Area high school cross country teams competed in the OHSAA regional tournaments Saturday, October 31, with races held at Pickerington North High School and Troy High School.
Several local teams secured spots in the state championships, including the Bellefontaine boys, West Liberty-Salem boys and girls, and Mechanicsburg girls. Individual state qualifiers also emerged from Bellefontaine, Urbana, and Calvary Christian.
West Liberty-Salem’s boys finished second in Division III, while the Tigers’ girls placed fourth in Division IV. Bellefontaine’s boys earned a fifth-place finish in Division II, and Mechanicsburg’s girls secured the final team state qualification spot in Division IV by just two points.
Troy High School
Division II Boys
Bellefontaine Chieftains – 5th place (187 points)
Bellefontaine finished fifth as a team to qualify for the state championships, defeating sixth-place Tippecanoe by 14 points. Oliver Grandstaff led the Chieftains with a seventh-place finish in 16:03.3.
- 7th – Oliver Grandstaff – 16:03.3
- 41st – Will Myers – 17:11.6
- 46th – Brenden Murray – 17:15.2
- 48th – Jackson Maus – 17:18.5
- 53rd – Jake Moreland – 17:21.6
- 56th – Landon Gerwels – 17:24.5
- 62nd – Andrew Myers – 17:38.3
Bellefontaine head coach Ben Davis highlighted Oliver Grandstaff’s standout performance and the team’s collective effort in securing a state berth. Grandstaff recorded a 17-second personal record with his seventh-place finish, moving him to fifth on the all-time Chieftain top-10 list. The team’s next five runners finished within just 13 seconds of one another.
“Oliver, Will, Brenden, and Jake have been in the thick of things, missing state twice by one place over the past three years. Their tremendous work ethic and great attitudes finally reaped a trip to Columbus. The state trip marks the Chieftain boys team’s 10th. Jackson, Landon, and Andrew battled various aches and pains over the past two weeks but remained tough, reeling in season bests and helping to oust Tipp City. Tipp beat us at last week’s district.”
Division III Boys
West Liberty-Salem Tigers – 2nd place (97 points)
West Liberty-Salem finished second as a team to qualify for the state championships, finishing 18 points behind first-place Versailles. Asher Cole led the Tigers with a third-place finish in 15:41.6, while Brayan Gullett also earned a top-10 finish.
- 3rd – Asher Cole – 15:41.6
- 9th – Brayan Gullett – 16:16.7
- 23rd – Zeke Longshore – 16:44.2
- 30th – Eric Hoover – 17:05.4
- 37th – Zeke Lauck – 17:18.1
- 59th – Gauge Lee – 17:48.4
- 61st – Zeke Sidders – 17:51.4
West Liberty-Salem head coach Mike Louden praised his team’s performance, calling it a strong bounce-back effort after finishing third at districts. The Tigers secured their ninth consecutive trip to the state meet and the 25th state appearance in program history.
“What a solid bounce back race after finishing third a week ago at Districts. These incredible young men showed up on one of the biggest stages and delivered an outstanding team performance to advance. I just couldn’t be anymore proud of the entire Big Orange program. Coming into the race we knew we would need a special team effort if we wanted to qualify back to the state meet for the ninth straight year. We had a great week of preparation and we definitely executed our race plan of getting out aggressively. Asher and Brayan did exactly what was needed upfront, giving us a solid 1-2 punch, while Zeke Longshore, Eric Hoover, and Zeke Lauck had phenomenal races finishing the scoring for the Big Orange. Gauge Lee and Zeke Sidders ran great races too.”
The state meet will mark the third consecutive appearance for Asher Cole and Brayan Gullett, while Zeke Longshore and Eric Hoover will make their second trips. Freshman Zeke Lauck, junior Gauge Lee, and senior Zeke Sidders will each make their first appearance at the state meet.
Urbana Hillclimbers – 16th place (449 points)
Urbana finished 16th as a team. Levi Zachrich paced the Hillclimbers with a 78th-place finish.
- 78th – Levi Zachrich – 18:27.5
- 93rd – Landon McKellop – 18:48.5
- 110th – Anthony Keeran – 19:09.3
- 119th – Sawyer Risner – 19:16.6
- 147th – Alex McCrae – 20:00.8
- 154th – Landon McKenzie – 20:18.0
- 168th – Henry Chapman – 21:12.0
Indian Lake Lakers
Indian Lake had two individual competitors in the Division III boys race.
- 81st – Nathan White – 18:29.1
- 85th – Hayden Kuhlke – 18:39.2
Graham Falcons
Graham had two individual competitors in the Division III boys race.
- 97th – Brandon Lockery – 18:52.3
- 101st – Jesse Jenkins – 18:58.7
Benjamin Logan Raiders
Benjamin Logan was represented by Greyson Butler.
- 67th – Greyson Butler – 18:05.5
Division III Girls
Bellefontaine Chieftains – 5th place (230 points)
Bellefontaine finished fifth as a team, missing state qualification by 33 points behind fourth-place Wyoming. Grace Brown led the Chieftains with a ninth-place finish in 19:33.7, earning an individual state championship berth.
- 9th – Grace Brown – 19:33.7 (individual state qualifier)
- 49th – Chloe O’Chocke – 21:46.9
- 65th – Camila Cely-Hernandez – 22:23.8
- 67th – Sloan Stolly – 22:25.5
- 68th – Cameo Greene – 22:25.9
- 79th – Hannah Wilson – 22:43.3
- 93rd – Leila Hammond – 23:08.3
Bellefontaine head coach Stacey Wilson expressed pride in her team’s effort despite narrowly missing a team state qualification.
