10/19/17 Districts-The Cardinals ended their high school cross country season on Tuesday in Mt Ayr at Districts. 29 teams competed in the district race. The boys team finished 16th and the girls were unable to finish with a scoring team. The girls lone finisher was Bailee Clements who just started running a few weeks ago ran an improved race finishing without walking (122nd-33:18). Lauren Saxton who recently sustained a quad strain tried to run the last race of the season and ran a game effort for 2 miles but was unable to finish. Taylor Beavers also had complications and did not finish. The girls didn't have many out to begin with and were plagued with injuries this season. They hope to return healthier this spring in track.
The high school boys only had 6 runners this season and 4 of them were freshman. With one out of the line up they barely had enough to score as a team but the young group was led by the lone senior Nick Bishop. Nick ran courageously and with a lot of heart in his final effort as he gamely tried to put himself close to qualifying position (top 15). He ran near 20th close to the 2 mile mark and hung on for 29th (18:56). It was his 5th sub 19 effort this season, one of his best career races, and the 2nd best individual district finisher the HS boys have had in the last 7 seasons. For 4 seasons Nick gave exceptional mental effort each race and was a tremendously consistent competitor. Freshman Brody Patterson finished 80th (21:11) in a solid effort as the teams 2nd man. Brody has improved as the season moved along and has a lot of potential. Brett Powers who has had a great season struggled a bit today in 105th (22:16) and will return next season. Keaton Adams finished 117th (22:54) in probably his best race effort of the season as the teams fourth man. Avery Marvin finished 123rd (23:23) to round out the team score in a race that was not his best but he's been solid and consistent this year with his effort. The Cardinals had a large junior high group that could assist in building the high school numbers back up in the next couple seasons and a lot of youth that will gain more experience with time.
10/12/17 POI Championships-Mt Ayr, IA-The Cardinal cross country teams competed at the conference championship meet on a cool and breezy evening. The high school boys finished 7th as a team and were led by senior Nicholas Bishop in 14th place. That earned him a medal and an All POI honor. Nick has earned All POI 3x in his career which ties the most in school history. Nick is having a fantastic senior season and raced well beating a few guys he hadn't beaten this season up to this point. Freshman Brandon Vecchio is out with a stress fracture and that left only 5 HS boys running. Brett Powers and Brody Patterson stepped up and ran very strong in 30th and 31st. Those finishing places were very solid for those two at this meet. Freshman Avery Marvin and Keaton Adams finished 48th and 49th running a competitive race effort as well. The boys competed very hard and are very young.
The high school girls had two finishers in Bailee Clements and Taylor Beavers. The ladies ran hard and are very new to the sport. Lauren Saxton started the race and ran in the top 15 for over a mile but was hampered by a quad strain and coaches opted to pull her out once it become evident she was limping. She will attempt to recover and race at districts next week. Chloe Yoder, Maggie Frank, and Kaydee Swartz all have been dealing with injuries and did not run. The girls teams have been plagued by injuries this season and are hoping for a healthier spring.
14th-19:11 Nicholas Bishop
30th-21:04 Brett Powers
31st-21:04 Brody Patterson
48th-22:48 Avery Marvin
49th-22:48 Keaton Adams
57th-33:50 Bailee Clements
58th 34:23 Taylor Beavors
The junior high boys won their first ever POI team title with a great team effort. Tate Swartz led the way in his 5th consecutive win once again winning easily. Tate pulled away early and never looked back to become the jr high boys conference champion. Tate Swartz, Tyson McDole, and Vinny Carcamo combined for a strong trio up front to give the cardinals a great chance to win the team race. Tyson finished 3rd running a great time and a smart race moving up through the middle. Vinny Carcamo ran his first ever race and finished 5th and executed coaches race plan well. Vinny was instrumental in giving the team a chance to win. Amazingly those 3 athletes were the only three 7th graders in the top 10 at the meet. Quinten Coffelt ran 2 minutes faster than last year at this course to finish 19th and give the Cardinals a strong 4th man. Matthew Patience finished 20th also 90 seconds faster than last year at this course. Matthew and Quinten closed the gap on I-35's 5th man and sealed the team victory for the cardinals who won by 3 points over I-35. Nathaniel Bishop finished 25th in a very solid race effort as well. Brayden Olsen finished 29th as the teams 7th man. Also giving great race efforts to round out the day were Cannon Rivera (32nd), Isaiah Brunk (33rd), and Matthew Coffelt (35th).
