Claire, Evan Horak earn All-SEC

The Washington cross-country teams got to see where they stood among the rest of the conference on Thursday night, and came away with a pair of All-Conference performers.

Taking part in the annual Southeast Conference meet, held in Fairfield this season, the Demons posted numerous season-best teams, highlighted by a second-place finish by sophomore Claire Horak on the girls? side and a ninth-place run by freshman Evan Horak on the boys? meet.

?I thought we ran outstanding,? Washington head coach Stefanie Tschantz said. ?We had season-best times and we ran quicker today than we did at districts last year. They ran well and gave it their all.?

Claire Horak?s finish was highlighted by shattering the 20-minute mark on the night, posting an 18:49, finishing behind only Fort Madison?s top runner, Sierra Howardson.

?I felt pretty good out there,? Claire said. ?When I was going out there I wasn?t as tired as I usually was. I thought I was going slower at first. I guess not. I was just trying to get a better time. I really just wanted to break 20 minutes.?

The finish set the school mark for the top 5,000 meter time on the girls? side of the team.

?The goal coming in was breaking 20 minutes, and she ended up running an 18:49,? Tschantz said. ?It was a huge race and she beat three ranked runners, and it was a great night for her.?

Evan Horak also posted a personal best time in his first conference race, posting a 17:19 on the night, en route to an all-conference slot.

?I?m really happy about my time,? Evan said. ?Hopefully I can have that same time at districts and hopefully I?ll have a shot at state.  It feels great. The weather was great, and it was a shame to have Brennan go down, but I still can?t believe I got All Conference. It was great.?

The race marked the first time Evan cracked the 18-minute mark in his career.

?He had an outstanding race,? Tschantz said. ?I chatted with him before the race started and I told him to get out a little harder at the start and he did that. He ran a 17:19, by far his best of the year.?

Evan?s brother, junior Brennan Horak, who has regularly been the top runner for the Demons this year, suffered an injury, making him unable to finish the course.

Evan?s ninth-place finish was followed by a season-best finish from Owen Horak, who took 13th with a 17:49, while Jacob Van Osdol took 16th with a 17:58.

Kyle Anderson (27th, 19:46) and Kiowa Keith (29th, 19:57) rounded out the varsity scoring, while Ben Schiefer took 30th with a 20:06.

On the girls? side, Meredith Raber was the second Demon to cross the finish line, taking 13th overall with a 21:28, while Molly Sparks finished in 16th with a 21:41.

Ashley Telleen came across in 22:11 to take 20th, with Brooke Stout (21st, 22:28) and Maggie Voss (22nd, 22:38) finishing just behind her.

Peyton Cuddeback took 26th in the meet with a 23:19.

Both Demon teams took fourth-place overall in the conference standings, with Fort Madison claiming the girls? championship and Mt. Pleasant nearly sweeping the boys? race.

The next contest for Washington will be on Thursday, when the Demons take part in state qualifying up in Solon.

The top 15 individuals and top three teams will advance to the state meet on Oct. 29, and the focus will remain simple for the Demons.

?We are still trying to maintain,? Tschantz said. ?We are going to cut some mileage this week, but we want to stay healthy and mentally stay focused. We are just going to talk about believing in yourself and leaving it all out there. Whatever happens, happens.?

Middle school earns four all-conference selections

The Demons? success didn?t stop at the varsity level, as four middle-schoolers claimed all-conference slots.

Three of those placings came on the girls? side of the meet, where Kelsey Pacha paced the team with a sixth-place finish, posting a 13:55 on the 2-mile course.

Greta Rothe and Alivia Emry were close behind, both posting 13:59s on the course, with Rothe taking eighth and Emry finishing in ninth.

On the boys? side of the meet, Washington?s Lance Sobaski claimed an eighth-place finish with a 12:21 on the day to earn all-conference honors.