GHV boys qualify; Christians will represent girls team

It was a day of celebration for the Garner-Hayfield-Ventura cross country team when they ran at Fox Ridge Golf Course, in Dike, in the Class 2A State Qualifying Meet on Thursday, Oct. 19.  The team captured the title and will compete as a team in the State Meet to be held in Fort Dodge on Saturday, Oct. 28.  Abby Christians qualified for the girls team with a seventh place finish.

The GHV boys had three runners finish in the top 10 and one just out of the top 10 to take the top spot with 49 points in the 13 team field.  South Hamilton was second with 55 points and South Hardin was third with 96 points.

Reece Smith did what he does best - win.  Smith, a junior, took the top prize with a time of 15:58.  Ray Cataldo, a senior, placed third with a time of 16:52.  Sophomore Dalton Kelley also placed in the top 10 with a time of 17:16, good for sixth place.  Blake Lynch, a freshman, was just one place shy of a top 10 finish.  Lynch placed 11th with a time of 17:32.  Rounding out the score was Jake Hejlik, also a freshman, with a time of 18:36.

Also running in the race were juniors Nathan Larson and Lucas Rayhons, who crossed the line together for 39th and 40th place.  They both finished with a time of 18:54.

Christians, a freshman, ran an impressive race to take seventh place in the girls race.  She ran the course in 20:34.  Ellie Friesen, a senior from Crestwood, won the girls race with a time of 18:30.

GHV finished in 10th place as a team with 228 points.  Crestwood won the meet with 42 points, while Cascade was runner-up with 65 points and Waukon was third in the 12-team field with 96 points.

Senior Rachel Sokol was the next to cross the line for the Cardinals with a 46th place finish in 23:33.  Nicole Upmeyer, a junior and Jillian Heitland, a senior, finished in 56th and 58th place respectively.  Upmeyer ran the course in 23:53 and Heitland’s time was 23:58.  Alison Johnson, a sophomore, topped off the score with a time of 24:10, good for 61st place.

Lorna Whelan and Mara Anderson rounded out the team.  Whelan finished in 75th place with a time of 25:55 and Anderson was 79th with a time of 26:39.