Wildcats out to ‘prove them wrong’

COLUMBUS JUNCTION - Saturday in Fort Dodge at the Lakeside Golf Course, the Columbus boys cross-country team has a mission.

After sitting on the outside edge of the Class 1A top 15 rankings for most of the nine-week season, the Wildcats seemed to have contracted the Rodney Dangerfield disease, they get no respect. Columbus qualified for state by finishing ahead of the No. 8-ranked team. The final rankings are released and the Wildcats are still on the edge, ranked 16th of the 16 teams going to state.

'That's OK,” CHS head coach Steve Riley said, 'Our attitude is that we're going to prove them wrong.”

In Riley's nine years as head coach, he has had one state qualifier and that was Josh Keller in 2013, 2014 and 2015.

This year's runners are Isaac Acosta, Mason Hills-Carrier, Freddy Vergara, Alex Rivas, Damian Vergara, Tim Hills-Carrier, and Van Bawi.

'We will try to better our ranking on Saturday,” Riley said. 'I think we have a shot at the Top 10.”

That would be a great accomplishment for a team that very few people thought could make it this far.

If every Wildcat runs his best race, it will be a great day for Columbus, regardless of the finish.

'If that happens, we are going to have a great day,” Riley said.

State is a whole different experience with the big crowds and all the hoopla.

'We are looking forward to it, so I don't think we will be intimidated,” Riley said. 'They are a competitive bunch. We had a workout (Tuesday) that showed me they are ready.”

Riley has some experience to draw on, having run at state as an Anamosa athlete 43 years ago.

'It was a vastly different experience,” Riley said. 'That's another thing that makes this so gratifying. I ran on a team that qualified for state, and now I've coached a team that made it. I know a lot of other people have done that, but I feel it's a big accomplishment.”

State was not the event that it is today. His state meet was a 25-mile trip and the school did not make a big deal of it.

'Part of the experience for us will be making the three-and-a-half hour trip and staying in a hotel the night before,” Riley said.

Saturday holds a lot of importance to Riley and the Wildcat program.

'This is definitely the most important meet I've coached in,” Riley said. 'It's important because we want to establish ourselves as one of the top Class 1A programs in the state.”