My number one story is one that has happened before. Riley Arnold won the State Championship in Cross-Country.
Now, winning the State Championship is nothing new to Arnold. She did the same thing last year, and the year before that, and the year before that. Riley will finish her high school career knowing that there was never a time, in which she was eligible, that she did not win the State’s Top Prize. She is only the fourth runner in the history to Missouri Cross-Country to win four state titles. The first to be able to accomplish the feat after her school changing classes. (Blue Eye was bumped up a Class, in size, this year)
This year was the closest of the four Championship events for Arnold. She beat Julia Pattison from West Platte by just .4 seconds. A year ago, she outdistanced Riley Bryan by ten seconds (incidentally she won the state championship in Class One, this year, with Arnold participating in the larger class). It was Riley’s sister, Avery, who was the runner up in 2018 and 2019.
It’s not just Cross-Country where she excels. She has also been named All-State in volleyball, a sport that runs concurrently with the cross-country season. Yes, you probably already know that she is All-State in basketball, and you guessed it All-State in Track as well.
Riley is set to continue her academic, as well as Cross-Country and Track careers at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar
Riley and Avery are incredible girls in every way. I’ve known them all their lives and heard a lot of wonderfully sweet things from their Granny Joyce.