VWHS CC teams 5th, 7th at Tiffin meet

VWHS cross country information

TIFFIN — This past weekend, the Van Wert boys’ and girls’ cross country teams traveled to the Tiffin Cross Country Carnival and came home with solid results. The girls finished seventh out of 25 in the Division II-A (more competitive) varsity race, while the boys’ squad, featuring all underclassmen, finished fifth out of 46 teams.

In the girls’ race, Andi Foster once again led the way for the Cougar girls with a time of 19:40, placing 11th overall. Freshman Chloee Gamble (20:46, 35th), sophomore Schelissa Williams (21:37, 54th), senior Jacey Eikenbary (21:38, 55th), and freshman Megan Barnhart (21:58, 60th), rounded out the scoring.  Freshman Alisha Danylchuck (22:41 83rd), and senior Kelsey Wagner (22:56 94th), also toed the line in varsity action.

In the girls’ junior varsity race, Van Wert was paced by sophomore Whitney Meyers, 23:11; Marissa Sperry, 24:06; Leah Brubaker 25:12; and Karlyn Koontz 25:35

“I am extremely proud of how the girls raced today,” said Van Wert Coach Brendon Moody. “We ran very aggressively throughout the entire race and they were rewarded with lots of season best times.

“At this point in the year, we want to continue to see steady improvements and that is what is happening,” he added.

On the boys’ side, Conner Holliday took top honors for the Cougar harriers as he finished ninth in 16:49.  Holliday was followed by fellow sophomores Conner Shaffer, 59th; Nick Keber, 61st; Jordan Butler, 67th; and freshman Cade Fleming, 82nd; to round out the Cougar scoring. Eric Easley (123rd), and Ryan Rice (129th) completed the varsity line-up.

“The younger guys ran great today, given the circumstances,” Coach Moody said. “It’s exciting to know that they finished fifth of 46 teams in a highly competitive meet and we will lose no one to graduation out of this race.

“The future looks very bright; we’re excited to get our full line-up back for next week at Galion and see how we do,” the coach added.

The junior varsity boys’ race showcased three Cougars in the top 11, led by senior captain Spencer Prichard (third), sophomore Reed Baxter, seventh; and sophomore Daniel Perry 11th.  Austin Taylor finished 117th^. The JV boys were unable to factor into team scoring because of the absence of a fifth scoring member.