A quick glance at the team standings of the KSHSAA State Track and Field Championships could give you the impression that the Pratt High School Greenbacks did not perform well. But, upon further review, the PHS girls’ 16 points and the boys’ two points were not because of poor individual performances. No, it was because they went up against the best the state has to offer.
“The kids competed extremely well,” head coach Jeff Fuss said. “Most were at or above their personal bests. Several of them came away empty-handed but it wasn’t because they performed badly. They were competing against the cream of the crop.”
The Greenback girls scored 16 team points and finished tied for 14th. The PHS boys were only able to produce two team points at the meet.
Dominique Staats was the top finisher for the Greenbacks. The sophomore, running in the 400-meter dash, had the second fastest qualifying time with a 59.45, .38 of a second behind Colby freshman Alexa Haas. In the finals, Staats posted a personal best 58.98 but came up just short of Haas who circled the track in 58.69.
“That was a proud moment for me as a coach,” Fuss said. “There was a lot of pressure on Dominique. She had the fastest time in the state coming in. I told her just to run her race and let the chips fall where they may. She ran a tremendous race.”
The record for the Class 4A 400-meter is still held by former Frog Ashley Melichar, who posted a 56.56 in 1999.
Aubrey Hoover also impressed her coach by her gutty performances in the 100- and 300-meter hurdles. Hoover posted the eighth-best qualifying time of 16.31 in the 100-meter prelims and then ran a 16.43 for eighth in the finals. Also a sophomore, Hoover ran a 47.06 in winning her preliminary heat and then a stumble in the finals slowed her to a sixth-place finish of 47.74.
“If she hadn’t hit the ninth hurdle she would have finished in the top four,” Fuss said. “She had a personal best both days. She has really developed a mental toughness. She ran tremendous races all weekend.”
Cheyenne Becker is another sophomore who continues to amaze Fuss. Just five months removed from major knee surgery, Becker placed sixth in the 3,200-meter run with an 11:47.92 and followed that performance with a 5:29.93 in the 1,600-meter run, the eighth-best time in 4A.
“Chey has worked so hard to get back on the track. I told her that if we had two more weeks to get ready she would have been back to full speed. She has the heart of a lion. She will be better than ever next year,” Fuss said.