The junior high girls finished 3rd as a team and were led by Trinatie Mothershead who has had a phenomenal 7th grade year and is very consistent in her race efforts. Trinatie finished 11th. Chloe Hamaker who has been bothered by a heel issue all year battled through it to finished 13th and still ran 1 minute faster than a year ago on this course. Logan Proctor finished 17th with a gutsy race and is improving. Carson Bethards (27th) and Elly Sheets (33rd) rounded out the scoring for the cardinals. Carson competed very well and ran determined. Elly ran 30 seconds better than a year ago at this course and is improving greatly. Skyler Yoder ran her best overall race effort in 40th. Kylee Rockhold ran tough finishing as the teams 7th runner in 51st. Mya Applegate fell ill prior to the race and was unable to run.
Tate Swartz 1st 12:02
Tyson McDole 3rd 12:43
Vinny Carcamo 5th 13:18
Quinten Coffelt 19th 14:27
Matthew Patience 20th 14:30
Nathaniel Bishop 25th 14:48
Brayden Olsen 29th 15:25
Cannon Rivera 32nd 15:45
Isaiah Brunk 33rd 15:51
Matthew Coffelt 35th 16:28
Trinity Mothershead 11th 15:59
Chloe Hamaker 13th 16:07
Logan Proctor 17th 16:36
Carson Bethards 27th 17:33
Elly Sheetz 33rd 18:37
Skyler Yoder 40th 19:42
Kylee Rockhold 51st 23:32
10/3/17-Centerville-Senior Nick Bishop led the Cardinal efforts at the large Centerville meet Tuesday. The high school boys race had almost 200 runners. Nick ran what the coaches believe was the race of his life to this point finishing 18th (18:56) overall in a difficult field. Nick leads by example with his work ethic and his racing. He executes his races so well and runs with a high degree of mental toughness. It was over a minute faster than last years effort on this same course. Brett Powers is becoming a very solid runner for the cardinals improving his time by 2 minutes from a season ago on this course to run 20:43 (69th). Freshmen dou Brandon Vecchio (78th-21:08) and Brody Patterson (80th-21:10) are having great freshman seasons. Brody is really improving and gaining confidence as the season goes along. Brandon is nursing a nagging shin split issue that we will try to manage the last two weeks of the season. Avery Marvin (119th-23:34) and Keaton Adams (120th-23:35) rounded out the solid efforts for the team who finished 10th overall.
The HS girls were led by Lauren Saxton in 45th (25:28) out of 134 girls. Lauren's time was 12 seconds faster than last year on this same course. Lauren is improved from a year ago, but has been hampered a little knee pain lately and will try to resolve that before POI next week. Maggie Frank looked as good as she's looked all season at times during the race and was able to finish it as well. Chloe Yoder was able to run part of the race of the race as well, but all were in agreement that she should not attempt to run the entire race. Chloe is providing a lot of leadership and is a valuable experienced presence for the team this year with a ton of young junior high athletes on the team.
The junior high boys team finished 8th overall. They were led by Tyson McDole who finished 22nd (9:59) out of well over a 100 runners. Tyson executes the race plan very well and as a 7th grader is really showing a lot of potential. It's one of the fastest junior high boys time ever on that course by a Cardinal. Nathaniel Bishop is another 7th grader that is really showing promise as he finished 51st (11:04) and as the teams 2nd man. Quentin Coffelt (11:35-66th) finished as the teams 3rd man in a time that was about 2 minutes faster than a year ago on this same course. Quentin is quitely becoming a quality runner. Matthew Patience ran as the 4th man for the team (11:48-74th) and ran about a minute faster than a year ago also improving. Brayden Olsen ran a good effort in 82nd (12:01) and is running good considering he's banged up and has played multiple sports this fall. Matthew Coffelt ran a very good race in 96th (12:45) and is still improving. Cannon River ran solid finishing 100th (12:53) and battled through a side ache. Newcomer Isaiah Brunk rounded out the efforts in 108th (13:20).
