News

Track, Tennis Teams Take State

It was celebration time for St. Louis University High School sports fans this spring. Coach Jim Linhares’ track team earned a breathtaking, first-ever state title, and Dennis Dougan’s tennis squad captured a state title for the first time in 25 years.

In the inaugural season of SLUH’s new track complex, the talented track team lived up to expectations with its performance on May 27th at the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) Class 4 state championship at Lincoln University in Jefferson City. The day’s drama began when senior standout Stephen Simmons tore a hamstring in the 800 relay. Without Simmons in the 300 hurdles and 1,600 relay, the team stepped up to earn enough points to beat Raytown South, which finished second overall.

Top performances included senior Paul Chaney’s final leg of the 1,600 relay, in which he moved from fifth to third place, thus securing the title for the team. Chaney also repeated as a state champion in the 100 (10.52), and he tied the Class 4 record in the 200 (21.04). Simmons finished third in the 100, and sophomore Ronnie Wingo was fourth in the 100 and seventh in the 200. Senior Ben Murphy-Baum finished third in the 1,600 with a personal-best 4:20.45. In the absence of Simmons, senior Eric Hunt earned a respectable fourth-place in the 300 hurdles.

Prior to the track team’s feat, the Junior Bills’ tennis team captured the MSHSAA Class 2 title match with a 5-1 win over Rock Bridge on May 25th at the Cooper Tennis Complex in Springfield. SLUH sealed its win over Rock Bridge in singles. This accomplishment marks a perfect sequel to last year’s third place finish at the state championship.

The team advanced to the final round with a thrilling 5-3 semifinal victory over Chaminade, which had beaten SLUH twice during the season. In the semifinal match, SLUH swept the top four singles spots, garnering wins from Abe Souza, Joe West, David Lesko and Kevin Howenstein. The team secured the win with a victory at No. 2 doubles from Lesko and Stephen Hipkiss.