August 16, 2026 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Mattsey, Plotner key strong starts for SJO cross-country

The Chrisman Cow Chip Classic features seven different waves of runners.

Run over a pasture near Chrisman High School, hence the name for the popular early-season cross-country meet.
And this past Saturday, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School boys’ cross-country team placed third out of 14 teams, while the SJO girls’ team finished fifth out of eight teams.

This comes on the heels of the Spartans opening the season on Aug. 31 with steady performances at the Doc Acklin Memorial Invitational in Paris. The SJO boys’ team placed first in the eight-team meet, while the SJO girls’ team was second out of five teams.

At Chrisman, junior Brandon Mattsey represented the SJO boys’ in the first flight, placing eighth with a time of 17 minutes, 15 seconds. Senior Eric Poe took eighth in flight No. 2 with a time of 17:29.30, while sophomore Elijah Mock was fourth in flight No. 3 with a time of 17:46.39.

In the fourth flight, sophomore Luke Stegall was sixth in 18:12.56, while sophomore Charlie Mabry (third in flight No. 5, 18:13.80), sophomore Braden Clampitt (fifth in flight No. 6, 19:00.24) and junior Lukas Hutcherson (third in flight No. 7, 18:47.50) also added to the Spartans’ team totals.

Monticello won both the boys’ meet and the girls’ meet.

On the girls’ side, senior Jillian Plotner finished sixth in the first flight in a time of 20:07.69, while senior Hannah Rajlich was fourth at flight No. 2 in 20:38.43.

Sophomore Ava Knapp was fifth in flight No. 3 at 20:51.18 and sophomore Ashlyn Lannert was sixth at flight No. 4 in 22:15.28.
Senior Ally Monk (fourth in flight No. 5, 21:02.48), sophomore Hope Rajlich (third in flight No. 6, 21:32.93) and sophomore Kailyn ingram (third in flight No. 7, 21:34.64) also chipped in for the Spartans.

Prior to the Cow Chip Classic, the SJO boys’ team placed five runners in the top 10 to help contribute to a team title at the Doc Acklin Memorial Invitational in Paris. The SJO girls’ team had five runners in the top 11 at the meet, helping the Spartans finish second.

Mattsey paced the SJO boys’ team with a second-place finish in 17:01.4, while Poe was right behind Mattsey with a third-place finish in 17:07.6.

Mock (17:44.0, seventh), Stegall (17:46.8, eighth) and Mabry (18:04.1, 10th) all contributed to SJO’s team championship.
The Spartans compiled 25 points, well ahead of runner-up Marshall (49). Cumberland (79), Effingham (99) and Teutopolis (107) rounded out the top five schools.

Plotner led the SJO girls’ team with a third-place finish in 18:35.2 in Paris. Hannah Rajlich was the next SJO runner to finish with a fifth-place showing in 20:37.9. Knapp (20:44.8, seventh), Lannert (21:06.3, 10th) and Monk (21:11.7, 11th) rounded out the top five runners for the Spartans.

Marshall won the team title with 28 points, followed by SJO (34), Teutopolis (98), Paris (104) and Okaw Valley (112).

Both SJO teams are slated to get back in action at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Kickapoo State Park in a meet against Oakwood/Salt Fork before taking part in the First to the Finish Invitational that starts at 9 a.m. this Saturday at Detweiller Park in Peoria.

Banner
Related Posts

Jacob, Cramer and Barnes help SJO girls’ basketball top Prairie Central

January 20, 2020

January 20, 2020

Needing a big win, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School girls’ basketball team delivered last Thursday night. The Spartans stopped a...

SJO Softball letter and award winners

June 7, 2022

June 7, 2022

Kennedy Hudson, Sr.Jacey Lewis, Sr.Jessica Palmer, Sr.Taylor Wells, Sr.Alyssa Acton, Jr.Shayne Immke, Jr.Peyton Jones, Jr.Ava Northen, Jr.Kat Short, Jr.Halle Brazelton,...

DeJarnette to lead soccer program at SJO

May 21, 2020

May 21, 2020

Bill DeJarnette is no stranger to the St. Joseph-Ogden soccer program. DeJarnette was the first coach of the SJO soccer...

They’re going to state! SJO volleyball continues dream season

November 9, 2019

November 9, 2019

All season long, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School volleyball team has risen to the occasion. The Spartans did so again...

SJO cross-country is heading to state!

November 4, 2019

November 4, 2019

Detweiller Park, here they come. After two stellar postseason races, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School boys’ cross-country team and girls’...

On the call: Sjuts delivers in PA role for Spartans

September 20, 2019

September 20, 2019

Even if you don’t know his name, chances are you know his voice. For nearly 20 years Keith Sjuts has...

‘This team loves to compete’ SJO girls’ track and field continuing to train from home during pandemic as they wait for season to start

March 30, 2020

March 30, 2020

Fresh off tying for third place in Class 1A a season ago, needless to say the St. Joseph-Ogden High School...

Altenbaumer, Brazelton spark 19-game win streak for SJO baseball

May 12, 2022

May 12, 2022

Successful seasons have become the norm for the St. Joseph-Ogden High School baseball team. This spring is no exception. The...

SJO volleyball state preview: In the players’ own words

November 15, 2019

November 15, 2019

Before the St. Joseph-Ogden High School volleyball team plays Breese Mater Dei at noon on Friday in a Class 2A...

Get to know SJO Volleyball Player Mikyla Haley

October 31, 2022

October 31, 2022

What do you think makes the team so successful? I think the way our team is so close is what...

SJO football looks to rebound at Rantoul after home loss against Unity

September 26, 2025

September 26, 2025

Emotions are always high when the St. Joseph-Ogden and Unity football teams meet.Two tradition-rich programs who have experienced plenty of...

Spartans advance in sectional

June 10, 2021

June 10, 2021

—-ST. JOSEPH—-
There is an adage in baseball that a good offense wins games, but good defense wins championships. It does...

SJO girls’ basketball wins regional title, sees season end in sectional semifinal defeat

March 5, 2024

March 5, 2024

The beginning of the season didn’t treat the St. Joseph-Ogden girls’ basketball team well.The Spartans slogged through the first month...

SJO softball vies for 11th straight regional title on Saturday

May 16, 2019

May 16, 2019

A year ago, the St. Joseph-Ogden High School softball team defeated Maroa-Forsyth to win a Class 2A sectional title. On...

Knott, Meyer win conference titles for SJO

May 2, 2019

May 2, 2019

The Illini Prairie Conference track and field meet took place over two days because of inclement weather. But when it...

Comments
Leave a Reply