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The Rockbridge County High School cross country teams participated in two meets last week, running in the Town Park Invitational last Wednesday and the Great American XC Festival on Friday.
At the fifth annual Town Park Invitational in Grottoes, the boys team competed in the 5K run, finishing in ninth place with 211 points and a 19:27 average split. The girls team also competed in the 5K event, coming in sixth place with 137 points and a 23:33 average split.
At the Great American XC Festival in Cary, N.C, 10 Wildcats set personal records on a “hilly course,” said head coach Julie Tisone. Headlining the Wildcats was Deena Ludtke, who placed third out of 298 runners in the girls’ race with a personal-best time of 19:03.60.
“It was great to see [Ludtke] put it all together in a big race,” said Tisone. “She placed higher than she was seeded in a big race with great athletes.”
The girls team placed ninth out of 38 squads with 391 points and an average split of 21:20. Anna Nye ended in 86th place with a time of 21:38.10, while Dorothy Lewis placed 105th in 21:55.30. Nicole Black ran a time of 22:03.10 for 112th place, and Brooke Eichelberger placed 113th with a time of 22:03.60. Kate Holston ran a time of 23:24.10 for 182nd place, while Cassandra Silver finished 243rd in 25:05.20. Nye, Black, Eichelberger and Holston all had personal bests.
In the boys’ 5K race, Preston Spangler came in 42nd place out of 420 runners with a time of 16:38.70. The boys team placed 39th overall with 948 points and an average split of 18:04.
“The results don’t always reflect how good the boys are,” Tisone said. “The differences in times are so small. I am glad that our boys are gaining experience in big races.”
Alexander Miller came in 219th with a time of 18:14.00, while Tyler Ludtke placed 250th at 18:26.50. Sammy Eastwood ran a time of 18:29.50 and finished in 253rd place. Fisher Howald ran a time of 18:33.10. Finishing with Howald was Trenten Cash in 260th place with a time of 18:33.20.
Oscar McClung ran a time of 19:28.20 to come in 341st, and Graham Niebur finished for the Wildcats in 399th place at 21:07.10. Miller, Ludtke, Eastwood, Howald, Cash and McClung all had personal bests.
In Spotswood’s Town Park Invitational, Eichelberger placed 19th out of 49 runners with a time of 22:15.92 to lead the Wildcats. Nye finished closely behind Eichelberger in 20th place with a time of 22:25.51, and Lewis came in 25th place with a time of 23:01.27.
Black finished with a time of 23:56.40 in 33rd place. Hannah Ivins placed 43rd at 26:09.41. Rounding out the Wildcats were Ruby Goodhart and Alice Gresham, who placed 46th and 47th, respectively, with times of 28:01.37 and 28:16.35.
“We had a different lineup for this race. Again, it was good for us to gain more experience going forward,” said Tisone.
In the boys race, Miller led the Wildcats in 30th place with a time of 18:32.43. Spangler came in 32nd place out of 69 runners with a mark of 18:39.03. Howald placed 46th with a time of 19:22.95, Eastwood came in 52nd place at 20:00.17, and Niebur placed 58th in 20:43.60.
Chase Potter followed in 59th place with a time of 20:45.89. Finn Miller came in 62nd place, running a time of 21:25.80. Finishing out the Wildcats was Parker Fountain in 68th place with a time of 23.24.76.
RC returns to action with a meet at Page County on Thursday evening.
