Cross-country teams compete at state

  It was only a week ago when the Weiser cross-country team found out that they were going to state and they were ecstatic going into it. They knew how much this mattered and decided to give it their all

 The State Championship was hosted at Eagle Island State Park, a beautiful Idaho state park near Boise. The course is just as beautiful as the rest of the place, taking runners through a sandy beach and nicely forested areas as they raced to the finish.

  However, despite how beautiful the race should have been, there were some complications with the weather not complying with the wishes of the runners. 

 Constant storms plagued the races and the boys’ race was even delayed. Even so,  the Weiser teams still gave it their all.

 In total, for the boys’ race, there were 10 teams and  75 individual runners. There were 11 teams and 84 girls in the girls’ race. This was a tough matchup for the teams to face against and Weiser did the best they could. 

 The girls’ team finished 10th due to a lack of members and the boys’ team placed seventh. Though none of the teams got first, it is still clear they put up a great fight.

  For the girls’ team, six girls ran. Claire Matthews, a junior this year, placed eighth in this race with a time of 20:02.10. Corianna Parsons, a sophomore, managed to place 10th with a time of 20:19.78. 

  Kelsey Cole, who is a freshman, placed 76th with a time of 25:58.73. Kenzie Strasser, a senior, got 79th place with a time of 26:51.59. Kaylee Harris, also a senior, got 81st with a time of 27:36.88. Finally, Tori Brown, a sophomore, managed to place 82nd with a time of 30:38.64.

 The boys’ team had seven boys running at the state meet. Blake Quinton, a junior, placed third overall with a time of 16:17.70. Judah Parsons, a senior, placed 35th with a time of 17:55.90. Another senior, Josh Kelley, placed 44th with a time of 18:12.70. Jorge Martinez, a sophomore, placed 50th with a time of 18:22.00. Ammon Anderson, another sophomore, placed  60th with a time of 18:41.30. Alex Woods, a sophomore placed 67th with 19:18.10. Finally, Max Lattin placed 70th with a time of 19:45.70.

 Needless to say, Weiser put up a good fight and they should be 100 percent proud of what they accomplished this season.

  One runner from the girls’ team, Parsons, lamented about the lack of personal records that were achieved but was proud of the team for their performance

  “Though we didn’t end up with a lot of PRs because of the weather, Claire and the rest of our girls ran pretty good times all things considered. The main thing is to not think about what is expected of you, and just leave everything out there on the course, and since all our girls did that, we did pretty awesome in spite of everything!” Parsons said.

 Matthews, was also disappointed at how Weiser wouldn’t be bringing home a trophy this year, but was still impressed by the team’s performance.

 “State was different from the previous years’ because it was so close to home, but the competition and the feeling were still there. Two top 10 finishers in the girls and a top five finisher in the boys  race was great for Weiser. Even though we didn’t come home with a trophy, everyone gave it their all and progressed through the season to get here. I’m sad the season is over, but I’m excited for even more things in the future,” Mathews said

  Though Weiser didn’t win first in the end, it would be silly for me to say this season was a bad one. Weiser”s runners showed what it means to be a Wolverine and how we will always put our best efforts forward. Let’s hope the 2025 season is even better.