Area runners earn medals at Central Heights
RICHMOND — It’s been awhile since this happened to Iola High’s Fillies on the cross country course. The Fillies not only got team medals Thursday afternoon they won the 2010 Central Heights High Invitational girls’ varsity race.
The Fillies scored 41 points to take the team championship with Basehor-Linwood High in second with 46. Lyndon was third with 65 points.
Sydney Owens ran the 4K race in 18 minutes, 24 seconds leading the Fillies. Owens collected the ninth-place medal. Leah Weir was Iola’s other individual medal winner with 11th in 18:34.
Abby Works placed 25th in 20:10 and Kristen Linn was 26th in 20:21. Jamie Spears placed 31st in 20:38 and Jordan Dillingham ran 33rd in 20:57 followed by Briann Burris in 37th in 21:09.
“Every girl on our team ran a personal-best time and the course was legit,” said Marvin Smith, Iola High head coach. “Italy Loving of Crest was sixth and near the same time she ran on our course and Sydney improved by 57 seconds and Leah ran 61 seconds better. Abby was 58 seconds better and right down the line.”
Loving, who won the Iola meet race last week, ran the Central Heights course in 18:00.8. It was her season’s best time. Her Crest High teammate Addie Rhea was 17th in 18:48.9, which was a personal best time.
Marmaton Valley’s Ashtynn Louk placed 22nd in 19:35.
Iola held out its top eight boys from the race and still finished fifth. Wellsville was the team champion with 33 points. Crest High’s Lancers took fourth with 94 and the Mustangs were fifth with 114 points.
The Mustangs didn’t have any medalists in the varsity boys’ race but freshman Michael Armstrong ran his first 5K race and led the Mustangs. He was 24th in 19:25 followed by Josh Klubek in 28th in 19:49.
Two more freshmen Jeremy Spears in 32nd in 1954 and Michael Wilson in 34th in 19:50. Matthew Cunningham was 50th in 22:19.
Crest High’s Dustin Davis-Jones grabbed the sixth-place medal in running the 5K distance in a season’s-best time of 17:41.7. He was the first of three medalists for Crest.
Chris Brallier took 18th in 19:06.2 and David Womelsdorf earned the 20th-place medal in 19:07.6. Right behind him was Humboldt High’s Reece Criger in 19:18 for 21st.
“Reece gutted out the race. He had been sick all night and it was evident he wasn’t feeling very good,” said Eric Carlson, Humboldt head coach.
Crest’s Trevor Holman wasn’t feeling well either but was able to finish 40th in 20:23. Craig Brallier was 52nd in 23:04 and Jory Ramsey was 53rd in 23:08.
“It was the second time all season the boys have run as a team,” said Tisha Hug, Crest head coach. “Other than Trevor, the rest of the guys fared well with most running personal best times.”
Snaring the 11th-place medal in the varsity race was Marmaton Valley’s Ryan Smith in 18:13.
Yates Center High’s Paul Stockebrand ran 23rd in the varsity race in a season’s-best 19:21. Sam Aguirre placed 22nd in the junior varsity race in 22:09, which was a personal best time.
“This was a pretty good race for both boys,” said Kevin Barnes, Yates Center head coach. “Sam really improved his form during the race. There is a short but steep hill on the course at Central Heights. The first time through he did not use his arms but the second time around he pumped them hard and passed a kid on the way up. Paul’s time is the best he has run this year so I am pleased with that.”
Iola’s junior varsity boys placed fourth with 78 points and had no medalists. Bryan Mueller was 16th in 21:13 for the 5K race. Jason Tidd placed 26th in 22:25 followed by Arion Kunkler in 27th at 22:25.
Levi Baker took 32nd in 23:09 and Drew Smith was 34th in 23:29. Cody Conner placed 45h in 25:21.
“The boys who ran on our varsity Thursday were used to running in junior varsity and freshmen races. Also finding themselves in new roles were the guys who ran and scored for us in the junior varsity race. I thought our younger kids competed very well,” Smith said.
“This was a good meet for us because our kids had to assume new responsibilities. They did not have teammates determining the team score — it was up to them.”
Marmaton Valley’s Carlos Gonzales ran second in the boys’ junior varsity race in 19.21 with teammate Chance Stevenson in ninth at 20:22. Marcus Miller placed 12th in 20:36 and Seth Cuppy was 37th in 24:24.
Humboldt’s Nick Keazer ran his best race of the season in finishing fourth in 19:28. Carlson said Dylan Greve ran a great second half of the race to placed 13th in 20:42.
Also for Humboldt, Logan Yokum was 33rd in 23:13, Kile Martin was 44th in 25:20 and Michael Davis was 48th in 26:19.
Humboldt’s Kristin Todd placed 19th in the girls’ junior varsity race, running the 4K in 24:02. Crest’s Erica Holman was 24th in 25:08.
Iola’s Megan Klubek placed second in the seventh-grade girls’ race in 7:06 for one mile. Blaine Klubek was third in the eighth-grade boys’ division running 13:21 for two miles. Medals were awarded to the first eight runners in each middle school division.
Marmaton Valley’s Keagan Boyd won the seventh-grade boys’ race in 6:14 for a mile. Crest’s Dal Lacey was fifth in 6:56.
Kohl Endicott of Marmaton Valley placed fourth in the eighth-grade boys’ two-mile race in 13:35. Crest’s Kyler Bowen was eighth in 16:14.
Next Thursday, Iola is at Independence while Yates Center, Marmaton Valley and Crest go to Mound City.