The junior high girls finished 10th as a team and were led by 8th grader Chloe Hamaker in 34th (12:16). Chloe has been a much improved runner this season and improved a minute and a half from last season on this same course. Trinatie Mothershead is having a great 7th grade season and is consistently near the top of the Cardinal pack. Trinatie finished 45th (12:31). Mya Applegate also finished 35 seconds faster than a year ago on this same course finishing 58th (13:11) as the teams 3rd runner. Logan Proctor is giving good consistent effort on race day as the teams 4th runner in 64th (13:22). Carson Bethards was the final scoring runner for the team in 72nd (14:01) and is running consistently. Elly Sheetz is starting to breakthrough finishing 2 minutes ahead of last seasons team on this same course in 77th (14:15). Newcomer Skyler Yoder is improving and had her best race (81st-14:56). Kylie Rockhold ran probably her best race effort of the season competing well in 94th (18:42). The Cardinals will next compete at the Pride of Iowa Conference Championships in Greenfield, IA October 10th.
9/26/17 Osceola, IA-The Cardinal cross country teams enjoyed a cooler day of racing on Tuesday. 14 schools competed on a challenging course with more of a true cross country feel to it. The course was hilly, had muddy sections, on trails, and had a lot of spectators.
The junior high boys were led by Tate Swartz who won an impressive 4th consecutive race (12:21). In traditional team sports 50 percent of the participants win. In cross country hundreds often run and only 1 can win. So winning is very difficult to do and few have ever won a race wearing a Central Decatur uniform. So reeling off 4 in a row is a unique accomplishment and he did it by opening up a big lead in the middle of the race. Tyson McDole was next and medaled again in 8th (13:20). Tyson has a ton of potential as well. Both Tyson and Tate are just scratching the surface right now of what's possible. Nathaniel Bishop ran as the teams 3rd man (15:00-30th) and is becoming a consistent racer who gives consistent effort. Braydon Olsen (15:56-35th) and Cannon Rivera (15:59-36th) ran very tough as the 4th and 5th runners for the squad on a punishing course. Brayden is not 100 percent but had a solid mental race effort and Cannon ran lights out for the team. Isaiah Brunk (16:34-40th) finished close behind in his first ever race and competed very hard and shows potential as well. The junior high boys finished 4th as a team.
The junior high girls ran two athletes this week. Trinatie Mothershead who is proving that she is mentally tough thrived on the brutal course. She moved up into 6th (15:50) by the end earning a medal and running tremendously strong at the finish. Trinatie is running with confidence and continuing to improve. Skyler Yoder (20:03-21st) ran her 2nd ever race and did well to finish the course. It was a difficult race and course for an inexperience young athlete, but she looked smooth at times.
The HS girls have been hit with injuries and now numbers this year. Lauren Saxton was the lone HS girl to compete she raced well and ran strong at times. She did have moments where the hills affected her as they did a lot of other athletes as well. Lauren finished 34th in the field (26:11). It was a good race to experience prior to conference which will also be on a challenging course.
The HS boys were led by Senior Nick Bishop who ran an impressive race and clearly is a very good hill runner. Nick was close to 50th place around the mile and moved to 17th (19:55) by the finish. A brutal course or difficult conditions will benefit Nick's style and abilities. The cardinal 2-4 men ran in a strong pack as Brandon Vecchio (44th-21:52), Brody Patterson (45th-21:52), and Brett Powers (48th-21:59) all finished close together. Brandon Vecchio is having a great freshman season and is a reliable competitor. Brody Patterson had a huge breakthrough and a strong final mile to join Brandon and Brett and improve our 1-4 pack time. Brett Powers led that pack's charge at times and ran well. Avery Marvin (22:54) and Keaton Adams (23:10) have really closed the gap from a week or two ago. Both had a strong race and keep improving. The boys team finished 9th. The Cardinals are back in action next Tuesday at Centerville.
