The Nixa track and field team concluded its season on May 29-30 at the elusive 2026 MSHSAA state championships meet at Jefferson City High School.

A Friday rainstorm monsoon canceled the opening day and forced the intended two-day championships into a one-day event with no preliminary rounds. Friday's action ended with only the 4x800-meter relay.

Nixa was represented in that race and in 17 other events, 11 for the boys and 6 for the girls. That 4x800 team of Alex Flannery, Dylan Mabe, Reyes Martinez, and Asher Coorts placed 13th overall, clocking in at 8:18.25.

The 2025 Class 5 boys runners-up captured back-to-back team trophies with a fourth place in this year's meet. Nixa scored 39.5 points to beat Rock Bridge by five points, and finished behind Jackson (55), Lee's Summit West (58), and champion Rockhurst (60).

The Eagles were led by four silver medalists in their respective events.

4x state qualifier and 4x medalist Hayden Mays finished runner-up in both the shot put and discus. 

In the shot put, the DI-bound Auburn University senior thrower had two of his six throws exceed 19 meters, attempting to match Webb City's eventual champion, junior Louden Bolinger. On Mays' third and fourth throws, he launched the shot put 19.19m and 19.17m. Bolinger threw 19.26m on his second and had the meet-best 20.08m on his last.

In the discus, Mays surpassed 50m in three of his four throws. He was in first place with a second-round and personal-meet best 55.60m. It was short-lived as Lafayette's Baron James threw 57.01m in the third and had a meet-best 60.51 in the fourth. Mays had additional throws of 55.62m and 51.73m, but it was the 55.80m to win his fourth- straight discus state medal.

Mays concluded his decorated Nixa career as a 4x medalist in the discus and 3x medalist in the shot put. He was a 3x runner-up (2026, 2025, 2024) and placed fifth in 2023. In the shot put, he had his best-ever finish this year after a bronze (2024) and fifth-place finish (2023). 

In his first state appearance, sophomore hurdler Gedaliah Chepkondol captured a runner-up finish in the 300m hurdles and 10th place in the 110m hurdles (15.10). Chepkondol clocked in at 39.07 for the 300, almost a second behind eventual champion Lee's Summit North senior Kelvin Foster (38.10).

Chepkondol also won another silver in the 4x400 school record-setting performance with Toby Thompson, Roy Perez, and Randy Flint. He ran the second leg behind Thompson. Chepkondol handed off to Perez who transferred the baton to the anchor leg Flint. Flint brought the team home with a 3:16.77 time, two seconds behind champion Lee's Summit North, and cementing a new-school record. The Eagles edged Blue Springs, Christian Brothers College, Hazelwood Central, Platte County, Ft. Zumwalt West, and Pattonville to capture the silver medal and a second-consecutive medal in the event.

Flint also secured his first individual medal of his career. A 2x qualifier in the 200m, the senior sprinter ran a 21.50, placing seventh in the event to beat nine other runners. The DI Southern Illinois University football signee was ninth a year ago. 

He ??also anchored the 4x200 and 4x100 relays, which saw unfortunate setbacks during the races. The 4x200 team of Flint, Chepkondol, Jax Adams, and Jaren Davis defeated Eureka, Lee's Summit, and Kirkwood and placed 13th at 1:31.47. The 4x100 team of Flint, Adams, Chepkondol, and Thompson ran a 46.76, defeated Platte County and placed 15th overall.

Nixa's final medalist was senior Will Sanley. Sanley won a second-consecutive bronze medal in the pole vault, clearing 4.65m on his third attempt. The Missouri Southern State University signee tied with Grain Valley's Ace Pittsenbarger, who cleared 4.65m on his second, and finished .10m behind the eventual champion, Eureka's Kai Mitchell (4.75m).

School-record holder Reyes Martinez concluded the boys competitors with a 10th place finish in the 3200m, clocking 9:23.79.

On the girls side, the Eagles were led by its four medalist, three of which were first-timers.

2x qualifier senior Avery Muniz won her first medal in the discus. Muniz had five successful throws out of six all over 36m, with 38.14m being the best. Following throws of 36m and 37.91m, the DI Southeast Missouri State University signee launched the discus 38.14m on her fourth attempt to surpass her previous school record and place fifth overall ahead of three other throwers whose marks were 37.71m, 36.91m, and 36.88m. Ladue's senior Sabra Fink won the event with a meet-best 42.40m.

After a ninth place finish and just missing out on a medal in 2025, senior and the school's event record-holder, Olivia Reed, placed sixth in the long jump to secure her first individual medal. It came down to her fourth and final jump to win a medal, but Reed did. Following non-medal placement jumps of 5.20m and 5.04m, the 2x qualifier leaped 5.49m and jumped ahead of five competitors, including the seventh and eight place marks of 5.45m and 4.44m.

Reed also ran the second leg on the state-medal winning 4x200 team with Alex Doulova, Paxton Adams, and Felipa Eggers. The four clocked in at 1:42.30 to best Riverview Gardens (1:42.64) and win a second-consecutive eighth place medal. Doulova and Reed were runners on last year's record-setting team that captured the program's first medal in the event since 1980.

Junior and 2x qualifier Alex Doulova secured her first state medal. The Nixa school-record holder in the 100m hurdles placed seventh and ran a 15.15. Doulova edged St. Teresa's Academy Sah'Kyra Williams (8th, 15.22), Platte County's Adi Benninghoff (9th, 15.24), Carthage's Elsie Willis (10th, 15.25), and six other runners en route to the seventh-place finish.

Rounding out the girls competitors was the 4x100 relay team of Reed, Adams, Eggers, and Carysn Patton who placed 10th at 48.57 and senior javelin thrower Gwen Kubik who placed 13th with a personal-meet-throw of 37.23.

The girls team scored 10 points and placed 21st overall in Class 5. Team trophy winners were Helias Catholic (84.5), Liberty (81), Ladue (57), and Cardinal Ritter (40).
 

---

Nixa Boys Results:

• Hayden Mays: 2nd Place, Shot Put, 19.19m, 2nd Place, Discus, 55.60m
• Gedaliah Chepkondol: 2nd Place, 300m Hurdles,  39.07, 10th Place, 110m Hurdles, 15.13
• Boys 4x400: (Thompson, Perez, Chepkondol, Flint): 2nd Place, 3:16.77 
• Will Sanley: 3rd Place, Pole Vault, 4.65m
• Randy Flint: 7th Place, 200m, 21.50
• ??Reyes Martinez: 10th Place, 3200m, 9:23.79
• ??Boys 4x200 (Adams, Davis, Flint, Chepkondol): 13th Place, 1:31.47
• Boys 4x800: (Flannery, Mabe, Martinez, Coorts): 13th Place, 8:18.25
• Boys 4x100: Adams, Flint, Chepkondol, Thompson): 15th Place, 46.76
•  Boys Team Place: 4th, 39.5 points

Nixa Girls Results:

• Avery Muniz: 5th Place: Discus, 38.14m
• Olivia Reed: 6th Place, Long Jump, 5.49m
• Alex Doulova: 7th place, 110m Hurdles, 15.15
• Girls 4x200: (Reed, Doulova, Eggers, Adams): 8th Place, 1:42.30
• ??Girls 4x100: (Patton, Reed, Eggers, Adams): 10th Place, 48.57
• ??Gwen Kubik: 13th Place, Javelin, 37.23m

Click here to view full results of the Class 5 state championships meet.
Click here to view OZone meet photos and additional coverage.