Demons end regular season at IMS

A strong meet for a number of Demons was the highlight of Monday as the Washington cross-country team ran at a hilly Wellman Golf Course on Monday.

The Demons had a pair of medal winners on the girls? side of the meet, as they are working on consistency heading into two of the most important meets of the year.

?That?s what we are looking for,? Washington head coach Steve Roth said. ?We need consistency between that fourth and fifth runner, and hopefully we have two weeks left of that. We know we have a couple of girls that can do it.?

Senior Emme Keith and sophomore Brooke Stout each earned medals at the IMS hosted meet, with Keith running a 21:20 for 10th-place overall, while Stout took 14th with a time of 21:51.

Freshman Molly Sparks was third on the team with a 26th-place finish, running a 22:57, while Meredith Raber finished in 29th with a 23:04 and Maggie Voss finished in 36th with a 23:58 to round out the scoring.

Mariah Howard finished with a 24:22 for 42nd place, while Peyton Cuddeback finished in 49th with a 24:46.

?I thought we really had some outstanding performances,? Roth said. ?Emme is right where she was last year, and Brooke is way ahead of where she was last year. Molly and Meredith really looked strong at the end. We want to have a push at the end and I was pleased with the girls.?

On the boys? side, a pair of sophomores led the way, as Brennan Horak finished in 24th place with an 18:44, and Jacob Van Osdol took 29th with an 18:56. Junior Owen Horak finished in 38th place with a 19:25.

?Jacob and Brennan both had great races,? Roth said. ?Owen had a little shin problem, but we are taking care of it. Jacob is in the 18s now consistently, and the confidence in Jacob is outstanding right now. He?s relaxed and knows what he can do. We weren?t far off from medals.?

Freshman Ben Schiefer finished in 58th with a 20:52, while Ben Loy took 70th with a 22:30 to round out the varsity scoring.

Kiowa Keith took 71st with a 22:38 while Austin Stalder rounded out the varsity team with a 23:45, good for 73rd.

As the Washington cross-country teams wrapped up the regular season on Monday night, Roth was pleased with where his team is at.

The Demons will prepare for the conference meet (at Washington Golf and Country Club) and state qualifying (at Fairfield), and Roth said the focus was on where his team is placing, instead of what times his runners are achieving.

?The first thing some of the kids said was, ?My time wasn?t very good,?? Roth said. ?The time is as good as we need to have it. We are focused on Top 10 (for conference) and Top 15 for going to state. The time will take care of itself, because if they get in those spots, they?ll have a good time.?

A Top-10 finish at the conference meet would earn a runner All-Conference honors, while a Top-15 finish at Fairfield would earn a spot in the state cross-country meet on Oct. 31. The team will be working hard in advance of both meets.

?We are going to have three hard days of workouts and it?s the same motivation ? that self satisfaction,? Roth said. ?It?s like just finishing the race. I have people PR-ing at the back of the pack, but they feel good. We want to improve our times and get to the next level. I think we have a number of kids who can get to that next level.?

The conference meet will take place on Thursday, Oct. 15.