46.57.
On the boys side, SLUH had an excellent showing in the distance events. The Jr. Bills opened the day by winning the 4×800-meter relay in 7:59.87. Nicholas Ahlheim won the 800 in 1:54.88. Warnicke Beatty won the 1,600-meter run in 4:17.5, while Hendrix Fyvie also turned in a strong performance in the event.
Pattonville had a good day in the sprints with Gary Williams Jr. winning the 200-meter dash in 21.73 seconds and Jackson Powell winning the 400 in 48.93. The Pirates also finished second in the 4×100-meter relay in 42.5.
Football standout Manny Ellis of Cardinal Ritter finished first in the 100 in 10.79. Three different winners emerged in the sprint relays: Ritenour won the 4×100 in 42.25, Cardinal Ritter won the 4×200 in 1:29.3 and CBC won the 4×400 in 3:19.74.
Small-school district meets set for this weekend
The road to the state track and field championships for small schools begins this weekend with district competition around the St. Louis area.
Most area schools will compete in Class 2 and 3 district meets Saturday. Lutheran North will host the Class 3, District 2 and Class 2, District 2 meets. The Class 3, District 3 meet will be held at Owensville, while the Class 3, District 1 meet will be held at Cape Girardeau Notre Dame.
The Class 3, District 2 meet at Lutheran North is loaded with talented teams and athletes, including Lutheran North, Cardinal Ritter, Lift for Life and St. Mary’s High School.
The top four finishers in each event at districts will advance to next weekend’s sectional meets, which will be held at Dexter, Centralia and South Callaway.
Terron Garrett commits to Valparaiso
Former Vashon High standout Terron Garrett has committed to Valparaiso. A 6-foot-6 guard, Garrett helped lead Vashon to the Class 4 state championship in 2026. He spent the first part of his prep career at CBC, where he led the Cadets in scoring for two seasons.
Garrett played this past season at Mineral Area College in Park Hills, Missouri. He led the Cardinals to a berth in the National Junior College Athletic Association Region 16 championship and the national tournament. Garrett scored a game-high 21 points in the Cardinals’ victory over Three Rivers in the Region 16 championship game.