VWMS runners compete in Raider Invite

GROVER HILL — In their second meet of the season, Van Wert’s Middle School cross country teams traveled to Grover Hill Tuesday evening for the Wayne Trace Invitational.  The boys’ team finished second to a strong Ayersville squad and managed to squeak by county rival Crestview for the runner-up trophy.  The girls’ team ended in the middle of the pack, with a fourth place finish.

Eighth grader Cade Fleming again led the charge for the Cougars.  His efforts earned him a sixth place finish (12:14).  Dylan Lautzenheiser also had a strong showing for the Cougars.  He earned ninth place honors (12:42).  From there, it was Van Wert’s pack that helped secure their final standing: Nathan Murphy 25th (13:31), Sam Easley 27th (13:32), Jared Shaffer 29th (13:36), Nick Gutierrez 35th (13:59), and Ryan Keber 37th (14:00).

Other Cougar runners competing included: Nick Etter 41st, Cade Chiles 46th, Nick White 53rd, Ben Scheidt 59th, Braden VanCleave 61st, Tyler Nygren 75th, Bailey Neuenschwander 76th, Andrew Perry 83rd, Carter Eikenbary 94th, Jacob Covey 105th, and Nick Motycka 109th.

Megan Barnhart was the leader for the Lady Cougars.  She finished 14th overall with a time of 14:45. Natalie Riethman (15:24) and LeAndryce Miller (15:28) finished in 27th and 28th places, respectively. Ashlynn Friesner, 31st (15:54), and Anna Henkaline 35th (16:02) rounded out the scorers. Larissa Laudick, 40th (16:18) and Aimee Nicolai, 50th (17:28), also contributed to the top seven.

Other runners for the Lady Cougars were Shianne Baldwin 53rd, Morgan Bracken 61st, Caylee Boroff 62nd, Maggie Cripe 65th, Olivia Profit 69th, Tori Smith 70th, Valerie Barnhart 74th, and Karli Thatcher 75th.