Staff writer
Hillsboro cross-country overcame hot and windy elements Thursday at Smoky Valley during its first meet of the year.
“It was a positive start to the season,” coach Stuart Holmes said. “In spite of what were about the toughest conditions our runners have faced in the last three to four years, with the hot, windy day, our runners kept going and were able to finish with some respectable results.”
The boys’ team finished in sixth place.
Individually, Abby Driggers earned a seventh place medal in the girls’ underclassmen division with a time of 25:45.7, while Jonathan Hinerman “ ran a good race,” Holmes said, to earn a ninth place medal in the upperclassmen boys’ division with a time of 19:21.6.
“With the girls moving to a 5K distance this year, Abby’s time becomes our girls’ school record,” Holmes said.
In the girls’ upperclassmen division, Lydia Kliewer was 17th at 28:40.9.
In the boys’ freshmen/sophomore division, Caleb Rempel was 20th at 23:38.9, Tucker Moss was 31st at 25:30.3, Samuel Damon was 40th at 27:18.2, and Avery Unruh was 43rd at 28:46.2.
“For a number of our runners, it was their first cross-country meet, so our athletes will improve significantly as they continue to gain experience as well as increase their fitness with consistent training,” Holmes said.
The Trojans next meet is 10 a.m. Saturday in Wamego.