Cougar CC teams compete at Tiffin meet

TIFFIN — Despite soggy weather and a sloppy course, the Cougar runners had a successful day at the Tiffin Cross Country Carnival on Saturday.

The varsity girls’ race was highlighted by sophomore Andi Foster, who finished third in 20:08.

“Foster ran a very smart race today; I was pleased with her focus and aggressiveness,” said Coach Brendon Moody. “She put herself in position to win and came up a little short in the end.”

Freshman Schelissa Williams (16th in 21:27), was next for Van Wert, followed by Jacey Eikenbary (31st in 22:01), Kelsey Wagner (42nd in 22:15), Becky Anderson (51st in 22:28), Rachel Scheidt (69th in 23:00), and Whitney Meyers (78th in 23:15).

The girls’ record now stands at 55 wins and 3 losses on the year.

In the boy’s varsity race, Van Wert showed that it can run with some of the best in the state, as the Cougar boys finished third to current Division II No. 1- and No. 2 state ranked Akron St. Vincent St. Mary and Chillicothe Unioto.

Leading the way once again was Jared Fleming (fourth in 16:19). Fleming was trailed by Connor Holliday (eighth in 16:46), Kase Schalois (23rd in 17:19), Nick Keber (77th in 18:15), Nathan Stevens (82nd in 18:19), Luke Brubaker (91st in 18:26), and Reed Baxter (156th in 19:11).  The varsity boys record stands at 75 wins and only 2 losses.

“The boys ran decent today; We’ve run better races this season, so it’s unfortunate that we were unable to put it together today,” Coach Moody said. “We have very high expectations, and while third place is good, we know we can compete with the top notch programs in the state.”

In junior varsity action, the girls had good races by Courtney Smith, Leah Brubaker, Karlyn Koontz, and Marissa Sperry but were were unable to field a full scoring squad.

The junior varsity boys’ team moved its season record to 61-3 on the year by finishing second out of 21 teams. The JV Cougar boys were led by Connor Shaffer (fifth in 18:35) and Jordan Butler (seventh in 18:40).  Eric Easley (14th in 19:08), Daniel Perry (29th in 19:31), and Spencer Prichard (32nd in 19:34) rounded out the scoring.

Van Wert will be back in action this coming Saturday at the Ottawa-Glandorf Blue & Gold Invitational.