On Oct. 13, the Ellsworth High School cross country team raveled to the Downs Golf Course to compete in the 25-team Lakeside High School Invitational.

According to Coach Eric Coonrod, this meet doubles as Ellsworth’s NCAA league meet since all of the league schools competed.

“After the Lakeside results are calculated, the NCAA league runners are filtered out and assigned league finish placings,” Coonrod said. “The top 10 league runners in each race are recognized with All-League honors.”

In the varsity boys’ race, Byron Johnson medaled fifth in Lakeside scoring and fifth in NCAA scoring to earn All-League honors for the second year in a row. “This was Byron’s career-best time and career-best placing in our league meet,” Coonrod said.

Trenton Holmes was next, finishing in 17th place. Grayson Stone finished 25th, Aidan Johnson in 26th and Billy Duncan in 31st.

“All the boys had strong first miles, and had some of their best finishes of the season,” Coonrod said. “Aidan ran a season’s best time that was a minute faster than his 2021 time and was able to hold off two hard-charging runners to lock in his finishing place. Grayson held off several runners at the end to secure his finishing position. Billy ran his best time of the season, only six seconds off his personal best time from last year.”

The boys’ team finished fourth in league scoring and seventh in Lakeside scoring.

In the varsity girls’ race, Kate Rathbun and Addison Thomas both ran in their first high school league meet.

Coonrod said the pair were two of only six freshmen runners in the league race.

“They both had strong first miles again, and while they struggled a little in the middle part of the race, they both finished strong,” he said. “Kate held off a Republic County runner at the finish to hold her spot in the last quarter-mile of the race.”

The league meet marks the end of the regular season for the high school runners. The next competition will be the 3A regional meet hosted by Goodland High School on Oct. 22. The girls compete first at 11 a.m. and the boys at 11:40 a.m.

The top 10 finishers and top three teams are guaranteed a run at the State Meet hosted at Rim Rock Farm in Lawrence on Oct. 29. The EHS results were (NCAA League place in parenthesis):

• Kate Rathbun 27:09, 49th place (24th).

• Addison Thomas 28:16, 54th place (27th).

• Byron Johnson 17:45, Fifth place (fifth).

• Trenton Holmes 21:11, 37th place (17th).

• Grayson Stone 22:45, 52nd place (25th).

• Aidan Johnson 23:13, 57th place (26th).

• Billy Duncan 24:12, 65th place (31st).