Moravia-9/21/17-The Cardinal cross country team ran at a small meet at Moravia Thursday along with eight small schools in a unique meet. The heat index was 94 degrees but the course was flat, had some wind protection, and on smooth pavement. Pavement while not a normal cross country surface and not as easy on the legs is a much faster running surface than grass. For the kids who were able to navigate the heat those conditions could produce fast times. Some times and places are missing due to official results not being sent out yet.
The high school boys were led by Nick Bishop who medaled in 9th place. Nick nearly equaled his PR in 18:42. It's the 3rd sub 19 he's had this season. Nick is having his best season but was a little bothered by the pavement today. Brandon Vecchio (16th place) who is a little more of a speed guy enjoyed the flat surface running a PR of 19:23 and moved to 15th all time. Brandon just missed a medal. Brett Powers (17th) ran sub 20 for the first time as well in 19:32 and moves to 17th all time. Brett and Brandon ran well together. Brody Patterson is working to cut the pack time down and ran a huge PR in 20:23 (20th place). Avery Marvin (21:47) and Keaton Adams (22:15) both ran PR's. The 1-6 man spread was about a minute closer today than at Eddyville and the boys will hope to keep narrowing the spread in the final month of the season.
The high school girls were led by Lauren Saxton who is getting stronger each week and medaled in 7th place. Lauren is learning to race the whole distance and can compete with a lot of people when she does that. She had a great last half mile which produced a new school record besting the previous record by 18 seconds (23:08). Taylor Beavers and Bailee Clements stepped in and ran on short notice. They competed hard and finished their first ever race showing determination to get through it. Chloe Yoder who has been plagued with injury started the race again but decided to finish it once out there showing a lot of determination. Maggie Frank didn't walk and battled to the end despite the pavement aggravating her pain more than usual.
The junior high raced approximately 1.5 miles and both boys and girls teams would win the small meet. The boys were led by Tate Swartz who won his 3rd consecutive race in dominating fashion. Tate has beat everyone he's raced this season and is on another level from most junior high runners winning at times by almost a minute over 2nd place. He lowered his own 1.5 mile record to 7:48. To put it in perspective his last .75 was faster than the HS boys winner over the same stretch of the course. Matthew Patience stepped up with the boys missing their #2 man today and finished in 7th (9:20) place to earn a ribbon. Quentin Coffelt finished 8th with a ribbon as well in 9:29 and is tremendously improved from a season ago. Nathaniel Bishop (9:38) keep the pack time close as he finished 9th with a ribbon as well. Matthew Coffelt finished with a PR of 10:40 in what would be his fastest 1.5 mile race of the season. Brayden Olson struggled today with some nagging injury problems but will look to recover and return healthier.
The junior high girls were able to shine in the small race and an entire pack of Cardinals ran towards the front early before Chloe Hamaker surged to the lead. Chloe got her first career win and broke the school record at 1.5 miles running 10:15. Chloe becomes only the 2nd girl in junior high school history to win a race. Chloe and Mya Applegate finished 1-2 in an exciting run. Mya ran 10:20 in her best race of the season. It was good to see those two have success today as they are both very dedicated and have both struggled with injuries this season. Two promising 7th graders continued their good running as Trinatie Mothershed (4th-10:46) and Logan Proctor (6th-11:06) continued the team dominance today. Carson Bethards ran her best career 1.5 mile race in 7th (11:17) as the pack ran very strong for the Cardinals. Elly Sheetz continues to close the gap on the pack finishing 9th (12:00) and Skyler Yoder (13:17) in her first race finished 10th. Kylie Rockhold ran about a 2 minute PR in 12th (15:30) running well also.
9/19/17 Eddyville-The Cardinal cross country teams traveled to Eddyville on Tuesday and competed with seven other schools on a warm and humid day. The junior high boys would finish 3rd out of 4 full teams. The junior high girls finished 2nd out of 3 full teams. In the mixed junior high scoring the Cardinals finished 2nd out of 7 full teams. The high school boys finished 5th out of 6 full teams.