“It’s hard to put into words how proud I am of this team. We came up one place short of something we have worked really hard for, and that’s tough. But they left everything on that course today. Every girl gave what she had, and I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I hope they walk away from today knowing just how much they’ve accomplished and how much they have to be proud of. Seniors, Hannah and Grace have meant a lot to this program, and I’m thankful for everything they’ve brought to this team.”
Urbana Hillclimbers – 7th place (237 points)
Urbana finished seventh as a team, with Hazel Lightle earning an individual state qualification after placing 13th in 19:44.7.
- 13th – Hazel Lightle – 19:44.7 (individual state qualifier)
- 33rd – Avery Smith – 20:57.6
- 58th – Sara Hildebrand – 22:07.7
- 81st – Olivia MacKendrick – 22:52.6
- 87th – Meghan Hoskins – 22:58.5
- 141st – Addison Bass – 27:53.2
Benjamin Logan Raiders – 17th place (415 points)
Benjamin Logan finished 17th as a team. Shelby Siefring led the Raiders with a 77th-place finish.
- 77th – Shelby Siefring – 22:42.3
- 101st – Molly Siefring – 23:25.1
- 102nd – Lucy Wenger – 23:26.1
- 110th – Gwendolyn Smith – 24:00.9
- 111th – Elliott Butler – 24:08.0
- 112th – Lottie Bodin – 24:08.3
- 123rd – Lauren Kennedy – 24:52.8
Indian Lake Lakers
Indian Lake had four individual competitors in the Division III girls race, led by Laura Metzger.
- 51st – Laura Metzger – 21:48.2
- 80th – Kayleigh Taylor – 22:46.4
- 116th – Haley Metzger – 24:11.9
- 135th – Abby Arnett – 25:45.8
Graham Falcons
Graham had three individual competitors in the Division III girls race. Harriet Uhl led the Falcons with a 32nd-place finish.
- 32nd – Harriet Uhl – 20:56.2
- 119th – Adelaide Shearer – 24:30.1
- 124th – Kendall Nichols – 24:59.5
Division IV Girls
West Liberty-Salem Tigers – 4th place (142 points)
West Liberty-Salem finished fourth as a team to qualify for the state championships, defeating fifth-place Tippecanoe by 17 points. Isla Leichty led the Tigers with a 12th-place finish in 19:34.5, while Addi Wallen also earned a top-20 finish.
- 12th – Isla Leichty – 19:34.5
- 17th – Addi Wallen – 19:49.8
- 33rd – Elin Leichty – 20:40.0
- 54th – Elia Matthews – 21:20.7
- 60th – Hattie Jacobs – 21:35.0
- 75th – Olive Matthews – 22:00.4
- 76th – Charlee Albers – 22:00.5
Triad Cardinals
Triad was represented by Aubrey Johnson, who finished 42nd.
- 42nd – Aubrey Johnson – 20:58.8
Calvary Christian Spartans
Calvary Christian was represented by Evie White, who finished 118th.
- 118th – Evie White – 23:50.6
Division IV Boys
Triad Cardinals – 13th place (330 points)
Triad finished 13th as a team. Henry Beaverson led the Cardinals with a 40th-place finish in 17:18.0.
- 40th – Henry Beaverson – 17:18.0
- 49th – Jacob Johnson – 17:31.5
- 84th – Daniel Ishida-Garwood – 18:15.7
- 121st – Noah Humphrey – 19:21.8
- 132nd – Hayden Williams – 19:43.5
- 155th – Chris May – 21:18.2
- 164th – Alex McComas – 23:33.4
Calvary Christian Spartans
Calvary Christian’s Adly Knox earned an individual state qualification after finishing 14th in 16:40.1. Benaiah Soma and Aydan Knox also competed for the Spartans.
- 14th – Adly Knox – 16:40.1 (individual state qualifier)
- 51st – Benaiah Soma – 17:33.9
- 56th – Aydan Knox – 17:39.5
Pickerington North High School
Division IV Girls
Mechanicsburg Indians – 4th place (193 points)
Mechanicsburg finished fourth as a team to qualify for the state championships, edging fifth-place Fairbanks by just two points. Reiner Schaadt led the Indians with a 15th-place finish in 19:55.0, followed closely by Elizabeth Shuryan in 16th.
- 15th – Reiner Schaadt – 19:55.0
- 16th – Elizabeth Shuryan – 19:55.2
- 34th – Blake Rausch – 20:54.1
- 83rd – Bailee Eyink – 22:29.3
- 107th – Ayla Picklesimon – 23:08.7
- 131st – Jillian Miller – 24:06.3
- 145th – Ally Dingey – 24:47.9
Division IV Boys
Mechanicsburg Indians – 18th place (404 points)
Mechanicsburg finished 18th as a team. Adrian Miller paced the Indians with a 69th-place finish.
- 69th – Adrian Miller – 18:38.6
- 90th – Dmitri Pack – 19:05.8
- 99th – Ben Montgomery – 19:11.0
- 100th – Thomas Good – 19:12.9
- 180th – Ethan Schaffner – 23:05.6
The OHSAA state cross country championships will feature five area team qualifiers, along with individual qualifiers Grace Brown, Hazel Lightle, and Adly Knox.
