Tabor women tie Ottawa for title
By RYAN RICHTER
Sports writer
With the season rapidly winding down, one of the biggest chores for the Bluejay cross country team is to ward off injuries.
Last week was the first meet both teams have been at full strength. Each team has had to deal with not having enough competitors to obtain a team score once.
On Saturday, it was the men's turn to repeat with two runners out with injuries, keeping them from earning a team score.
That didn't stop the Lady Bluejays, though, with Tabor tying the hosting Ottawa Lady Braves for first place Saturday at the Bo Boucek Invitational at Pomona Lake.
Both Tabor and Ottawa finished with 47 points, marking the first meet the Bluejays have won this season.
Leading the way for the Bluejays was the 2-3 finish of Heidi Schmidt and Angie Jost, respectively.
Schmidt's second place time of 21:10 edged Jost by 12/100 of a second.
Out of 36 finishers in the five-kilometer course, 10th place finisher Amber Wiens also earned a medal with a 22:25 time.
Tiffany Stevens was 21st in 23:47 with Rebekah Lockhart taking 28th at 25:48.
"We had good racing conditions today on a tough course," said Bluejay coach Karol Hunt. "This was our final tune-up for the conference meet.
"I was pleased with our focus and determination today. Placing three in the top 10 for the women is really positive for the team."
Jeff Anenson and Michael Norris earned medal for finishing in the top 15.
Hailing from Minnesota, cold weather seems to elevate Anenson's running.
That paid dividends with a 14th place finish in 30:49, a spot and six-hundredths of a second ahead of Norris.
Norris' time of 30:55 shaved an astounding 48 seconds of his previous best time set two weeks ago in Colorado.
"Jeff and Michael ran outstanding individual races," Hunt said. "Being from Minnesota, Jeff likes to compete in the cooler weather and that enhances his performance level.
"The last two weeks, Michael has run really well. He has improved greatly throughout the season."
Kevin Larson barely missed a medal, coming in 17th in 31:13.
Matt Lynam was 23rd in 32:07.
Anthony Bartlett and Kyle Larson were sidelined with toe and leg injuries, respectively.
Both are expected to compete in two weeks.
The Bluejays return to action Oct. 30 for the KCAC meet held again at Pomona Lake.
The women begin at 10:30 a.m. with the men starting at 11:15.
