The Wrangell Wolves won the Cross Country Section V Regional Championships for small schools Saturday in Sitka. The team will now head to the state championships in Anchorage Oct. 5. Front row from left: Dawson Miller, Bryce Gerold, Robbie Marshall and Amos Comstock. Back row from left: Darren Shilts, Sam Prysunka and Sig Decker.
The Wrangell High School Boys cross-country team is headed to state after winning the small schools division at the Region V Championships meet Saturday in Sitka.
The team scored 105 points for third place overall, led at 17:50 by sophomore Bryce Gerold, who won the small schools race and placed third overall. Behind him, senior Robbie Marshall delivered a respectable 18:15 for fifth among small schools and eighth overall. Freshman Darren Shilts clocked 19:39 to round out the top three finishers and take 28th overall.
The Wolves seem to be hitting the right pace going into the state meet this Saturday, said Coach Monty Buness.
“It was excellent,” he said. “Four of my top guys set personal bests. The three guys that didn’t were within eight seconds of their personal best.”
The Wolves turn from a slight downbeat in the season Sept. 14 to winning the regional championships was astonishing, Buness said.
“We made up 40 points on Skagway in the last two weeks,” he said.
Now, preparations turn to the state meet in Anchorage, where the team will have to adapt to a uniquely Alaskan set of conditions for early October, Buness said.
“State is completely different,” he said. “We’ll be wearing spikes for the first time. It’ll be 10 degrees colder. There will possibly be some snow on the ground.”
Despite the adversity, Buness said he expects great things from the top runners on his team.
“Bryce and Robbie have a real good chance to do very well,” he said. “Particularly Bryce. He could be in the top 15 at state.”
Freshman Dawson Miller crossed at 20:04 to tally the fourth place finish for the Wolves, and 35th overall. Freshman Amos Comstock marked a 20:18 and 39th overall. Sig Decker and Sam Prysunka finished a second apart to finished 51st and 52nd overall.
Girls results
While neither of the Wolves performance merited a State appearance, both runners notched personal bests.
Junior Kimberly Cooper finished at 23:05. She was 20th overall, five places back and 36 seconds behind top-15 finishing state qualifiers. Freshman Dora Voltz clocked a 25:15, good enough for 34th place overall.
Both girls finished out an injury-plagued season on a high note, if perhaps a little behind their hopes, Buness said.
“They ran a great race, but it just wasn’t enough,” he said.
Reader Comments(0)