Western Brown’s Brayden Dill placed second in an OHSAA Middle School State Championship cross country race held at Fortress Obetz on Sunday, October 24.
Records fell and several local runners earned spots in the regional cross country tournament this past weekend.
In the Southwest District, Western Brown’s Colton O’Hara finished fourth in the boys race, crossing the line in 15:42.1 to set a school record. O’Hara was the second-fastest individual not on a qualifying team.
Teammate Caleb Ware also qualified as an individual, securing a spot with a 16th place finish in 16:26.7.
Western Brown took ninth in the boys team standings with 235 points.
The Lady Broncos also took ninth in the meet as a team, totaling 202 points. Mason won the title with 50.
Individually, Western Brown’s Natalie Rice finished in 19:22.3 to earn the fourth of five individual spots at the regional meet. Teammate Hadley Jones placed 31st in 20:26.0 with Avery Vance right behind in 20:26.6.
In Division III competition, Georgetown collected 100 points to place third, qualifying the entire team for the regional meet.
Individually, Savannah Faught led all locals with a third-place finish in 19:46.0. Elizabeth Cahall placed 16th in 21:14.4. Caitlyn Sweet took 33rd in 23:28.1.
Ripley’s Anna Castle finished 40th in 24:25.0. Fayetteville’s Izzy Greene took 69th overall in 31:25.7.
In the boys’ race, Georgetown placed sixth in the team standings with 183 points. Ripley took 11th with 267.
Georgetown’s Logan Owens secured the final qualifying spot as an individual, taking 20th place in 18:031. Teammate Jacob Faught placed 24th in 18:23.3 with Mason Williams right behind in 18:26.6.
Ripley’s Joseph Castle placed 28th in 18:38.5. Alex Applegate (19:12.9) placed 38th overall.
All participating runners in the Southwest District will compete in regional tournament action at Troy High School beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday, October 30.
The Division III girls race is first at 9 a.m. with the boys to follow at 10 a.m. The Division I girls race is slated to begin at 3 p.m. with the boys to follow at 4 p.m.
Eastern Brown runners competed at the Southeast District meet, held at the University of Rio Grande.
The top six teams and individuals in the top 24 advanced to the regional tournament, scheduled to be held at Pickerington.
Eastern’s Brandy Shular took 43rd in the Division II girls race, finishing in 22:47.16. Teammate Annie Grimes placed 68th in 24:27.24.
The Lady Warriors took 17th in the team standings with 426 points.
In the Division III boys race, Eastern’s Gabe Moore just missed the cut for regionals, placing 26th overall in 17:47.3. The Warriors did not have enough runners to qualify for the team standings.
Junior high runners from the county took part in the OHSAA’s Middle School State Championships on Sunday, October 24.
Western Brown’s Brayden Dill took second place in the boys’ Section D race, finishing in 11:21.4. Tyler Hitt placed 91st for Western Brown out of 180 runners. The Broncos finished 13th in the team standings with 360 points.
The Lady Broncos finished 14th in the section C girls race. Kendall Hanlon led the way with a 56th place finish in 14:23.8. Aubrey Abbinante placed 88th (15:00.6) and Gracie Noble took 89th (15:00.7).
Eastern Brown’s Lady Warriors competed in the section G girls race, taking 13th in the team standings with 289 points. Killie Belcher led the team with a 21st-place finish in 13:59.9. Londyn Dilley placed 84th in 16:00.7.
Fayetteville runners competed in that same race. The Lady Rockets placed 15th in the team standings with 298 points. Alexis Deffren led the team, placing 62nd in 15:17.2. Brandy Huber took 72nd (15:31.9) with Autumn Waddell in 78th (15:46.9).
In the boys’ race, Eastern placed ninth in the team standings with 216 points. Fayetteville took 16th with 402.
The Warriors were led by Jayse Riggs, who placed ninth overall in 11:26.7. Kayne Dotson (11:59.9) placed 25th with Sam Ramer (12:30.3) in 64th.
Kaden Connell led the Rockets with an 85th-place finish in 12:54.0.
