FORT WAYNE -- Annina Gruber and Danielle Glick will wrap up their careers at the IHSAA Girls State Cross Country Meet, but Gruber will be the lone member of the Western Panthers competing in the meet at Indiana State University.
For the third straight year, the Panthers came up just short of a team berth at Saturday's New Haven Semistate meet on the campus of Indiana-Purdue at Fort Wayne. Western finished sixth for the second time in three years with 186 points. Fort Wayne Snider came in at 153 to take the fifth spot.
"We weren't dreading this awards ceremony," Panther coach Dana Neer said afterwards. "We knew we had done well. The girls hit our goals for position and times right where we forecasted them to be.
"They surged when they needed to surge and ran hard. Looking into their eyes on the course, every one of them was full of confidence and determination. When they were done, they knew they'd run a great race."
Gruber came in 12th behind individual winner Megan Jackson of Northridge in a time of 15 minutes, 6 seconds. Gruber went to state as a sophomore, but this will be her first time on the ISU course.
Thanks to Panther fans and coaches, Gruber knew right where she was at the two-mile mark.
"Everyone was yelling at me. 'You're in the 20s, you're in the 20s.' I decided I didn't want to be in the 20s and was determined to be in the top 15," she said.
Getting there was easier said than done.
"It seemed no matter how hard you went, everyone else was picking it up too. Somehow, I got a sprint in me and just finally went," Gruber said. "It was good there was a pack in front of me. If it had been spread out, I might not have made it. I probably passed seven or eight girls in one group.
"I didn't want to just squeeze in at 15th. I wanted to be in where I didn't have to worry about someone passing me and pushing me back to 16th."
Next in for Western was freshman Jenn Elliott in 34th with a time of 15:39.1 and Anna Hurlock was 49th in 15:53.5. Six spots back was Lacey Myer at 16:02.3 and Cassie Myer wrapped up the Panther team in 70th at 16:22.3. Katie Hollingsworth and Vanessa Lorenz completed the team in 99th and 100th out of 152 runners.
"This is a young team in terms of first-year runners. Jenn and Lacey are freshmen and Katie [a sophomore] has never run cross country before," the coach said. "Jenn, you have to love the spirit and determination. She doesn't back away from a challenge.
"We believe we belong here, that we deserve to be here. This has been one of the best weeks of coaching I've ever enjoyed."
Part of the reason the Panthers believe they belong is due to their seniors: Gruber, Cassie Myer and Brianna Vess.
"They're fantastic kids. They've been unbelievable leaders for us," Neer said.
Glick realized a dream she's been chasing since she started running as a sophomore. The Titan runner finished 14th, two spots and one second behind Gruber.
"This is the result of the work I've done the last three years in track and cross country. I've finally accomplished my goal," she said of going to state. "I was trying to count [her position] the whole time. I tried to push according to how many girls were ahead of me and tried to pass groups of them.
"At the beginning of the race, I couldn't run comfortably. There were people up in the front pushing and shoving. It seemed to take until the first mile mark before it spread out and I could concentrate on the race."
Northridge ran away with the team title, scoring 37 points, while Concordia, Carroll (Allen) and DeKalb took second through fourth.
Kokomo, with Adrienne Shepherd the first Wildkat in at 30th, was 16th at 404. Shepherd finished in 15:35.6. Sarah Lee was next in 97th.
"The girls weren't fiercely competitive, but I think they learned a lot," Kokomo coach Ricke Stucker said. "Hopefully, we'll come back next season with a fierce determination."
Tri-Central's Addie Rayl said she just didn't have a good day as she finished 40th in the girls race.
"I just couldn't get going. I'm a little disappointed I didn't have my best race, but I did the best I could," the Trojan senior said.
Northwestern's Jennifer Claudio was 67th.
"Jennifer, I knew there was some apprehension and I tried to get her relaxed. But, I could see it written on her face this morning," Northwestern coach Pete Schroer said. "It was a wonderful experience and she won't have that apprehension the next time here."
Boys race
The Wildkats' boys team also finished 16th, with a score of 381. Northridge also won the boys title, scoring 106 to Fort Wayne Northrop's 110.
Ryan Perry came in first for the Kat boys, finishing 46th in 17:01. Next in was Cameron Cunningham in 81st out of 158 runners.
"I knew we probably wouldn't run well. I could just sense it," Stucker said. "I think this will be an incentive to come back next year and do even better. These kids are very competitive."
Northwestern's Matt Ullmer just missed out on a berth by coming in 17th at 16:27 while
"Last year, Matt was 41st, this year he was 17th. He ran pretty good and got himself into a good position," Schroer said. "He was just a little too far back at the mile mark and that left him just far enough back that he couldn't catch the little pack in front of him."
Tipton's Peter Compton-Craig finished 61st in the boys race that was won by Northrop's Robert Moldovan in 15:48.1. ©2005 The Kokomo Tribune