Three county schools run in North Putnam Invite

Eagle runners (from left) Juliana Delano, Ariel Higgins, Madie Egold, Kieffer Vittetow, Berndt Freeman and Hogan Vandermark along with the entire South Putnam squad placed first at the North Putnam Invititational.(Banner Graphic/TRENT SCOTT)

ROACHDALE-- North Putnam hosted its final cross country meet of the season as six squads ran in the Cougar Co-ed Cross County Invitational Tuesday night.

Local rivals Cloverdale and South Putnam joined the hosts along with Eminence, Monrovia and long-distance arrivals Clinton Prairie.

Split into teams of three boys and three girls, South Putnam's team of Kieffer Vittetow, Berndt Freeman, Logan Vandermark, Madie Egold, Ariel Higgins and Juliana DeLano claimed the top spot with a score of 71 points.

Madie Egold of South Putnam finished first with a time of 21:56. (Banner Graphic/TRENT SCOTT)

Vittetow turned in the top overall time of the day, completing the 5K course in 17:49. Egold was the first female across the finish line, finishing with a time of 21:56.

Eagle head coach Brandon Welti said that the squad didn't quite hit the heights they were aiming for but still put in a winning performance.

"The overall times weren't as impressive as we hoped but with the course changes and the heat, we had to be flexible," Welti said. "It was an OK night coming off a three-day weekend.

Kieffer Vittetow won a first place finish for the Eagle boys, with a time of 17:49. (Banner Graphic/TRENT SCOTT)

"Kieffer and Madie had great races. You can't really be disappointed with two first-place finishers and the winning team out here today."

Cloverdale's top team of Nick Blundell, Evan Monnett, Chad Stevens, Clare Plamondon, Tori Szalay and Laura Worthington claimed third place overall.

Clover head coach Andrew Tyler said individuals were dropping times at a good time in the season.

"We had some guys improve and that's what we're looking for right now," Tyler said. "We want to keep on pushing hard in practice and keep pulling the times down.

"Nick Blundell broke 19:00 and I'm happy with that. Clare Plamondon ran a PR and R.T. Mann took quite a bit of time off, as did Evan Monnett."

North Putnam's team of Michael Roach, Zach Culberson, Jake Hull, Alanna Nunez, Kylee Detro and Kayla Clodfelter placed ninth on the day.

Cougar head coach Kevin Lutes manned the finish line for most of the race but was still happy with the way the squad performed.

"I didn't get to see much of the race but I was proud of our team," Lutes said. "This is the first time in a while we've had two full teams be able to compete and finish.

"Michael Roach and Alanna Nunez were our two top finishers and ran good individual races. They, along with several others, are still learning how to race and have certainly improved as the season has gone on."

At North Putnam

Cougar Co-ed Cross Country Invitational

Top Male Finisher -- Kieffer Vittetow (SP) 17:49

Top Female Finisher -- Madie Egold (SP) 21:56

Group Scores

1. South Putnam 1 (Vittetow, Freeman, L. Vandermark; Egold, Higgins, DeLano) 71; 2. Clinton Prairie 1 85; 3. Cloverdale 1 (Blundell, Monnett, Stevens; Plamondon, Szalay, Worthington) 95; 4. South Putnam 2 (Crossman, Evans, T. Vandermark; Fanning, Jones) 109; 5. Monrovia 1 128; 6. Clinton Prairie 2 155; 7. Cloverdale 2 (Mann, Manners, Mannan; Monnett) 173; 8. Monrovia 2 195; 9. North Putnam 1 (Roach, Culberson, Hull; Nunez, Detro, Clodfelter) 199; 10. Clinton Prairie 3 200; 11. North Putnam 2 (Kimble, Botelho; Dean, Sims) 227