Several area cross country teams competed Saturday at the Bear Den Dash, Northmont XC Invitational and North Union Invitational. West Liberty-Salem, Bellefontaine and Bellefontaine Middle School all posted strong team finishes, with Asher Cole setting a new school record for the Tigers.
Bear Den Dash
13TH – WEST LIBERTY-SALEM BOYS (36)
The West Liberty-Salem boys cross country team finished 13th in the varsity Bear race at the Olentangy Berlin Bear Den Dash, competing in an elite field of 54 teams.
The Tigers, ranked fourth in this week’s Division III OATCCC state poll, were led by junior Asher Cole, who finished 10th in 15:22.8 and set a new school record.
Brayan Gullett placed 21st in 15:39.5 with a PR, followed by Zeke Longshore in 73rd at 16:30.1 with a PR.
Eric Hoover finished 111th in 16:52.8 with a PR, while Zeke Lauck placed 164th in 17:39.0.
Gauge Lee finished 165th in 17:42.1, followed by Milo Matthews in 167th at 17:47.4.
Head coach Mike Louden called it an exceptional day for both the varsity and junior varsity teams, saying the Tigers ran their best collective race of the season against what he described as arguably the most competitive race in Ohio.
Louden also highlighted Cole’s school-record performance, Gullett moving to second on the school’s all-time 5K list and Longshore and Hoover moving into the program’s top 25 all-time performances.
The Tigers recorded 14 career PR performances across the meet.
WEST LIBERTY-SALEM BOYS JV
Zeke Sidders led the Tigers with a 97th-place finish in 18:12.7 with a PR.
Liam Harrington finished 124th in 18:29.3 with a PR, followed by Danny Erne in 163rd at 18:59.4 with a PR.
Walker Williams placed 164th in 19:00.0 with a PR, while Raylan Wulf finished 185th in 19:12.0.
Isaiah Barth was 211th in 19:30.1 with a PR, followed by Chafer Matthews in 251st at 21:36.4 with a PR.
Connor Watson finished 254th in 21:57.8 with a PR, while Jude Roberts placed 265th in 29:25.1.
23RD – WEST LIBERTY-SALEM GIRLS (460)
The West Liberty-Salem girls finished 23rd in the varsity Bear race.
Addi Wallen led the Tigers in 61st at 19:36.2, a season-best time.
Isla Leichty finished 65th in 19:43.5 with a career-best time, moving to 21st on the Big Orange girls’ all-time top-25 5K list.
Elin Leichty placed 80th in 20:11.9 with a career best, followed by Elia Matthews in 117th at 20:53.2 with a season best.
Charlee Albers finished 147th in 21:58.3 with a season best, while Hattie Jacobs placed 153rd in 22:25.8 with a season best.
Olive Matthews finished 154th in 22:25.9 with a career best.
In the open race, Mia Dooley finished 72nd in 22:38.1 with a career best, while Emily Finch was 120th in 23:40.9 with a career best.
Coach Aaron Lauck said the meet provided valuable experience against quality large-school competition and noted that every girl ran either a season or career-best time.
18TH – BELLEFONTAINE GIRLS (349)
The Bellefontaine girls finished 18th at the Bear Den Dash with 349 points.
Grace Brown led the Lady Chiefs with a sixth-place finish in 19:07, earning a season-best time. Camila Hernandez was 85th in 22:17, followed by Chloe O’Chocke in 87th at 22:19, Sloan Stolly in 89th at 22:21, Cameo Greene in 91st at 22:25, and Hannah Wilson in 95th at 22:37.
Hernandez, O’Chocke, Stolly and Greene all posted personal records.
“Big PRs across the board! The pack came together, raced as a team, did their jobs, and fought for one another,” Bellefontaine coach Stacey Wilson said. “I love seeing this group come together, run for each other, and compete as a team. This is the kind of momentum we need heading into the postseason, and I’m excited to see what they can do.”
Northmont XC Invitational
5TH – BELLEFONTAINE BOYS (197)
The Bellefontaine boys finished fifth at the Northmont XC Invitational in a field of 31 teams and 208 runners.
Oliver Grandstaff led the Chiefs with a ninth-place finish in 16:33.4.
Jackson Maus finished 42nd in 17:44.8, followed by Andrew Myers in 44th at 17:46.6.
Brendon Murray placed 50th in 17:52.8, while Will Myers finished 52nd in 17:53.1.
Jake Moreland was 55th in 17:58.7, followed by Aiden Fout in 56th at 17:58.8.
Bennett Lang finished 163rd in 20:55.1, Charlie Moreland was 190th in 23:04.3 and Dalton Frazier placed 202nd in 27:49.4.
North Union Invitational
1ST – BELLEFONTAINE MIDDLE SCHOOL GIRLS
The Bellefontaine Middle School girls won the North Union Invitational, finishing first out of eight teams in a field of 43 runners.
Kylie Lowe won the individual race in 12:34, recording a personal best.
Emma Smith finished fourth in 13:16, while Willow Rupp placed sixth in 13:48 with a PR.
Danica Engle finished 16th in 14:42 with a PR, followed by Gemma Rutan in 18th at 15:02 with a PR.
Emily Escue placed 20th in 15:32 with a PR, while Rosie Moreland finished 43rd in 26:04.
2ND – BELLEFONTAINE MIDDLE SCHOOL BOYS
The Bellefontaine Middle School boys finished second out of eight teams in a field of 52 runners.
Camden Vollrath led the Chiefs with a runner-up finish in 12:09.
Daniel Campbell placed seventh in 13:05 with a PR, followed by Anthony Carter in 10th at 13:07.
Owen Smith finished 12th in 13:20, while Jayden Lambert placed 28th in 15:31 with a season-best time.
Malek Alhaj finished 33rd in 16:18, while Gunnar Lowe placed 52nd in 26:50 with a PR.
