For Sara Wolf, it was a fitting ending to an exemplary high school career.
The School of the Osage senior came away with four state medals Saturday, including a state title in the girls 1,600-meter run, during the Class 3 state track and field championships at Adkins Stadium.
"I couldn't be more thankful to be here, and to finish the way I did," Wolf said.
Wolf ran a total of four miles Saturday, starting the day with a third-place finish in the 3,200-meter run with a school-record time of 11:32.76. She then helped the Lady Indians to a second-place time of 10:08.71 in the 4x800-meter relay and, after the 1,600, finished the meet with an eighth-place time of 2:24.03 in the 800-meter run.
"I came here to have fun," said Wolf, whose only previous state medal was a sixth-place finish in the 800 in 2019. "Obviously, four medals would be awesome, but I wanted to have fun. It's so exciting to be here, whether you're first or last."
Wolf won her state title in the 1,600 with a time of 5:18.28, just six-hundredths of a second faster than Wright City's Zoe Riggs.
"I definitely did something I shouldn't have," Wolf said. "I looked over my shoulder and saw Zoe there, and I was just like, 'I have to gut it.'
"It hasn't really settled in yet that I'm a state champion, but I haven't stopped smiling. It's just been a great day."
Wolf and her teammates - Juliana Bryant, Bayley Johnson and Katherine Wolf - were surprised by their second-place finish in the 4x800.
"It definitely shocked us all," Sara Wolf said. "I will definitely be talking about that with my teammates for a long time."
Wolf claimed the last spot on the podium in the 800, edging Incarnate Word's Eden Toal by 0.16 seconds.
"Last race of the day, my last two laps for Osage, I just raced as best as I could," Wolf said.
Wolf was a four-sport athlete at Osage. She was a four-time state qualifier in cross country, scored more than 1,000 career points for the basketball team and was a two-time all-conference volleyball player for the Lady Indians.
"I'm definitely glad I did all four sports," Wolf said.
Next season, Wolf will compete in cross country and track at Saint Louis University.
"I'm super blessed that they have offered me a roster spot," she said.
Madison Kessler finished seventh in the pole vault with a height of 10 feet, 10.75 inches, and Bryant placed eighth in the 1,600 in a time of 5:27.67 for the Lady Indians, who tied Montgomery County for eighth place in the girls team standings with 28 points.
For the Osage boys, Sawyer Claxton, Jaysen Groll, John Markovitz and Corey Hubkey were 16th in the 4x800 in a time of 8:55.67.
III
Eldon freshman Zoe Martonfi made a splash in her first state track and field championships, taking home three state medals for the Lady Mustangs.
Martonfi got better as the day wore on, starting with a sixth-place finish in the girls 100-meter hurdles in a time of 15.91 seconds. She then placed fourth in the triple jump with a leap of 35-1 and capped the day with a second-place time of 44.54 seconds in the 300-meter hurdles, coming up short of a state title by a tenth of a second.
"It's refreshing to feel all the hard work is paying off," said Martonfi, who set a personal record in the 300 hurdles by 2.02 seconds. " I feel excited that I can come back next year and hopefully be a state champion."
Also scoring points for the Eldon girls was Patricia Patton, who took fifth place in the shot put with a throw of 39-1.75.
Taylor Henderson placed 11th in the discus for the Lady Mustangs with a throw of 100-3.
The Eldon girls tied Bowling Green for 14th place as a team with 20 points.
For the Eldon boys, Colton Phillips took 11th place in the shot put with a throw of 46-10, while Nathan Reynolds finished 13th in the 3,200 in 10:12.76.
III
The Versailles Tigers were led at the state championships by Michael Bell, who was runner-up in the boys triple jump with a distance of 43-6.
Also scoring points for the Tigers were Justin Hamrick, who placed fifth in the high jump with a height of 6-3.25, and Max Coleman, who finished eighth in the 300 hurdles with a time of 42.15 seconds. Seth Newton, Zachary Radefeld, Dagan Haggerman and Allan Rhorer were 13th in the 4x800 with a time of 8:38.78.
The Versailles boys tied Hermann, Pleasant Hill and Hogan Prep for 21st place with 13 team points.
For the Versailles girls, Maris Ollison took sixth place in the javelin with a throw of 109-9. That gave the Lady Tigers three points, tying them with Metro, Rosati-Kain and Salem for 48th place.
III
Fatima and California each qualified one athlete for the state championships.
Fatima's Corinn Karst tied for 12th place in the girls high jump, clearing the bar at 4-9.5, while California's David Leon finished in 13th place in the boys 400-meter dash with a time of 52.10 seconds.