Hostetler wins Wartburg meet in rematch

WAVERLY — Danielle Hostetler won more than a race Saturday. She won some revenge and redemption with a five-second advantage on second place.

The Mid-Prairie and Columbus cross-country teams competed at Wartburg College in a high school meet. Teams from Wisconsin and Minnesota were among the 52 total.

The Mid-Prairie girls were fifth and the boys 22nd in the Gray Division. In the Orange Division, Columbus boys finished 15th and the girls 20th.

Hostetler had lost by 30 seconds to Class 4A’s top-ranked Grace Boleyn of Pleasant Valley in a previous race. Saturday, she trailed after the first kilometer, but was running even after two kilometers. Her winning time was 17:50.58 to 17:55.19 for Boleyn.

"It was great to see Danielle's mental toughness,“ Mid-Prairie assistant coach Aaron Fleming said. ”Some runners might be intimidated after being beaten by a girl from a big 4A school, but I don't know if it's possible to intimidate Danielle.“

Saving something for the latter stages of the race seemed to be the mantra as unofficial standings show that Mid-Prairie was in 17th place one kilometer into the race, and 11th at two kilometers.

Phoebe Shetler and Abby Fleming improved their personal best time by more than 30 seconds, a needed boost for the Golden Hawks who ran without Sydney Yoder.

Class 2A sixth-ranked Hawk Thaddeus Shetler “ran a smart, smooth race, moving up the whole way and pushing hard,” Fleming said. "If Thaddeus ever gets rattled or nervous you can't see it and his calm determination is rubbing off on the younger guys.“

Columbus senior Freddy Vergara was the Wildcats top finisher in 15th place in the 191-runner field. Ariana Vergara was the top Wildcat, taking 69th place in the 148-runner girls’ race.

“Overall, I am really happy with the kids,” Columbus coach Steve Riley said. “Our top three boys (Vergara, Isaac Acosta, and Damian Vergara) and Tyler Humiston, our fifth runner, and our sixth runner, Oscar Alcala, ran very well. We had three personal records for the girls (Ariana Vergara, Kimmy Gonzalez, and Frannie Sosa) and two from the boys (Freddy Vergara and Alcala).

“That being said, we have a little bit of work to do. We’re not hitting on all cylinders yet, but we will be soon.”

RESULTS

Mid-Prairie girls — 1. Danielle Hostetler 17:50.59; 33. Phoebe Shetler 19:43.97; 45. Jaden Yoder 20:03.20; 61. Mitzi Evans 20:24.45; 73. Abby Fleming 20:38.16

Mid-Prairie boys — 44. Thaddeus Shetler 16:39.43; 123. Emmet Swartzentruber 17:46.32; 158. Preston Yutzy 18:14.20; 180. Chandler Hershberger 18:34.63; 187. Nathan Wallington 18:44.23

Columbus boys — 15. Freddy Vergara 17:17.08; 60. Isaac Acosta 18:28.97; 69. Damian Vergara 18:39.34; 116. Tyler Humiston 19:41.64; 145. Mason Hills-Carrier 20:32.33. 167. Oscar Alcala 21:36.20.

Columbus girls — 69. Ariana Vergara 23:22.18; 117. Kimmy Gonzalez 25:28.00; 125. Averi Sipes 26:16.96; 133. Frannie Sosa 27:03.0; 145. Alexa Alcala 30:36.32.