The junior high boys started the action with a quality team effort over 1.5 miles. Tate Swartz (9:16) led the team once again by winning his second race of the year and avenging his only defeat. He threw in a hard surge about a 1/2 mile in shortly after a hill and gapped the field never looking back. Tate is fast becoming a force to reckon with on the xc course. Tyson McDole (10:07) ran well for coming off an illness in 8th also grabbing a medal. The cardinals 3-6th men ran in a solid pack together led by Brayden Olson (20th-11:35) who battled through some soreness from being a multiple sport athlete. Quentin Coffelt (22nd-11:41) ran an improved race as the teams 4th man and is developing into a good runner. Nathaniel Bishop (24th-11:43) continues his good running as the teams 5th man and led the packs charge at times. Matthew Patience (26th-11:55) was the 6th man and is someone who can add to the Cardinals depth later this year. Matthew Coffelt (33rd-12:42) ran his most competitive race so far and closed the gap on the Cardinal scoring pack. Cannon Rivera who has shown some potential (35th-13:01) is also gaining valuable experience.
Trinatie Mothershed (4th-12:17) led the way for the second week in a row for the junior high girls. She is beginning to race with a lot of confidence. Trinatie moved well throughout the race and is proving she is a tough competitor earning her first career medal. Logan Proctor (9th-12:50) ran a impressive race effort to snag her first career medal as well. Logan is game on race day. Chloe Hamaker (10th-12:55) also got a medal and battled through a bothersome injury issue that limited her in showing her fitness at the moment. Carson Bethards (17th-13:34) raced more competitively throughout this week in a good overall effort. Mya Applegate (20th-13:54) who has been bothered by a persistent leg issue still competed very well as the teams final scorer. Elly Sheetz (25th-14:58) ran her best season race hanging with the Cardinals top 5 girls for a long stretch of the race. Kylie Rockhold (36th-18:34) continues to improve and ran her best 1.5 mile time of the season.
Lauren Saxton (15th-24:48) ran a season best as the HS girls only athlete today. She finished a respectable 15th and had a more consistent race effort throughout. The HS boys were led by a gutsy effort by senior Nick Bishop (8th-18:59). The senior medaled for the first time in his career at this particular meet and dipped under the 19 minute barrier for the 2nd time this season. Nick made a gutsy move up to 5th by the 2 mile and held on for 8th. Nick is the model of consistent racing and always is mentally prepared and races hard. Brandon Vecchio (28th-20:50) is racing well for a freshman. Brandon is competing throughout the entire race and has a lot of potential. Brody Patterson (21:27) was the teams 3rd man in his best ever race effort. Brody used the come from behind strategy really well and moved significantly in the final half of the race. Avery Marvin (56th-23:32) and Keaton Adams (57th-23:32) are developing and being asked to do a lot as freshman. They rounded out the scoring in great freshman efforts crossing the line simultaneously. Brett Powers (61st-24:13) struggled today but should return strong Thursday when the teams travel to Moravia.
9/11/17-Pleasantville-The Cardinal XC teams ran nearly everyone at Pleasantville on Monday. Approximately 10 schools competed. The junior high teams ran very competitively to start out the action. The junior high girls finished 2nd overall behind Colfax Mingo. The junior high boys won the meet as a team edging out Colfax Mingo and I-35. The high school boys team finished 5th out of 9 scoring teams. The high school girls don't have enough runners to field a team score at this time.
Tate Swartz and Tyson McDole led a dynamic 1-2 finish for the junior high boys. Tate controlled the race from start to finish and buried the field halfway through the race. Tate split about 5:40 at the mile. Tyson ran extremely well strategically to move into 2nd late in the race after a 6:05 first mile. Tate's new record time (conversion from 1.7) is 11:58. That is 45 seconds faster than Ben Savely's record set in 2012 and he becomes only the 7th athlete to ever win a cross country race for Central Decatur. Tyson moves to 4th all time at the 2 mile distance (converting to 13:02). Nathaniel Bishop ran an exceptional race as the teams 3rd man moving into 14th overall. Matthew Patience ran a solid effort for the team in 19th and ran 1 minute faster than last season at this same race. Cannon Rivera had a significantly better day than his first race as the teams 5th man and final scoring runner in 23rd. Cannon had a strong final half mile and his race was a nice suprise. Quentin Coffelt finished 27th as he struggled with some stomach issues and will return next week stronger. Despite the struggles he still ran 39 seconds faster than a year ago on this same course. Matthew Coffelt finished 34th running a solid and consistent effort.
