Jadrian Thurmon played the role of the comeback kid at the Montgomery County Invitational on April 21 at Jim Blacklock Field.

Not once, but twice.

First, the Montgomery County senior came from behind to beat Centralia’s Nolan Spickert in the 1,600 in a personal record time. About two hours later, he edged another Centralia runner – Dryst Bostick – in the 800 in come-from-behind fashion.

Thurmon said he was thrilled to win two events in a very competitive Montgomery County Invitational that included strong teams such as Centralia, Louisiana and Palmyra.

“I feel ecstatic,” Thurmon said. “That can not be said without me seriously expressing my gratitude and the immense amount of respect that I have for the other athletes who show up here. They’re so talented, so gifted and so great. They show up and give it their all, too. I have a lot of respect for them. I always look up to them, whether they’re younger or older than me.”

Now, Thurmon is setting his sights on closing his high school track career on a high note. He is looking to return to the state meet for the first time since his freshman year, when he was a member of the 800-meter relay team that finished sixth in the Class 3 state meet.

“It’s a big dream of mine, but I know it does not come without hard work and dedication,” Thurmon said.

Thurmon and the Wildcats have one more regular season meet before postseason begins on May 10 and that’s the Eastern Missouri Conference meet on May 2, which will be held at Jim Blacklock Field. The field events start at 4:15 p.m. and the running events begin at 5 p.m.

Thurmon didn’t compete in last year’s EMO meet due to a calf injury that sidelined him in the final weeks of the season. He suffered other injuries during the track career that included a fractured ankle in his freshman year and a hamstring injury in his sophomore year.

“They’ve been pretty tough and pretty heartbreaking injuries,” Thurmon said.

Still, Thurmon – who plans to continue his running career at the University of Central Missouri next year – has been one of the top performers for the Wildcats in the distance events. With his two wins at the Montgomery County Invitational, Thurmon has five first-place finishes this year and 12 in his career.
Thurmon finished with a personal-best time of 4:28.43 in the 1,600 at the Montgomery County Invitational. He picked up his first win in the 1,600 and came within two seconds from the school record.

Thurmon was trailing Spickert for most of the race before outsprinting the Centralia runner in the final 100 meters. He beat Spickert by 0.22 seconds.

“I give a lot of credit to Centralia’s Nolan Spickert,” Thurmon said. “The kid is a hard worker. He and I are good friends. We stay in contact. We also devised a plan to break that 4:30 and we did. We went after it and we got after it. We stayed competitive and finished hard. I ended up getting him in the last 25ish meters, but the kid’s got heart.”

Thurmon won the 800 for the third time this season after placing first with a 2:04.47. He was behind Bostick with 200 meters to go before outsprinting him at the end.

“I’ve been doing pretty good in the 800,” Thurmon said. “That 1,600 and 800 double is tough and physically and mentally demanding. I plan on trying to go sub-2:00. I ran really close to a high 2:02 after I ran 4:30 mile PR at South Shelby (on March 31). I’m just ready to show up in that 800 and get work done and hit that sub-2 minute mark and etch myself into history.”

Thurmon was one of two MCHS athletes who won championships at the Montgomery County Invitational. The other was freshman Emma Rodgers, who came out on top in the girls 800 in a season-best 2:27.59.

Before Thurmon joined the MCHS track squad in his freshman year, he was a standout for the middle school team, holding school records in the 200 and 400 that he set in his eighth-grade year.

This year, Thurmon is one of nine seniors on the MCHS track squad. He said competing with the Wildcats all four years has been quite an experience.

“I love this team,” said Thurmon, who also competed with the cross country team all four years and earned two all-state medals. “I love the coaches. I love the atmosphere and everything about this school. When it comes to this sport, it’s so incredible. Everyone has been so encouraging. The coaches care so much and they put in so much time and effort. It’s making you great. All you have to do is to trust them, show up and work. Trust and believe in yourself. Trust and believe in their training and you can do anything.”