by Savannah Sorensen

Last Thursday, the varsity cross country teams traveled to Perry for the state qualifying meet. Junior Tiffany Williams placed second with a time of 15:16, earning her a spot in the state meet for the third year in a row. The girls team came in fifth as a team with a total of 153 points.

Following Williams, senior Savannah Sorensen finished 33, senior Ashleigh Waltz was 34, freshman Emily Saeugling came in 35, sophomore Alexis Brockman was 49, and senior Justice Parker was 56.

Head coach Paul Iekel said, “I was happy with how we competed. I was excited when I heard we beat Creston, but even before we knew we beat them I had thought that our girls had run very well.  They seemed determined to run good races for their last meet of the season.”

Sophomore Phoenix Shadden had the best finish on the boys side coming in 44. Behind him was freshman Cale Pellet in 52, sophomore Carter Cox in 53, senior Marshal McDermott finishing 55, senior Zach Brooks in 60, junior David Thomsen finishing 68 and junior Ryan Hawkins in 74. The boys finished 10 as a team with 264 points.

Iekel said, “On the boys side I thought we had good races from our 3-4-5 positions, which hasn’t always been the case this season. Our top runner, Hawkins, was sick and not able to do what he normally does, but there was nothing he could do about that. Sometimes things just happen you can’t control.”

Individuals who stood out to Iekel include Williams, Sorensen, Waltz, and Saeugling on the girls side. Brooks, Cox, and McDermott stood out to him from the boys side. “Obviously we were really excited for Tiffany, who beat a couple of runners ranked ahead of her and qualified for state with a second place finish,” said Iekel. “Savannah had her best race of the year, and her previous best was the conference meet, so she ended the season well.  Ashleigh struggled in the middle, but fought back at the end, and Emily has surprised us all season with her consistency and steady improvement. Those three finished tightly together going 33-34-35.”

The girls will continue to practice with Williams to prepare her for the state meet coming up on Saturday, Nov. 1 in Fort Dodge.