Trinatie Mothershed (8th) and Chloe Hamaker (9th) led a very solid pack of Cardinals in the junior high girls race. Trinatie had a breakthrough race to lead the team in 8th place as she moved up several spots by running smart early. Chloe Hamaker ran tough despite being hampered by a nagging heel injury-but still ran a minute faster than last season. Mya Applegate ran better than her first race of the season competing much better in 13th. Carson Bethards (16th) and Logan Proctor (17th) finished side by side. Carson had a more consistent effort and Logan Proctor is a good competitor. Elly Sheetz was much more aggressive and competitive this week in 24th and also ran a minute faster than last year at this same course. Kylie Rockhold finished 32nd in a good effort as she improved upon her first race.
The high school girls were led by Lauren Saxton (27th-25:10) who ran a solid race, but wasn't quite what she hoped for. She still improved from her time by 38 seconds from a season ago on this same course. Maggie Frank (79th-40:04) finished despite being plaqued by hip problems decided to bravely finish the race. She improved 37 seconds from last season. Veteran Chloe Yoder who has undergone surgery in the last year or so made a return to uniform as well running part of the race and making it farther than she had been able to run in quite a while. Kaydee Swartz is still out with stress fractures in both legs. The girls team has been injury plagued this season.
The high school boys were led by a special race from senior Nick Bishop (8th). Nick ran 19:04 which is 8 spots higher and 53 seconds faster than a year ago on this same course. Nick beat a few athletes he's never beat before and moved from the 30's up into 8th place throughout the race. Nick competed very hard every step of the race. Sophomore Brett Powers finished 19th in 20:37 in a career best race effort as the teams 2nd man. Brett is gaining confidence with each week and nearly medaled. He finished 2 and 1/2 minutes faster than last year at this same meet. Brandon Vecchio finished 26th-21:06 in another consistent effort, but was bothered by a few nagging pains today. Brody Patterson (34th-21:51) was the teams 4th man. Brody has been a consistent racer each week. Avery Marvin (47th-23:16) fought hard the whole way including a diving finish to get an extra spot as the teams 5th man. Keaton Adams (51st-23:24) ran a quality race the whole way as the teams 6th man. The boys beat East Union, Clark, SEW, and Pleasantville. They finished behind MSTM, I-35, Lynnville Sully, and PCM.
HS Boys
Nick Bishop 19:04-8th
Brett Powers 20:37-19th
Brandon Vecchio 21:06-26th
Brody Patterson 21:51-34th
Avery Marvin 23:16-47th
Keaton Adams 23:24-51st
HS Girls
Lauren Saxton 25:10-27th
Maggie Frank 40:04-79th
Jr High Boys
Tate Swartz 10:03-1st
Tyson McDole 10:57-2nd
Nathaniel Bishop 12:12-14th
Matthew Patience 12:40-19th
Cannon Rivera 12:57-23rd
Quentin Coffelt 13:28-27th
Matthew Coffelt 14:29-34th
Jr High Girls
Trinity Mothershed-13:21-8th
Chloe Hamaker-13:35-9th
Mya Applegate-14:24-13th
Carson Bethards-14:53-16th
Logan Proctor-14:53-17th
Elly Sheetz-16:21-24th
Kylie Rockhold-20:17-32nd
9/5/17-Winterset-The cardinal cross country team ran a limited number of athletes at Winterset this week. Winterset is a large meet with several hundred runners total competing. Lauren Saxton was the lone girl to compete and she ran a much improved race from her season opener. Lauren finished 29th (25:00) in the 10th grade race. Her time was 2 and a 1/2 minutes faster than her race at this same course a year ago. Lauren competed much better and had a great last 1/2 mile gaining around a dozen spots in that final stretch.
