Wright sisters qualify for regional race

0

ENGLEWOOD — Twin Valley South’s Madison Wright and Megan Wright along with National Trail’s Evan Byrd survived the new, crowded format of the cross country district championship, coming out of a jam-packed race in eighth, 18th place, and 28th respectively on Saturday, Oct. 24 at the Miami Valley Career Tech Center.

The race combined two districts into one race. In the girls’ race, there were 189 runners while the boys’ race held 194 for Division III. The top 32 runners and the top eight teams all qualified for the regional championship.

Madison ended the race with a time of 20:11 and Megan wasn’t far behind, crossing the line at 20:37. Byrd finished with a time of 21:03.

The Blazer girls team also just missed the regional cut, finishing ninth overall on the day. The Panther girls did not have enough runners to compete as a team, though, and their third runner, Grace Stewart game in 62nd place, finishing with a time of 22:27.

For Trail, rounding out the top five were Hannah Wellman (61; 22:24), Lily Carpenter (67; 22:42), Natalie Hunt (90; 23:21), and JaLynn Byrd (108; 24:07).

Tri-County North was also there, finishing 21st overall. Their top finisher, Lauren Koenig was 78th with a time of 22:53 followed closely by Lise Jorgensen who ended up 81st with a time of 22:59. Rounding out the top five for the girls were Krislynn Hogan (128; 25:04), Taylor Cooper (130; 25:20), and Lindsay Owens (172; 28:51).

The three regional qualifiers will compete in the regional championship held at Troy High School on Saturday, Oct. 31. They are scheduled to race at 11 a.m.

On the boys end, South’s top finisher was Matt Hemmelgarn, placing 54th with a time of 18:29. Rounding out the top five for South was Brandon Wright (70; 18:47), Andrew McGuire (105; 19:36), Brendon Gallaher (126; 20:18), and Chris French (166; 22:23).

McGuire is the only senior on the roster for South.

National Trail came in 10th overall as a team. They were led by Adam Eyler, who was 43rd overall and ran a time of 18:01. Weston Haws was 59th for the Blazers and ran a time of 18:33 while Peyton Harrison was close behind, crossing the line in 62nd with a time of 18:35. The final two runners for Trail were Lane Unger (84; 19:03) and Josh Cook (85; 19:04).

Tri-County North finished 23rd as a team. Their top runner was Aiden Tomlin, who was 67th overall with a time of 18:44. Rounding out the top five were Tristan Singleton (118; 19:54), Bailey Hilt (132; 20:31); Patrick Timmons (133; 20:33), and Gregory Ras (147; 21:32).

Madison Wright
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2015/10/web1_Madison-Wright.jpgMadison Wright

Megan Wright
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2015/10/web1_Megan-Wright.jpgMegan Wright

Matt Hemmelgarn fights to the finish during the district championship race at Miami Valley Career Tech Center on Saturday, Oct. 24.
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2015/10/web1_TVSxc.jpgMatt Hemmelgarn fights to the finish during the district championship race at Miami Valley Career Tech Center on Saturday, Oct. 24.

A National Trail runner sees the finish line in sight during the district championship race at Miami Valley Career Tech Center on Saturday, Oct. 24.
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2015/10/web1__DSC8692.jpgA National Trail runner sees the finish line in sight during the district championship race at Miami Valley Career Tech Center on Saturday, Oct. 24.

By Jeremy Erskine

[email protected]

Jeremy can be reached at 937-683-4061 or on Twitter @jerskine_RH.

No posts to display