It was an extremely busy weekend for local cross country runners, with Heritage and Adams Central competing in Marion, the Bellmont boys at the massive Tiffin Carnival races, and the girls joining the South Adams team at Spencerville.
We try to sum it all up for you and recognize those runners who made significant gains on lowering their season and career bests.
Team Scores
1st-Lexington 96
2nd-Bay 102
4th-Van Wert 148
13th-Bellmont 422
“We had an excellent day at Tiffin,” said head coach Randy Hisner. “Battling some excellent Ohio teams, including 8 state-ranked in Div.2, we finished 13th out of 36.”
Bellmont Times & Places
43rd-Hayden Whittenbarger 17:10.6
73rd-Hudson Krull 17:38.4
93rd-Maddux Miller 18:03.8
97th-Harry Gunsett 18:08.7
121st-Ethan Curtis 18:34.0
155th-Landon Rich 19:14.4
175th-Cayden Rauch 19:57.3
-Gunsett’s time was 28 seconds better than his last 5K, but it was the outstanding races for Whittenbarger and Krull that really made the difference in Bellmont’s team placing. Krull cracked the 18-minute mark for the first time and Whittenbarger seems poised to drop below 17 minutes soon. Maddux Miller cut a full minute from his his last run in Ohio.
Notes from Coach Hisner:
Hayden Whittenbarger again led us with a terrific effort. He cut 24 seconds from his career best to finish in 43rd (out of 244 runners) in 17:10. Hudson Krull also established a career best, dropping 16 seconds with his 17:38. Fifth man Ethan Curtis had a great day, slicing 23 seconds from his career best with an 18:34. His progress this season has been a big shot in the arm for our team. Third man Maddux Miller (18:03) and fourth man Harry Gunsett (18:09) had big season bests, as did sixth man Landon Rich (19:14) and seventh man Cayden Rauch (19:57).
In the Open (JV) race, Logan Whitacre set a big season best and was not far from his career best with his 19:37. Freshmen Brock Scherry (20:55) and Joe Kozlowski (21:00) also had season bests as our runners took advantage of the cool conditions and excellent competition to record some impressive times. Freshman Frank Morgan completed his first 5K in 31:38.
Spencerville Boys 5K – Black Division
Times and Places of Note
- Bryan Garcia-New Haven 16:36
- Dakota Sprunger-South Adams 17:05
- Wyatt Mann-South Adams 17:41
- Deacon Bierbaum-South Adams 17:59
- Carson Laux-South Adams 18:45
- Daniel Rupp-South Adams 19:02
- Maddox Miller-South Adams 19:20
- Zayden Storm-South Adams 20:45
- Jacob Heflin-South Adams 21:07
- Benjamin Rupp-South Adams 25:06
Team Scores
1st-Bath 65
2nd-New Haven 81
3rd-South Adams 89
-Dakota Sprunger continues to lead the Starfires and he registered another season best as he approaches the 17-minute mark for what promises to be a competitive conference and sectional race. Wyatt Mann cut over a minute to finish second on the team behind Sprunger.
Spencerville Girls 5K – Black Division
- Penny Francis-Bath 19:22
- Addy Watson-South Adams 20:33.1
- Sydney Angel-Bellmont 21:59
- Abigail Rudy-Bellmont 22:00
- Ava Kinsey-South Adams 23:03
- Bridget Juengel-Bellmont 23:37
- Madison Witte-Bellmont 23:40
- Aleena Bierbaum-South Adams 23:41
- Bre Feasel-Bellmont 24:14
- Lilly Franz-Bellmont 24:32
- Kalle Trausch-South Adams 24:41
- Stella McIntire-South Adams 25:56
- Isabella Suarez-Bellmont 26:32
- Mackenzie Selzer-Bellmont 26:42
- Jaylin Reed-Bellmont 26:46
- Addison Rich-Bellmont 28:05
- Allison Allmon-Bellmont 29:59
- Sophia Silva-Bellmont 30:00
Team Scores
1st-Lima Shawnee 78
3rd-Coldwater 103
4th-Bellmont 118
7th-South Adams 149
8th-New Haven 215
Notes from Coach Risch of Bellmont on the race:
We placed 4th out of 12 teams in the big school division. All 12 of our girls ran season bests in cooler conditions. Five girls clocked career bests: Lilly Franz, Mackenzie Selzer, Sophia Silva, Sydney Angel and Isabella Suarez.
Marion Invitational – Boys
Trevor Schwartz-Adams Central 16:48
Ethan Crockett-Adams Central 17:02
Corban Roth-Heritage 17:38
Marshall Harris-Heritage 17:44
Hayden Amstein-Heritage 18:09
Bryson Edgell-Adams Central 18:37
Reid Gerber-Adams Central 18:42
Cooper Naatz-Heritage 19:17
Alex Alana-Adams Central 19:30
Vince Laukhuf-Adams Central 20:16
Alex Smith-Heritage 20:32
Gavin Juricak-Heritage 21:06
William Voglewede-Heritage 21:16
Zane VanOsdale-Heritage 21:47
Corbin Saalfrank-Heritage 22:15
Chase Buuck-Heritage 22:23
Team Scores – Boys’ 5K
1st-Mt. Vernon (Fortville) 88
22nd-Adams Central 714
23rd-Norwell 731
30th-Heritage 898
-Trevor Schwartz went 14 seconds faster than his previous season best and broke the 17-minute mark for the Jets. Bryson Edgell shaved 1:10 from his previous 5K best.
-For Heritage, it was a strong run for Corban Roth, who was 55 seconds better than his last race, while Hayden Amstein was 79 seconds better. The biggest cut, however, came from Marshall Harris, who showed off his versatility as a runner (he was a sectional champ in the 400 in the spring) with a cut in his 5K time from 19:30 to 17:44. William Voglewede did not score for Heritage, but he did trim three minutes from his previous season best in another great performance on the cool day.
Marion Invitational Times – Girls
Madison Gerber-Adams Central 19:13
Addison Gilbert-Adams Central 20:09
Madison Hamilton-Adams Central 20:51
Ava Smith-Heritage 23:31
Elise Hissong-Heritage 23:46
Hailey Brune-Adams Central 24:00
Haley Jauregui-Adams Central 24:09
Rosalinda Medina-Heritage 24:17
Alyssa Fruechte-Adams Central 24:20
Macy Isch-Adams Central 25:06
-Madison Hamilton cut a minute from her best time earlier this year and Hailey Brune made a major gain, going from 25:51 to 24 minutes flat for a new career best.
-Elise Hissong had the biggest improvement for the Patriots with a 23:46, topping her 25:29 from her last 5K.
Team Scores – Girls’ 5K
1. Homestead 51
9. Norwell 294
11. Adams Central 480
(No team score for Heritage – incomplete team)
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