The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Lady Roadrunners are busy preparing for the upcoming season and Head Coach Brad Hagedorn has been pleased with what he has seen so far.
"We have been able to bring in some kids that I think will prove to be much better than we originally thought," said Hagedorn. "We are pretty excited about them. I believe that they're going to see some success and be even a bit better than they believe that they are."
Coach Hagedorn has been impressed with sophomore Keiyah Cole from Kansas City and freshman Kira Phipps from Lawson.
"Kira is really close to qualifying for the National Championships in the pole vault," said Hagedorn. "I asked a lot of her this fall, and she has done it without question or complaint. She understood that we're trying to make her better."
Coach Hagedorn has also been impressed with a group of throwers on the team this year.
"Molly Prichard (from Pacific) and Claire Nichols knew how to work when they got here," said Hagedorn. "They just dove in and are really adjusting well. Claire is from Charleston and has a very good javelin throw. Bailey Haselhorst from Liberty North High School probably has the best shot to qualify in the javelin. Bailey also plays softball at SFCC, we are going to have her sprint a little bit during the indoor season."
SFCC will test itself against another tough slate of competition when they open their indoor campaign on Saturday, Jan. 13 at Southeast Missouri State University. SFCC will travel to the UCM Mules Invite on Friday Jan.19, followed by the Principa Relays on Jan. 26 to close out the month.
SFCC will travel to Washburn University on Saturday, Feb. 10. The Lady Roadrunners will travel to Illinois College on Friday, Feb. 16. The NJCAA Division I Indoor National Championships will begin on Friday, March 1.
SFCC will open their outdoor schedule at Central Methodist University on Saturday, March 16. SFCC will travel to Missouri S&T on Saturday, March 23. The Lady Roadrunners will travel to Southwest Baptist on Saturday, March 30.
SFCC will open the month of April at the UCM Invite on Friday, April 12. SFCC will travel to Culver -Stockton College on Saturday, April 20. SFCC will close the month of April at Grandview University on Saturday, April 27. The NJCAA Division I Outdoor National Championships will begin on Thursday, May 16.
Coach Hagedorn is looking for Cole to be a leader on this year's team.
"Keiyah has done a fabulous job of leading this year's team," said Hagedorn. "She gives us a level of experience that the other girls don't necessarily have. Rebecca Hall (from Liberty) is also back for us; she is playing softball as well. We didn't see as much of her in the fall, but once she's back with us every day she will also provide some leadership."
Coach Hagedorn believes the Lady Roadrunners will be strong in the javelin and the pole vault, as well as the sprints on the track.
Sophomore Samantha Queathem from Montgomery City is a returning outdoor national qualifier in the javelin, who finished seventh as a freshman with a throw of 38 .00 meters.
Coach Hagedorn also expects to have Madison Johnson from Harrisonville running during the outdoor season, after the completion of the Lady Roadrunners basketball season.
Coach Hagedorn has some goals he would like to see his team accomplish this season.
"Outside of Samantha, last spring we didn't have anyone qualify for Nationals on their own merit, we had to white card them in," said Hagedorn. "This year I would love to see a handful of girls qualify for National Championships on their own merits."
Coach Hagedorn sees a few keys to success for the Lady Roadrunners this season.
"We have to be consistent and keep them healthy, since we don't have a lot of ladies. We really can't afford to have anyone be out for any length of time," said Hagedorn. "Collectively, I really like our men's and women's team. I've been doing this a long time, and I would put this group of men and women in my top five all-time teams. They are a pleasure to be around, they do well in school and our combined grade point average for both teams was over 3.0. They're all good people who work hard and care. I have thoroughly enjoyed them."
David Rohrbach
SFCC Athletics