The HS boys races were also divided by grade. Brandon Vecchio finished 23rd in the freshman race. Brandon ran a really phenomenal effort and is running ahead of where last seasons #2 man ran. Brandon kept steadily gaining places and raced with a lot of determination throughout the race. Brody Patterson was 33rd in the freshman race. Brody passed a ton of guys in the final two miles and had a very consistent mental effort throughout the race. Keaton Adams finished 39th in the freshman race with a much improved effort for his 2nd race. Keaton competed well through the difficult portions of the race. Brett Powers ran 4 minutes faster than a year ago with his effort finishing 33rd (21:36) in the sophomore race. Brett is a much improved runner from a season ago. Senior Nick Bishop ran a smart race and finished 20th (19:59) in the senior race. His time is 43 seconds faster than his effort as a junior. Nick moved up around 30 or 40 spots in the final 2.5 miles. The HS athletes overall ran really quality races. The Cardinals will be back in action Monday with a more complete squad at Pleasantville.
8/31/17-Wayne-The Cardinal XC teams started their season with 16 other schools at the Wayne Invitational. Overall the Cardinals are a young and inexperienced team with only one senior. The teams all gave great effort and good support to each other. Counting JV runners the HS races had well over a 100 in each race. The MS races had over 50 in each division. The HS girls are low on numbers this season but Sophomore's Lauren Saxton (25:25-51st) and Maggie Frank (42:34-82nd) represented the Cardinals. Lauren was running well early but struggled with some cramping and the hills late. She will rebound and is very capable of running in the medals. Maggie Frank did not walk and ran well on the hilly course.
The High School boys finished 9th out of 13 scoring teams. They were led by the lone senior Nick Bishop (16th-18:41) who had a great summer and was able to PR the first meet of the season. That time moves him to 8th on the all time list. Nick steadily passed guys throughout moving from mid 40's early on to 16th by the end. That is 13 spots higher than his finish at this meet a year ago. Freshman Brandon Vecchio (19:58-41st) had a really solid first ever HS race running and moving to 20th on the all time list. That race was created by his summer training. Sophomore Brett Powers (20:14-47th) also ran over a minute PR. Brett will be key for the young boys team this year. Freshman Brody Patterson (62nd-21:21) had a great first race effort and ran well picking up spots in the middle portion of the race. Freshman Avery Marvin (22:32-67th) ran a smart race after coming off illness as the teams 5th and final scorer. Freshman Keaton Adams (22:55-72nd) ran well for his first race and will be needed this year. The freshman will get stronger as the season goes along. The teams are back in action tuesday at Winterset.
The junior high girls have not been as healthy as the boys, but finished 3rd as a team out of 5 scoring teams. They were led by Chloe Hamaker in 6th place. Chloe had a great summer and will have some big races. She is was hampered by some heel pain this meet but still finished in the top 10. Logan Proctor exceeded expectations for her first race as the girls 2nd runner in 11th and moved up several spots during the race. Trinity Mothershed also ran a solid first ever race finishing 15th. Mya Applegate (16th) and Carson Bethards (22nd) rounded out the scoring 5. They will be instrumental in this season's team goals. Elly Sheetz (42nd) ran improved from a season ago and Kylie Rockhold (48th) had a good effort in her first ever race. All these girls will contribute this year.
The junior high boys team ran an exceptional team effort and finished 3rd out of 5 scoring teams. 7th Graders Tate Swartz (2nd) and Tyson McDole (4th) led the way. Tate Swartz broke the previous 1.5 mile record (held by Ben Savely 2012) by 55 seconds. The new record is 8:56. It was an off distance race so times were conversed to performance equivalences at the nearest distance records are kept for. Despite being a 7th grader Tate has a lot of experience on the youth circuit. That experience and previous training is paying off. Tyson ran a special race as well to open his career as he moved up several spots in the middle of the race. Brayden Olson (19th) was a solid 3rd runner for the team and is battling some minor injury issues, but led the charge from the remaining scoring runners. Quentin Coffelt (23rd) had a very good summer of training and ran his best career race by far as the teams 4th man. Matthew Patience (26th) rounded up the team scoring as the 5th man. Nathaniel Bishop (28th) followed closely in his first ever race. Matthew Coffelt (39th) and Cannon Rivera (40th) rounded out the quality team races.