BOYS XC TAYLOR U. INVITE

Kokomo Tribune September 2, 2025

By TRIBUNE STAFF

Western had a strong showing in Taylor University's 20-team invitational.

No. 7-ranked Homestead won with a score of 43, No. 15 Yorktown was second with 77, No. 20 Zionsville was third with 85 and No. 44 Western was fourth with 138. No. 21 Wabash rounded out the top five with a score of 148.

Homestead's Jace Trevino won the race in a time of 15:25. Western's Camden Raab (15:39.1) and Miles Rudy (personal-best 15:56.4) took third place and fifth place, respectively. Raab and Rudy both broke the 16:00 barrier for the first time this season.

"Camden was in the top three for most of the race. His gamble at two miles nearly resulted in a win. It took two of the best runners in the state to overcome his move," Western coach Gary Jewell said.

Also scoring for Western were Maddox Carver (39th, 16:59.2), Beck Bennett (43rd, personal-best 17:04.2) and Avery Franklin (74th, personal-best 17:58.6).

"Everyone ran well this week on a course that's not necessarily known for producing fast times. Perfect conditions and great competition yielded impressive performances," Jewell said. "Our cumulative time of 1:23:38 is probably the best we've ever had as a program. But that's what happens when you face some good competition."

Kokomo (229) took eighth place, Tipton (430) was 16th, Peru (444) was 18th and Maconaquah (463) was 19th.

Cooper Cage led the Kats and was seventh overall in a personal-best time of 16:05. That ranks No. 4 all-time in the Kats' program.

Kokomo had many other personal-best times from other runners including Preston Arreola (16:53), Ben Wallace (17:36), Owen Downing (19:11) and Leo Serra (19:15).