Meet of the Week: Greg Wilson Invitational
Though it’s no longer run at Johnson County Community College, the opening weekend meet continues to bring some of the best competition from the Kansas City Metro.
Shawnee Mission East senior Lida Padgett didn’t miss a beat in her senior debut, putting an impressive 18 seconds between her and an out-of-state runner-up. Olathe South’s Amy Gotfredson and Washburn Rural’s Payton Fink took 3rd and 4th respectively, both opening up their season in the 18’s.
If you wanted to throw in any last minute guesses on who won the team title, now’s your chance. Here’s a hint though, you will be in no way surprised with the answer.
Despite losing both Charis Robinson and Paige Baker to graduation, the Olathe West girls put on a clinic in the general idea of '‘pack running” and are already winning handily on cruise control.
The pack of KalynWillingham, LizBrowning, BreeNewport, SydneyAll and KateMiller took up spots 7-11, giving themselves a minuscule 1-5 split of ten seconds. Unsurprisingly, that’s the best split in the country and is likely to stay small despite their times lowering as the meets go by. West won 45-70 over Rogers (AR), but St. James was the next closest Kansas team in 3rd with 99 points.
On the boys’ side, the 2021 6A state champion and former state record holder Micah Blomker (SM North) quietly ran his fastest season debut of his Bison career, winning in 15:18.40. After playing second fiddle to near-unstoppable Wyatt Haughton last fall, the outgoing senior looks ready to take back control of the 6A ranks.
Taking 2nd in a HUGE PR of 15:37.90, senior Brock Olsen seems to be meshing well with the training of new head coach Aaron Davidson. Heading into last Saturday, Olsen had barely broken 16:10, but now he is a definite threat in the state. Gunnar Hornung, Dylan Plath and Braxton Theel were the next three in-state finishers, with the trio running 15:47.20, 16:02.70 and 16:07.80 for 4th, 5th and 6th.
Just like their female counterparts did earlier in the morning, the boys of Olathe West opened up their fall with a statement. The Owls took 3rd behind Rockhurst (MO) and Rogers (AR), taking the top spot of Kansas schools. They comfortably held off Shawnee Mission North and Olathe South 85-113-155.
With reigning 6A champions Shawnee Mission East getting hit hard by graduation, it seems the state’s biggest class is looking for a new champ, and Olathe West has the pieces to snag it.
First of Many 1-2 Finishes for Mustangs 🐎
Roughly a year after the long-awaited debut of current Salina Central junior Katelyn Rupe, the four-time state champion should have some company from here on out.
Mustang freshman Kaylie Shultz spent her spring track season breaking all of Rupe’s records at Lakewood Middle School in Salina. Last Thursday, Rupe and Shultz went 1-2 at the Great Bend Invitational, running 17:41.90 and 18:20.90. We all know that Rupe will likely end the year in the low 17’s (fingers crossed for sub-17), so the real question is this.
How close can Kaylie Shultz get to Katelyn Rupe?
Well, her junior teammate has been known to break the race wide open early. By that, I mean that it’s very seldom for someone to be even remotely near Rupe after the first 600m-800m. She likes to push the pace hard and run her own race, while getting simply so far ahead of the field, that not even Wood Kincaid could hawk her down.
It’ll be interesting to see what their strategy will be as the season progresses, because this pairing has the talent and discipline to be known not only around the region, but around the country.
56 Years in the Making 🤺
The oldest cross country dual took place over the weekend to no one’s surprise. The Chieftains of Tonganoxie and Lions of Lansing clashed again in the August heat, and this year they were back in Tongie for the 2023 matchup.
Grace Steger got the dual started off on the right foot for Lansing, taking first in 21:36 and putting 21 seconds in-between her and teammate Katelyn Johannes (21:57)
Kara Johnson and Kinnley Hoffhines acted as the 1-2 punch for Tonganoxie, taking 3rd and 4th in 22:04 and 22:05. A trio of Lionesses followed behind them, giving the team title to Lansing with a 21-38 final score. This was the second year in a row that Lansing claimed the girls’ title.
On the boys’ side, the older of the Steger siblings stopped the clock, however, he had some company with him that gave him a run for his money, but Jackson Steger was able to hold on for the win. Another highly-anticipated debut for Tonganoxie freshman Parker Welsh lived up to the hype, with the future Chieftain star taking 2nd just behind Steger, 17:42-17:45. A trio of teammates followed Welsh, with Carter Solomon, Michael Bottary and Jett Gilmore finishing 3-4-5.
