Number one ranked Hillsboro takes fourth
Sports reporter
Despite a few injuries, number one ranked Hillsboro High School Trojans boys' cross country team managed a fourth-place finish Oct. 4 at Ellsworth.
The Trojans were without Cody McMillen and lost Ric Johnson halfway through the race with an injury.
Leading runner Daniel Bookless had another strong finish, taking third with a 3.1-mile time of 18 minutes, 18 seconds.
Head coach Stuart Holmes was proud of his team after running the tough course.
"The runners gave a good effort but certainly the time reflected being on a hilly course under extremely windy conditions."
Nate Holmes was the final varsity boys' team medalist, taking 14th with a time of 19:12. Sean Leihy finished in the top-20, taking 18th with a time of 19:36.
The rest of the boys' runners all finished in the top-40. Isaac Leihy 29th, Thad Holmes 34th, and Robert Jost 36th, rounded out the rest of the team.
Johnson did not finish after suffering a foot injury, but Coach Holmes said he returned to practice and should be fine.
The girls' team took sixth-place at the race, with Jacque Fisher leading the way in 25th place with a two-mile time of 15:35.
The rest of the team wasn't far behind Fisher. Greta Kliewer finished 27th at 15:42, and Elissa Richert was 30th with a time of 15:58.
Carrie Schroeder 34th, Courtney Fast 41st, and Megan McCarty 49th were the final girls' finishers.
Richert has been running on a broken toe all season, and Holmes is proud of the effort Richert and the rest of the team put forth each week.
"I appreciate the toughness demonstrated by this group," he said.
Eleven Trojan runners competed in the junior varsity boys' race, helping the team to a third-place finish.
Brandon McMillen led the JV Trojans with a second-place finish after a 3.1-mile time of 21:00.
Holmes thought his team did extremely well considering the circumstances, and sent more praise in the direction of the freshmen who recorded three of the top six Trojan times at the race.
"They contribute not only at the varsity level which is difficult to do," he said. "But they also include a number of our JV runners this year. If they continue to dedicate themselves to their running, they could be very successful in the future."
Junior varsity results
Brandon McMillen - 21:00.
Johnny Christian - 21:57.
Michael Hiebert - 22:31.
Zach Magnuson - 22:52.
Matthew Klenda - 23:09.
Clinton Schneider - 24:19.
Alex Jost - 24:30.
Lance Kliewer - 24:39.
Victor Rogers - 25:22.
David Ratzloff - 25:25.
Tyrel Blecha - 25:30.
