For the first time in over 10 years, the Clayton girls’ cross country team advanced to the MSHSAA (Missouri State High School Activities Association) State Cross Country Championship by placing second in the District 3 Class 3 Meet on Oct.31 at Jefferson Barracks Park.

The team with the lowest sum of their top five runners’ places wins the meet. The Clayton girls’ team finished second in a close race, with 44 points. Lutheran South won the meet with 43, and Rosati Kain finished third with 47.
The Clayton coaches and the team were ecstatic once they were told of the victory; however, head cross country coach Kurtis Werner mentioned the outcome did not surprise him.
“These girls knew they had a chance all along and ran superb races to get the job accomplished,” Werner said. “They showed up hungry.”
However, assistant coach Anne Etling was not expecting the team to do as well as they did.
“I went to the District race thinking we would qualify one girl for the state meet,” Etling said. “As they began to finish, I counted [the places] in my head – 5, 8, 9, 14, 16! I couldn’t believe it. Four individuals qualified. After computing our team score, I got even more excited.”
Clayton’s top five runners, in order, were sophomore Nicole Indovino in fifth place, senior Simone Bernstein in eighth place, sophomore Payton Sciarratta in ninth place, junior Sarah Graeber in fourteenth place and sophomore Ella Davis in sixteenth place in a field of 43 runners. Indovino, Bernstein, Sciarratta and Graeber qualified for state on their own, as they were among the top 15 runners. Also contributing in the sixth and seventh spots for the team were senior Nicky Turza and junior Jenna Hooper-Hayes.
Davis understood her important role as the team’s fifth runner.
“Being the fifth runner I knew I had to really pass people to do it for our team,” Davis said. “I wanted us to make state not only for the girls on the team, but especially for Coach Werner. I could tell he was very excited for the season and had so much faith in us, I couldn’t let him down. I was sore after, but it was really worth it.”
Davis also had to face the pressure of being the sixteenth runner, as she was one spot away from qualifying individually for state. She said the experience waiting to see if the team made state was “nerve-racking” and her “hands were shaking”.
Senior Simone Bernstein, co-captain of the team, reflected on making state in the final year of her running career.
“I was really excited to make state this year,” Bernstein said. “Last year I was only one place away from qualifying for the state meet. I am glad I got to finish my career with the opportunity to run in Jefferson City for the state meet.”
On the boys’ side, the team finished fourth in the district meet, behind Lutheran South, Soldan and University City. Freshman Derrick Stone finished eighth in the District and was the first Clayton male to make the state race in four years.
-He was happy with his performance at Districts and also mentioned how his prior experience with the Jefferson Barracks course helped him qualify for the state meet.
“It feels great and it’s a little overwhelming,” Stone said. “It’s a really good feeling to have that title at such at early year in high school. I think I did better at this meet mostly because I had run this course before and I knew where the hills were, so I could strategize and use my energy better.”
According to Werner, thousands of runners compete to make the state meet each year, and only a relatively few are selected. Though the boys’ team did not qualify for state, the Clayton coaches agreed it would be unfair to presume such a young team would win the district title.
“It is a huge honor and accomplishment to qualify for state out of your District and Class,” Werner said. “The boys were a young squad this year that was still learning in many ways and it showed.”
Assistant coach Kevin Crean agreed that it would have been difficult for the boys’ team to advance to the state meet under these circumstances.
“The boys did fine,” Crean said. “It was a long shot for them to get second place. Nobody did terribly, and Joseph [Dillon] and Derrick [Stone] did great. The other teams in the District are just really good. University City, who has one of the best runners in the state, didn’t make state either.”
The team has made great strides in the past year, from qualifying one runner for state in 2008 to qualifying eight runners this year. The coaches and individuals expect to see more improvement and hope more runners join the cross country team in the coming years.
“My goal this year was to get both teams to state out of our district,” Werner said. “That was a realistic goal coming in. We did some things well besides qualifying one team. Both the boys’ and girls’ teams nearly beat Ladue, our rival, in conference and the boys will be hungry for next year concerning state. I stick with the same goal next year and that is to qualify both teams for the state meet in Jefferson City.”
Etling agreed that it would be “an amazing accomplishment to send a girls’ and a boys’ team to state.” She also hoped this would lead to an increase in the number of runners participating in cross country.
“I hope to increase our numbers and therefore increase our talent,” Etling said. “We only have three seniors leaving the team this year and I believe the coaching staff will stay the same. I hope the word spreads that cross country is a great sport to be a part of.”
Werner also hoped that qualifying for state would encourage runners to join the high school team.
“[Making state is] a calling card for young runners to be involved with a program where the runners are dedicated, but know how to have fun at the same time as evidenced by our district dinner before the race,” Werner said. “I hope every student at Wydown participating in their running club can join the cross country harriers at Clayton next year and have the same experience as this year’s team.”
Bernstein agreed with Werner in that cross country can be a fun and gratifying experience.
“I would encourage all students who don’t play a fall sport to join cross country next year,” Bernstein said. “It’s a great way to meet new friends and exercise. For the past four years during the fall, I’ve gotten changed in the school bathrooms and headed out to practice near the big white corporate tent after school. Now, it’s over. Cross country has been such a wonderful experience, concluding with this great accomplishment of making state.”
Stone, while having goals for the state meet, also has long term goals for his individual performance.
“I want to set personal records at every state race, and eventually junior or senior year get All-State, which is a title given to the top 25 runners in each state class,” Stone said.
The cross country team made an enormous jump this year, going to a level the team has not seen in a decade. Hopefully the Hounds will continue to progress as they have in the coming years.