Aided by four finishers in the top five, Tonganoxie held off Lansing 25-31, winning for the first time since 2019. I wasn’t able to find the results from 2018, but regardless, I can imagine Tongie is pretty pleased with the team win..
Handful of PR’s ⏱️
Madison Howland — The Smith Center freshman opened up her high school career with the top time in 2A, winning the Thomas More Prep Monarch Invitational in 19:20.00. Howland, joined by many other 2A stars, is looking to take the spot atop the class that has been held by Stanton County’s Chesney Peterson for the last three years.
Daniel Enriquez — The Kapaun Mt. Carmel sophomore must have done something right over the summer, shattering his freshman PR of 16:15 by 43 seconds at the JK Gold Classic. Enriquez was runner-up in 15:32.70
Lucas Holdren — As of Saturday morning, the Manhattan senior had never run in the 16’s in his cross country career, and his PR was 17:38.50. A few days removed, and Holdren still hasn’t run in the 16’s, and that’s because he skipped them entirely, running 15:53.30 to win his first varsity XC race.
ParkerWalion — He didn’t PR, but he did open up his senior year in 15:30.70, his second-fastest time in his career. That’s the second fastest time in 6A this year, and a good sign of Walion’s fitness. He’ll have the chance to unleash at Olathe Twilight tomorrow night.
College Rundown 🏃♂️⬇️
There were a couple of in-state collegiate meets over the weekend as well, five to be exact. Here’s where they were and a brief rundown.
JK Gold Classic —————
New course, same name, great results. The inaugural meet at the Clapp Cross Country Course delivered results that exceeded expectations. She was a Thunderbird a year ago, but now she’s wearing the black and gold in Wichita. She won her first race at the DI level in 17:42.5, gapping the field by 19 seconds. The next seven runners were either current Shocker athletes (both unattached and not), and alumni. To limit my word count, I’ll keep it current. Sarah Bertry, Lubna Alldulaimi and Miranda Dick ran right around one another, clocking 18:01.9, 18:02.2, 18:04.4 to keep the Shocker perfect score alive. Wichita State had a perfect score, with Newman, Cowley and Kansas Wesleyan finishing 93-94-95.
For a men’s team that lost a fair share of scorers to graduation, boy did they look strong last weekend. Running unattached was Adam Rzentkowski, who unofficially won his Shocker debut, running 18:09.3 for 6k. Newbie Iestyn Williams, Jackson Caldwell, Trey Rios and Zander Cobb took some notes from the ladies, all finishing close in 18:16.6, 18:20, 18:21, and 18:22.8. They were oh-so-close to a perfect score, but Jaime Diaz (Emporia St) had other plans, coming in 6th. Kansas Wesleyan had a strong day, finishing runner-up, behind the host 16-72.
Bob Timmons Classic —————
Every day I thank my college coach for not having us run any meet at Rim Rock. I know what the 5k looks like, why would I want to add 3k? Nah, I’m good. But, people braver than I didn’t let any hills bother them. In-state Wildcat Hannah Stewart won the women’s race in 18:00.3, holding off Kansas’ Kenadi Krueger who was back in 18:07. Addison Coppinger held on pretty tight to Krueger, finishing just behind her teammate in 18:12.7. A flash of purple made up of three Kansas kids crossed next, as Cailan Steward (Andover Central), Cecilia Fisher (BV Northwest), and Grace Meyer (SM East) finished 4-5-6. The ‘Cats stole the win on the Jayhawks’ turf 24-38.
Another in-state alum Tanner Newkirk won the men’s 6k, by ten seconds in 18:35.4. Teammate Cale Littrell and Tanner Talley made it a crimson and blue top three, finishing in 18:45.5 and 18:52.7. The Jayhawk men finished 1st, winning 22-48 over Oral Roberts. Sawyer Schmidt in 7th and Quenton Walion in 9th, the ‘Hawks snuck five in front of the Golden Eagle’s three. Kansas State was 3rd with 52 points.
Baker U Rust Buster —————
Just as they have as of recent, the Benedictine women have their grip on the Heart of America, having won four titles since 2014, and being the back-to-back defending champions. Natasha Ortiz led all runners across the line in 15:06.3. Mary Rowles and Julia McLaughlin came through next, running 15:10.7 and 15:18.0. Haskell’s Kiara Iron Heart and Baker’s Brooke Allen were 4th and 5th, running 15:25.5 and 15:29.4, respectively. The Ravens won the team race with 19 points, while Baker sat back with 76.
