BOYS XC NEW PRAIRIE INVITE Western posted the top finish out of area schools at the mega meet, finishing 10th as a team in the Class AA medium school division with a 317 while senior Josh Everetts took third individually in 16:44. Andrew Granfield followed in 65th for the Panthers (19:03) with Alex Taylor right behind in 66th (19:03). Tyler Lechner (73rd, 19:13) and Zach Zentz (110th, 20:10) rounded out Western's crew. "The course probably ran about 30-40 seconds slow," Western coach Gary Jewell said. "The soil there is very sandy and when it rains it is very soft. For the most part I think the guys ran pretty well. It's kind of hard to tell in a race that big. We're looking down the road a ways. It was good to see Josh up there at the front of the pack in a big race like that, only a step or two behind second." Maconaquah was 14th as a team, with Tyler Dietzel pacing the Braves with a 24th-place finish in 18:02. Following Dietzel for Mac was Fletcher Williams (72nd, 19:11), Caleb Winegardner (81st, 19:20), Jacob Edwards (127th, 20:36) and Zach Alvarado (144th, 21:08). Northwestern was 29th, with Spencer Hutchens finishing 103rd in 19:56. Other Tiger runners were Jacob Myers (124th, 20:31), Gavin Smith (150th, 21:16), Mitchell Harrell (169th, 22:11), and Jace Cournoyer (183rd, 22:59). "We had guys out," NW course Dave Stevens said. "I was happy with the effort the guys put in. The ones who stepped up gave me their best." Peru finished 25th, with Adam Garner taking 53rd in 18:37. Rounding out Peru were Isaiah Hollis (102nd, 19:51), Seth Anderson (147th, 21:14), Levi Cunningham (166th, 21:58), and Nathan Moore (176th, 22:36). Ft. Wayne Concordia had the top team finish with a 23, and the top individual finish from Noah Steffen, who crossed in 16:16. Eastern competed the the Class A small school division, placing 27th as a team. The top individual finish for the Comets belonged to Josh Reprogle, who crossed 65th in 19:43. Also for Eastern was Macaiah White (133rd, 21:47), Seth Snyder (169th, 23:05), Nick Hillman (201st, 27:27) and Ethan Shook (205th, 33:04). "We were looking for good races, not necessarily amazing times," Eastern coach Ben Cox said. "Nick set a PR and there was a big difference in how he looked. All the guys looked very much like that." Morgan Township was first overall in the Class A division with a team score of 35, while placing the top individual as well wtih Trevor Braden's first-place run of 16:40. GIRLS XC NEW PRAIRIE INVITE Western took fourth place overall in the Class AA medium school division with a score of 202, finishing behind Benton Central (87), Rensselaer Central (165) and Kankakee Valley (200). "Going in our goal was top-five so getting fourth was a little above and beyond that," Western coach Joni McCracken said. "I'm very happy with where we're at this point in the season, but we still need to get faster and we have some work to do. It was a very, very muddy course that the girls ended up running very well." Individually, Natalie Nicholson finished 17th for the Panthers in 20:55. Megan Hampshire crossed next in 36th at 21:38. Following her were Emma Marley (40th, 21:44), Allison McMinn (52nd, 22:07) and Olivia Lushin (57th, 22:20). Maconaquah finished 13th and Northwestern followed in 14th. For Mac, Kate White was 18th overall in 20:59, followed by Madison Winegardner (24th, 21:08), Haley Wimmer (30th, 21:55), Baily Hayes (72nd, 22:55) and Betsy Powell (134th, 25:48). For Northwestern, Casey Lechner posted the top finish in 20th place at 21:02. Also for the Tigers were Kate Bilkey (39th, 21:42), Lauren Longshore (47th, 22:01), Nicole Crocker (70th, 22:53), and Kaylynne Fernandes (107th, 24:27). |