The first day of this year’s 2022 Cross Country Classic featured fast finishes, exceptional teamwork and an overwhelming sense of grit among all athletes fighting for position within a competitive field. With its relatively flat terrain, the course encompassing Arnold City Park yielded multiple breakthroughs to start the season off right for schools in attendance.
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The boys varsity race highlighted both speed and strategy as individuals aimed for personal bests and teams packed for top spots. Six runners went under 10 minutes, with six more sub-10:30 and all top-30 going sub-11.
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Hillsboro took home the victory with a remarkable 30 points as Josh Allison (1st - 9:37), Jonah Allison (4th - 9:52) and Orville Mann (5th - 9:53) helped lead a tight front group, each improving upon their meet times from the previous year by more than 20 seconds.
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Rounding out the lead pack was St. Charles West senior James Wortham (2nd - 9:47), Lutheran South senior Adam Snoke (3rd - 9:51) and Central - Cape Girardeau senior Ryan Seabaugh (6th - 9:59).
After a dominant low-score performance from Hillsboro, there was a wider point spread for the remaining top-3 teams. DeSmet Jesuit (104) came in 2nd led by Nolan Chickering (9th - 10:18), William Poelker (11th - 10:24), Mateo Perales (27th - 10:52) and Jack Heit (28th - 10:53) as top-30 medal winners. St. Charles finished 3rd (151) led by Nate Maples (10th - 10:19) and Luke Nottmeyer (24th - 10:49).
Final scores following the team podium finishes were Central - Cape Girardeau (203), Eureka (209), Farmington (214), John Burroughs (240), Principia (243), Webster Groves (258), Northwest - Cedar Hill (258), Francis Howell Central (281), Lutheran South (312), Seckman (318), Rockwood Summit (343), Owensville (365), North County (395), Sullivan (446), Oakville (480), Vianney (489), St. Louis Blue Knights (500), Arcadia Valley (508), St. Pius X - Festus (533), and Affton (603).
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Girls varsity runners put several gutsy battles on display with back-and-forth moves and down-to-the-wire kicks.
Each of the top-10 runners landed sub-12:30 finishes, led by a close contest between Sullivan senior Emily Willman and Seckman junior Elizabeth Kundert. Willman (12:06) ultimately defended her title in similar fashion to last year’s win, finding another gear with about 200 meters left to pass Kundert (12:09) by just a few seconds.
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Kundert’s effort led Seckman (98) to a 3rd-place finish as junior Ariel Laird (9th - 12:28) and sophomore Jessica Lane (16th - 12:50) followed to earn top-30 medals.
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Francis Howell Central (79) finished 2nd with Reese McDevitt in 4th (12:21), Ava Breuer in 11th (12:31), Laney Parmeley in 19th (12:57) and Madison McGowan in 28th (13:11).
The team champion was Eureka, scoring 69 points as their underclassmen led the way to the win. Top-30 finishes included freshman Kirra Dunscombe (3rd - 12:15), sophomore Daphne Bishop (8th - 12:27), freshman Olivia Pearce (25th - 13:02) and freshman Brooke Samuelson (26th - 13:06).
Finishing out the team scores were Farmington (124), Lutheran South (143), Westminster Christian Academy (190), John Burroughs (202), Nerinx Hall (228), Owensville (231), Oakville (237), St. Charles (257), St. Pius X - Festus (262), Central - Cape Girardeau (262), Arcadia Valley (372), and Principia (378).
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It was a Webster Groves sweep for the day’s JV races, as their boys (42) and girls (87) ran away with the team victory in both contests. The Statesmen were led by Henry Boland (2nd - 10:55) on the boys side and Sophia Besand (5th - 14:26) for the girls.
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Remaining top-5 spots in the boys race were filled by Hillsboro juniors Gregory Mann (1st - 10:47) and Aiden Belcher (3rd - 11:12), DeSmet junior Brian Bessire (4th - 11:18), and St. Charles freshman Elijah Case (5th - 11:29).
Girls top-5 included Eureka sophomore Ayla Bishop (1st - 13:51), Hillsboro sophomore Katelyn Wiethop (2nd - 14:10), Grandview sophomore Katelyn Terrell (3rd - 14:18) and Nerinx Hall freshman Kailyn Stann (4th - 14:23).
The remaining top-3 teams were Hillsboro (64) in 2nd and DeSmet Jesuit (75) in 3rd for the boys, while Eureka (88) closely followed Webster Groves for 2nd and Nerinx Hall (96) came in in the girls race.
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Fleet Feet St. Louis would like to thank Saucony, New Balance and Superfeet for making this meet possible through their sponsorship and allowing athletes and fans to come home with plentiful swag.
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