Spencer runners get season started at Pittsville Invitational

The Spencer cross country team participated in its first meet to kick off the season on Aug. 26. Without the numbers in the ranks of the boys and girls to be able to compete as a team, the athletes all competed as individuals, finishing mid-pack.

The four boys running for Spencer ran in a field of 63 total runners at Pittsville. Leading the Rockets across the finish line was Malachai Anderson, who ran a 22:24.3 to take 27th. Caleb Rucker came through about a minute later, officially at the 23:32.2 mark, taking 33rd. Kaizer Eickleberry placed 38th with his time of 24:04 and Levi Anderson (25:02.9) rounded out the Spencer squad with his 47th-place finish.

Four runners also competed for the Rocket girls, running in a 47-runner field. Theresa Knecht was the first Spencer runner to finish, taking 25th with a time of 28:58.4. Ai Takamizawa was next, taking 31st with a time of 30:35.4. Daniela Guzman ran a 40:10.5 to take 45th and teammate Aurora Porcu finished right behind her in 46th place with a time of 40:25.5.

There were six boys teams at Pittsville that scored points. Auburndale won the invite with 45 points and Colby/ Abbotsford finished second with 73 points. Pittsville also scored 73 points, taking third. Stratford was fourth (83), Wittenberg-Birnamwood was fifth (105) and Wauzeka-Steuben was sixth (117). Besides Spencer, three other boys teams were incomplete: Columbus Catholic, Nekoosa and Gresham-Bowler.

Three girls teams scored points at Pittsville. Stratford took first place with 26 points, Colby/Abbotsford was second with 37 points and Wittenberg-Birnamwood was third with 77 points. Incomplete teams were Spencer, Auburndale, Columbus Catholic, Nekoosa, Pittsville and Wauzeka-Steuben.

ROSS PATTERMANN/STAFF PHOTOS