Benedictine brought the brooms, as David Mannella’s 15:36.9 for 5k, while Hoxie graduate Gabriel Friess finished 2nd in 15:51.4. Haskell’s Jaiven Hale, Benedictine’s Sebastian Michael and my freshman year roommate Jacob Cofer on Baker’s alumni team. Good job Cof! Benedictine’s low-stick duo and all scorers in the top ten, beat Rockhurst 21-65. The Benedictine men overall looked super impressive and are certainly big hitters looking for a conference title.
Terry Masterson Twilight Classic —————
What’s better than using baseball fields for baseball? Running around them of course! Last Friday, Fort Hays State, many of the state’s JUCOs and a sprinkle of NAIA programs ran beneath the lights of the Fun Valley Sports Complex in Hutchinson. In the women’s race, the Tiger pair of Regan Hodsden and Jaycee Vath put up a 1-2 finish. Hodsden clocked 17:34.8 for the win, and Vath was just under 18 in 17:59.4. Rounding out the top five was Cloud’s N Vanee Anchike, Tabor’s Brooke Wiebe and another Tiger, Darian Hudgeons. Aided by their 1-2-5 finish, Fort Hays State took down Tabor 31-54.
On the men’s side, Butler freshman Adem Bouldjadj claimed the individual win, winning by nearly a minute, crossing in 19:19.9. Fort Hays State’s Grant Bradley ran 20:14 as runner-up. Siyabonga Mokgothu (Cloud), Jaret Pfizenmaier (FHSU), and unattached Butler athlete Bjekizulu Khumalo closed out the first five finishers. Fort Hays State won the men’s team title as well, beating runner-up Northwest Kansas Technical CC by 38 points, 26-64.
Spire Sunset Showdown —————
To sum up the Spires’ season debut, I’ll keep it simple. A lot of navy and gold. The annual flexing of fitness we’ve gotten used to proved yet again, St. Mary is always in shape. On the women’s side, Kate Madsen snuck away with the win in 18:32.7, but Maddy Walter-Sheretts, Reagan Hiebert and Riley Hiebert were right behind her. No, literally. The 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place finishers ran 18:32.7, 18:33.0, and 18:33.1. For those curious, yes, that’s really good. The ladies went 1-2-3-4-6-7-9-10-11, and would have gone 1-9 if it weren’t for a pair of unattached runners. Safe to say they are rightfully ranked 6th in the preseason NAIA poll.
Alright, now take what the women did in terms of sweeping, and they amplify that as much as you can for the men’s results. Emad Bashir-Mohammed took the win in 24:12.5, and was followed by seven teammates, an unattached runner, and then five more teammates.
Ryan Heline — 24:59.7
Chris Metz — 25:05.3
Dominick Beine — 25:15.0
Dawson Adams — 25:15.2
Elvis Rojas-King — 25:22.8
Tommy Baker — 25:41.0
Austin O’Dwyer — 25:48.1
If that isn’t dominance, I’m not sure what it would take to change your mind. Obviously, the men ended with a perfect score, as both teams swept up the hardware. A fun little anecdote, but 24:40 runner Liam Neidig didn’t even race for the Spires.
Sunflower State Highlights🌻
Former Kansas state champion and legend Chesney Peterson won her first race in Rocky Top, winning the Tennessee Cross Country Invite 3-Mile in 17:18.1. She was also named SEC Women’s Co-Freshman Runner of the Week.
If you live in Arkansas City or Girard, you probably know this already, but Gabriel Onelio and his sister Natalia Onelio transferred to Girard from Arkansas City at some point over the summer. Gabe was a two-time 5A medalist as well.
Former state champions OliviaBakker and CharisRobinson made their DII debut over the weekend, with the pair finishing 2nd and 7th. Bakker, now at Northwest Missouri State, ran 18:18.2 for 5k, with Robinson crossing in 19:12.7. WhitneyPost (Olathe East), LydiaMcGlocklin (Olathe NW), and SuzanneFarnham (Stanton County) finished in 11th, 12th and 26th.
Former Wichita State athlete Clayton Duchatschek signed a professional contract, joining Minnesota Distance Elite. He’ll be coached by Chris Lundstrom and train in the Twin Cities in Minnesota.
Thank you for reading and supporting us! If you aren’t already, follow us on Instagram and Twitter, and let any track & field fan know about this so they can stay up-to-date on Kansas athletics! If you have any questions, comments or concerns, feel free to reach out to us through our email ksxcountrytandf@gmail.com