Loyal-Greenwood and Spencer runners take on Colby course

Both the Loyal-Greenwood and the Spencer cross country teams faced some stiff competition over the weekend when competing at an invite in Colby on Sept. 11. The teams ran against several larger schools at the meet, with individual times keeping pace with what the runners have done for the past few races.

The Loyal-Greenwood boys ran in a field of 81 runners at Colby. The first runners to finish for the team were Avrey Horvath and Connor Genteman, who kept near each other throughout the race. Horvath ran a 19:21.1 to take 20th and Genteman finished in 22nd place with his time of 19:35.6.

Ashtin Palms was the next runner to place for the Greyhounds, taking 45th with a time of 20:54.5. Cody Eckes finished a short time later, crossing the finish at the 21:19.5 mark for 48th. At 23:40.9, Dylan Eckes completed the race to take 66th and Micah Kayhart ran a 23:54.3 to finish in 69th.

In the girls race, the Greyhounds ran in a field of 74 runners, with the first runners from the team coming through about halfway through the list of competitors. Addison Davidson led the team by taking 31st place, finishing with a time of 24:35.2. Leah Scherer was the next runner to finish, coming in at the 25:32.8 mark for 38th. Taking 43rd place was Aubre Robida, who ran a 26:17.3. Also finishing for Loyal-Greenwood were Katlund Etlicher (51st, 27:40.4), Lisa Steffens (59th, 29:34.5) and Candela Sota (73rd, 36:33.7).

The Spencer Rockets also competed at the Colby invite, with four boys and three girls participating in the races. In the boys race, Malachai Anderson finished 58th with a time of 22:30.4, Kaizer Eickleberry took 70th with his time of 24:05.4, Levi Anderson ran a 24:37.2 to take 73rd and Caleb Rucker finished in 75th place with a time of 24:57.1. In the girls race, Theresa Knecht took 53rd with a time of 28:16, Juncal Gasalla ran a 28:40.6 for 57th, and Ai Takamizawa finished in 64th place with a time of 29:59.2.

Although Spencer did not field enough runners to score points, the Loyal-Greenwood teams both placed seventh at Colby. The Greyhound boys earned 166 points to take their seventh-place finish, beating Lakeland Union (184). Also competing in the boys race were Colby-Abbotsford (152), Phillips (131), Medford Area (109), Altoona (80), Mauston (75) and West Salem (40).

The Loyal-Greenwood girls earned 179 points for their seventh place finish at Colby, finishing behind Mauston (159), Altoona (135), Phillips (108), Colby-Abbotsford (86), West Salem (38) and Medford Area (26).

ROSS PATTERMANN/STAFF PHOTO

ROSS PATTERMANN/STAFF PHOTO