South Putnam cross country splits with Danville Tuesday

Thursday, September 8, 2011
Hunter Barr

The South Putnam coed cross country team faced off against Danville Wednesday, with the Eagles splitting with the Warriors. The girls' team won 25-34, while the boys lost 22-33.

Mallory Glaze finished second overall with a time of 22:17, with teammate Madie Egold following in third with a time of 23:22. Jessica Jones was fifth overall with a time of 24:15.

"We ran really well. The weather conditions were great, so it made it perfect for just going out there and getting a good workout in," girls' head coach Brandon Welti said.

Mallory Glaze

Angel Nield led a charge of four South Putnam runners that took spots seven through 10. Nield was seventh with a time of 24:45, with Michaela Scales finishing eighth in 24:48. Placing ninth was Katelyn Lady with a time of 25:03 and Mattie Varvel was 10th with a time of 25:28.

Welti acknowledged how important it was to have the group finish in the middle of the pack as they did.

"A strong pack there in the middle," Welti said of what gave the Eagles the win. "We had four or five girls running together for the majority of the race, so that was definitely a perk. Then having three up in the front some too was helpful. It was good overall racing."

Ariel Higgins finished in 12th place with a time of 25:33 and Mariah Cherry was 13th in a time of 25:57. Mikayla Cherry was 15th in a time of 27:07 and Brooke Cundiff rounded out the South Putnam runners with a 16th place finish with a time of 27:30.

South Putnam's Hunter Barr ran away with the boys' race, winning with a time of 17:47. Fifth place finisher Lane Franklin out-kicked a Danville runner down the stretch to place in the top five.

"Hunter has put forth a lot of time and energy and miles this summer and as a sophomore he still has to learn a lot," boys head coach Brian Gardner said. "He's putting himself in a position in a race like tonight, he went out and really ran on his own, he didn't try to hold back and wait for someone. He ran on his own and still ran his best time.

"That to me is a sign of a kid getting better and his times are going down and that mileage he put in this summer is going to pay off, especially down the road," Gardner said.

As in the girls' race, four South Putnam runners teamed up to take four consecutive spots in the middle of the pack. Evan Potts was eighth with a time of 19:34, with Tyler Nield finishing ninth in a time of 20:17. Bernert Freeman was 10th in a time of 20:20 and Tyler Vandermark was 11th with a time of 20:24.

Matt Allan placed 13th with a time of 20:29, with Jacob Schroer finishing 14th in a time of 20:35. Cody Evans placed 16th for the Eagles in a time of 20:51, with Colton Bunten finishing 19th in a time of 22:14. Trever Ladd was 20th in a time of 22:31, Sean Logue was 21st in 23:31 and Matt Lund was 22nd in a time of 23:40.

Gardner said the team was able to break through an important barrier Wednesday.

"I think for the most part, obviously if you look at the score we got beat, but Hunter ran the best time he's ever run on any course today. We had all but three kids run a letter time, so for a lot of freshman kids that's that first barrier they have to climb across. They worry about lettering and now that that's gone, they can worry about getting a better time," he said.

For Welti, he liked everything he saw on Wednesday, but knows his team will need to step it up a little as the bigger meets loom.

"Placing was good, racing was good, we just have to increase the speed some. We have to make sure we get faster because it works for the small dual meets like this, but when we get to the bigger races, the important races, we have to be faster," Welti said.

South Putnam will compete at the Clay City Invite tonight at 5 p.m.