Special to the I-R

Ellsworth Bearcats seventh grade cross country runner Sage Gray, took first and Lakyn Beckman took second Sept. 3, as the Ellsworth Junior-Senior High School Cross Country Team competed in the TMP Invitational in Hays.

Gray finished the one mile race with a time of 7:15, while Beckman finished with a time of 7:19.

On the boys’ side, Wesley Rathbun medaled fifth with a time of 6:26. John Barta finished in 18th with a time of 7:05, Korrie Christian finished in 20th with a time of 7:27.

The eighth grade 2 mile race was next. Reygan Coonrod finished in the medals in seventh place with a time of 17:14. On the boys’ side, Tegan George finished just out of the medals in 12th place, running a time of 14:44. Anthony Jundt finished in 19th with a time of 16:27.

On the high school side, the races were divided into freshman/sophomore and junior/senior divisions.

“It was a first of sorts for our freshmen runners, who had all run cross country in junior high,” said Coach Eric Coonrod. “While they aren’t new to distance running, they competed in their first 5K race distance.”

Addison Thomas placed 15th in the freshman/sophomore race, running a 26:24. Freshman Kate Rathbun was just out of the medals in 17th place with a time of 26:46.

On the boys’ side of the freshman/sophomore division, sophomore Trenton Holmes led the Bearcats in the race. He ran a 21:15, finishing in 22nd place. Freshman Grayson Stone finished 29th, with a time of 22:40. This was a good start for Grayson, his mile times were strong, and we’ll see even faster times as the season goes on. Sophomore Aidan Johnson placed 33rd, running a time of 24:37. This was a strong race for Aidan, a full 2 minutes faster than his race time last year, and not far off his personal best time, a great start to his second season.

The junior/senior boys ran the final race of the day. Senior Byron Johnson began his final season as a Bearcat in strong form, over 2 minutes faster than his race time last year. Byron finished in a close second place, with a personal best time of 17:17. He closed the gap between himself and the leader in the last mile and finished only 4 seconds behind the race winner from Hutch Trinity.

This week the high school and junior high teams separate. The junior high will be competing at the Sacred Heart Invitational at Salina’s Bill Burke Park on Tuesday. The high school teams will compete at the Swather Special Invitational hosted by Hesston High School on Thursday.