C.J. Jones had never lost in the 400-meter run prior to the state track and field meet this past spring.
So, when the Ferguson resident finished second to Jennings junior Alfred Larry in the final of that event in Jefferson City, the Cardinal Ritter freshman was not a happy camper.
"I was heated," he said. "I was mad."
A disappointing finish in the final of the 800 - he finished seventh after having the second-best qualifying time - only made him more upset.
As a result, Jones decided to work even harder this summer so he can do much better next year. He showed this past week that he's going to be a handful for anybody who competes against him next spring.
Jones, who competes for the St. Louis Express in the summer and is in the Intermediate (15-16) class, won the 800 in a near record time of 1:52.75 at the AAU Junior Olympics in New Orleans. He also won the 1,500 run in a personal record time of 4:07, joined with Shaun Conway, Marcus Davis and Stephan Hickman to win the 3,200-meter relay (8:13) and teamed up with Conway, Davis and Ezekiel Elliott to finish fourth in the 1,600-relay (3:21).
"I think I did pretty good," said Jones, the son of University of Missouri-St. Louis assistant men's basketball coach Chico Jones. "I wanted to break the record in the 800, but my legs tightened up."
His 1:52.75 time in the half-mile, which was much better than the winning time posted at state, was just a little over a second behind the record of 1:51.68 posted by Quamel Prince. Jones actually had run a little faster, 1:52.62, while winning the event at the USA Track and Field National Championships a couple days earlier in Wichita, Kan.
"I wasn't expecting to go that fast at USA," said Jones, who is also a standout basketball player. "I just wanted to win it and try to save my energy for AAU to try to break the record."
St. Louis Blues star sprinter Tianna Valentine (Hazelwood East) was hoping to turn some heads at nationals, too, but some blisters on her feet kept her from doing as well as she had hoped in the Young Women (17-18) class in New Orleans. She took third in the 200, fourth in the 100 and combined with Ayesha Ewing (Cardinal Ritter), Tiffany Cannon (Beaumont) and Shontanay Johnson (Fox) to finish fourth in the 400-relay.
"We wrapped her feet up and put her on the track and she did the best she could do," Blues coach Rodney Dotson said of Valentine. "I was proud of her. If she hadn't been having feet issues, I think she would have finished first or second."
Michael Hester (Hazelwood Central) didn't end up with the medal in the 400 in the Young Men (17-18) classification he had hoped to get for the Blues either. He finished fifth overall.
"I think Mike ran well," Dotson said. "I think the heat got to Mike ... not being hydrated. It caused him not to run to his best ability."
Hester, Cole Davis (Hazelwood Central), Rashad Harris (Ritenour) and Jovante Suber combined to finish eighth in the 3,200-relay despite one of the competitors falling in the race.
"Anytime you fall in a big race like that, it takes away from your performance," Dotson said. "He got back up and got back in the race. That was good. Coach Roundhead (Jonathan Rodgers) said he could have won it if we hadn't fallen down."
Other Blues who medaled in New Orleans included Vionn Pearson, who took fourth in the Sub Youth (9-10) long jump and seventh in the pentathlon; Josh Wallace, who was fourth in the Sub Youth triathlon; and Eva Shelton, who was fifth in the Primary (7-8) 400 and seventh in the 200.
Ashley Henderson was one of the standouts for the St. Louis Storm. Henderson finished fourth in the Intermediate girls 100-meter final (12:08) and she finished fifth in the 200 (24.63).
