Columbus boys cross-country headed back to Fort Dodge

IOWA CITY — Athletes love it when their hard work pays off, and the Columbus boys cross-country team lived that reality on Thursday in Iowa City.

The Wildcats took second place at the Class 1A state qualifier, earning a spot at the state cross-country meet in Fort Dodge for the second-straight year.

“It was great,” said Columbus head coach Steve Riley. “It's just the result of a lot of hard work.”

Columbus put two runners in the Top-6. Seniors Freddy Vergara and Isaac Acosta finished second and sixth respectively.

Vergara dashed to the line in 17 minutes, 25.68 seconds. That was just over five seconds back from Iowa City Regina’s Aiden O-Neil, who won the meet.

“I felt good,” Vergara said. “I had energy, and I was motivated to run this race. I was pumped.”

Acosta came across in 18:17.27, giving the Wildcats quite a start in their quest to grab one of two qualifying spots.

It was worth it. All the long sucky runs, eight mile runs and eight in the morning practices,“ Acosta said. ”It was worth it, because we're going to make it to Fort Dodge now.“

Damian Vergara came around in 19th for the third Columbus score. Mason Hills-Carrier finished 22nd. Tim Hills-Carrier took 24th. Tyler Humiston was 28th, and Javier Panchillo finished 53rd.

Gabe Hemsworth of Winfield-Mount Union will be making the trip to Fort Dodge in just his sophomore year. Hemsworht finished in 18:29.14, good enough for ninth place. The Top-10 individuals move on.

“I'm pretty excited, and I've got to thank God for all of it,” Hemsworth said. “I give it back all to him, because he gave me this gift.”

The only other area runner to advance was Leah Bontrager of Hillcrest Academy. The Ravens’ senior cruised to a fourth-place finish in the girls race, crossing the tape in 21:42.57, plenty enough to punch her ticket.

“This is the strongest I've felt in a long time,” Bontrager said. “Being here in the good weather really helps my mindset. And all the friends and family that come to support.”

All Class 1A qualifiers will compete on Saturday, October 30. Bontrager and the girls will run first, at 2:30 p.m., followed by the boys at 3:15 p.m.

BOYS TEAM SCORES

1. Iowa City Regina 41; 2. Columbus 66; 3. North Linn 86; 4. Winfield-Mount Union 138; 5. Montezuma 174; 6. English Valleys 175; 7. WACO 179; 8. BGM 180; 9. Holy Trinity 186; 10. Hillcrest Academy 205.

TOP-10 INDIVIDUALS

1. Aiden O’Neil (10), Iowa City Regina 17:20.03; 2. Freddy Vergara (12), Columbus 17:25.68; 3. Bryson Grove (12), English Valleys 17:41.14; 4. James Gruver (11), Lynnville-Sully 17:57.77; 5. Gage Heyne (09), English Valleys 18:12.43; Isaac Acosta (12), Columbus 18:17.27; 8. Joe Maley (11), Iowa City Regina 18:27.53; 9. Gabe Hemsworth (10), 18:29.54; 10. Zach Morningstar (11), Lynnville-Sully 18:29.54.

GIRLS TEAM SCORES

1. Iowa City Regina 42; 2. North Linn 42; 3. Montezuma 68; 4. Lynnville-Sully 84; 5. Columbus 119. (Regina wins on seventh-runner tiebreaker; only 5 schools had enough runners to score)

TOP-10 INDIVIDUALS

1. Meghan Wheatley (10), North Linn 19:51.51; 2. Greenlee Smock (11), Lynnville-Sully 21:00.54; 3. Mya Whitaker (11), Iowa City Regina 21:04.33; 4. Leah Bontrager (12), Hillcrest Academy 12:42.57; 5. Natalie Franklin (11), Iowa City Regina 21:48.05; 6. Bryn Collum (09), North Linn 22:12.71; 7. Ellen Cook (09), Montezuma 22:18.20; 8. Alivia Clint (10), Montezuma 22:29.93; 9. Mackenzie Bridgewater (09), North Linn 22:34.63; 10. Josie Pursley (12), Iowa City Regina 22:41.45.