Nate Willems/FS Journalism

Free State’s Sadie Reynolds and Parker Jones deliver.

Free State girls track and field stars Sadie Reynolds and Parker Jones are already off to fast starts to open the 2026 campaign.

Both Reynolds and Jones posted first-place finishes at the Free State-hosted Early Bird Invitational on Friday.

Reynolds, the defending Class 6A state champion in the discus, is coming off a dream season after smashing the school record with a throw that cleared 151 feet. The herculean toss earned Reynolds an automatic qualification to the Nike Outdoor Nationals last summer. Reynolds, who is strongly positioned to defend her state crown, said her top objectives center on a return trip to the Nike Event in Oregon.

“I would love to break the school record again this year, but my main goal is to hopefully place in nationals,” Reynolds said.

Reynolds nearly set the record as a freshman when her best throw at state that year of 121 feet, 6 inches fall just short of Lindsay Simms’ mark of 122 feet, 5 inches at state in 2007.

Reynolds would end up breaking the record, again and again, as a sophomore last season. She eventually pushed the record to 138 feet, 7 inches before obliterating her own record with her throw jaw-dropping throw at state last spring.

Reynolds, who also placed first in a slew of other high-profile events last year, placed 19th at the Nike event with her throw of 144 feet, 6 inches. She described that performance as an “amazing” but humbling experience.

“On a smaller scale at these kinds of meets, my PR is a little above everybody else,” Reynolds, a junior, said of Kansas events. “But on a larger scale nationally, there are people who can do it better.”

At Friday’s event, Reynolds recorded a toss of a 137-feet 2-inches, besting the second-place finisher by a whopping 19 feet. The feat was impressive enough that it was categorized as one of a handful of “elite performances” notched at the meet across all events.

Reynolds is also garnering significant interest from high-major colleges — including Princeton, UCLA, and Florida State. Free State head coach Jordan Rose said that the sky is the limit for Reynolds.

“She is never satisfied with what happened before,” Rose said.

Jones, who competes in a host of events, placed third at state in the long jump last season. At Friday’s season-opening event, Jones secured a first-place finish in the long jump with a leap of 17-feet, 1 inch.

Jones also jetted to a third-place finish in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.99.

Jones said she’s been training five days a week, with an intense regimen that includes hours of weight lifting and sprint training.

“I’ve done everything I can to prepare, so I’m hoping that it pays off,” she said, adding that “this is the hardest I’ve ever trained.”

Jones, who placed 32nd at the Nike Outdoor Nationals in the long jump, added that her primary objectives are “school records, state placement, and honestly just trying to beat my personal best.”

Rose noted that she was most impressed with the way Jones immerses herself in team events.

“One of the great things about Parker is that she is a team player and is super-focused on making sure that everyone is growing and included,” Rose said. “She loves running the 4×100, where she can contribute to the team as a whole.”

Rose added that she has high hopes for the Free State boys and girls track and field squads, but is also tempering her expectations.

“We have a pretty young team, so I’m excited to see where they are and what we have to offer,” she said.

Free State athletes posting top three finishes included:

Girls

100-meter dash
Parker Jones, junior, third place, 12.99

200-meter dash
Beatrice Essman, junior, second place, 27.37
Aiyanna Moss, junior, third place, junior, 27.80

800-meter dash
Grace Toner, first place, freshman, 2:21.35
Mady Whitney, second place, senior, 2:33.65
Nadia Karadupa, third place, freshman, 2:37.83

1600-meter finals
Grace Christline, junior, first place, 5:55.69

3200-meter finals
Eloise Frye, freshman, second place, 12:25.58
Grace Christline, junior, third place, 12:41.69

100-meter hurdles
Shanna Teenor, junior, second place, 18.19
Beau Hulcher, freshman, third place, 18.35

300-meter hurdles
Beau Hulcher, freshman, first place, 51.30
Harper Graham, senior, third place, 52.11

4×100-meter relay
Free State, first place, 52.38

4×800-meter relay
Free State, first place, 10:13.62

Long Jump
Parker Jones, junior, first place, 17-feet, 1 inch
Jane Cast, junior, second place, 16-feet, 4 inches

Triple jump
Chloe Voss, sophomore, second place, 32-feet, 10.5 inches
Layla Hafoka, sophomore, third place, 31-feet, 8 inches

Pole Vault
Chloe Voss, sophomore, first place, 10-feet
Vivenne Pro, sophomore, second place, 9-feet, 6 inches

Discus
Sadie Reynolds, junior, first place, 137-feet, 2 inches

Boys

800-meter dash
Jasper Hansen Terry, senior, first place, 2:00.41

1600-meter dash
Nicholas Johnson, senior, third place, 4:45.41

300-metere hurdles
Van Catloth, sophomore, second place, 44.82

High Jump
Nate Huerter, sophomore, first place, 6-feet

Long Jump
Nate Huerter, sophomore, third place, 20-feet, 5.75 inches

Triple Jump
Toby Kwan, junior, first place, 39-feet, 10.5 inches