It was only a year ago that Missouri high school track and field fans were watching the exploits of star sprinter Issam Asinga of The Principia School.
As a sophomore in 2021, Asigna dominated the sprints at the Class 2 state meet in Jefferson City with state championship performances in the 100, 200- and 400-meter dashes. He followed up as a junior last season by leading Principia to the Class 1 state championship with another battery of state-record performances in the sprints.
Asinga has since moved to Florida, where he is currently spending his senior year at Montverde Academy, where he has emerged as one of the top young sprinters in the country. At 18 years old, he has been nothing short of sensational at Montverde as he has been routinely competing against college-age and professional athletes and more than holding his own.
At last weekend’s Corky-Crofoot Shootout at Texas Tech, Asigna sprinted his way into the record-books as he finished [] in the 200-meter dash in a time of 19.97 seconds. The mark was previously held by current 200-meter world champion Noah Lyles.Â
Asigna has also gone under 10-seconds in three different 100-meter dash events this season, including in last Saturday’s meet in Lubbock, when he posted a wind-aided time of 9.89 seconds to win the event. He also posted wind-aided times of 9.86 and 9.83 seconds in a meet in Clermont, FL. He defeated Lyles in winning the 100-meter race in Florida.Â
Dale Collier Invitational HighlightsÂ
The Dale Collier Invitational at Kirkwood is annually one of the top track and field meets of the season. The invitational attracts top athletes and teams from the St. Louis area as well as Mid-Missouri and Kansas City.
Junior Jacob Oliphant of SLUH had a busy day last Saturday as he won the 200-meter dash in 22.2 seconds. He also finished first in the 110-meter-high hurdles and third in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. Oliphant’s SLUH teammate Ryan Wingo won the 100-meter dash in a winning time of 10.72 seconds.
In the field events, senior Amel Abdul-Mumin of Hazelwood West finished first in the long jump, second in the triple jump and second in the high jump. His winning effort in the long jump was 21 feet 11 1/2 inches. Senior Joe Anderson of Westminster also took home three medals as he finished first in the triple jump, second in the long jump and third in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. His winning effort in the triple jump was 45 feet 4 inches.
A pair of other field event standouts at the meet were Brandon Johnson of McCluer and Andy Thomason of Timberland. Johnson won the high jump with a leap of 6 feet 7 inches. Thomason won the pole vault by clearing 14 feet 11 1/4 inches.
On the girls’ side, junior A’laji Pattonville was the top individual standout in the sprints as she was a double winner in the 100 and 400. Her winning time in the 100 was 12.03 seconds and the winning time was 54.56 seconds in the 400. Senior Sydney Burdine of Westminster won the 200 in a winning time of 24.86.
Blue Springs came down from the Kansas City area and dominated the relay events with victories in the 4×400-meter relay in 3 minutes 52.85 seconds and the 4×800 in 9:47.03. Cardinal Ritter sprinted to victory in the 4×200 in an impressive time of 1:40.2 seconds.
District Competition BeginsÂ
The road to the state track and field championships will begin this weekend for small schools with Class 1 and 2 district meets scheduled for this weekend in the state of Missouri. St. Louis area teams will be competing in Class 2, District 1 in Scott City and District 2 at New Haven.Â
Area Football Players Sign as Free AgentsÂ
The National Football League held its annual draft last weekend in Kansas City and several former St. Louis area prep standouts have already signed with new teams as undrafted free agents. Former Parkway Central standout Art Green has signed with the Denver Broncos. Green was a standout cornerback at the University of Houston. Former CBC standout MJ Anderson has signed with the Denver Broncos. Anderson was an excellent defensive end at Iowa State.
Former Belleville Althoff standout CJ Coldon has signed with the Seattle Seahawks. Coldon is coming off an excellent senior season at Oklahoma as a starting safety with the Sooners. Former CBC standout Cam Brown has signed with the Los Angeles Chargers. Brown was a starting cornerback at Ohio State University.
