2015 Big Seven League Cross Country Meet Results - click here

Just like every other year the Big Seven League cross country meet proved to be highly competitive on Thursday as all nine schools had at least one Top 20 finisher on the day.

It was a tight battle atop the boys team standings as Royal Valley earned the League title but just by six points, edging out Sabetha who finished second, while Hiawatha was only one-point behind the Bluejays finishing in third. Perry Lecompton edged out Jeff West for fourth place as a team by just four points, giving the Tigers fifth and Nemaha Central and Holton took sixth and seventh as a team. 

A wider margin decided the girls team title as the Hiawatha girls laid claim to the Big Seven title winning by 24 points, while ACCHS took second, Royal Valley finished third and Sabetha took fourth as a team. 

Hiawatha Red Hawks had both top individual performances on the day as Elizabeth Kettler led the girls and Gavin Lierz won the boys race. Kettler posted a time of 21:42.4 to help the lady Red Hawks win the Big Seven girls team cross country title, while she was joined by Aly Shamburg and Kailey Davis in the Top 10 as they finished seventh (22:56.4) and eighth (23:06.0), respectively. Emma Williams, Mary Rosa, Molly Kettler and Jada Rosa all finished in the Top 20 placing 11th, 13th, 17th and 18th. Lierz raced to a time of 17:46.8 to earn first place by less than a second, while Brandt Houk posted a time of 18:19.7 to take third and Dexter Campbell notched a ninth place finish behind a time of 19:34.2 for the Red Hawks. 

Royal Valley on their way to the boys team title was led by Kwaki Spoonhunter as he placed eighth with a time of 19:29.4, while Garrett Hick picked up a tenth place finish with a time of 19:39.2. Darius Frisby, Garrett Pruyser and Masen Spoonhunter placed 11th, 18th and 19th for the Panthers. Leading the lady Panthers was Kaytlyn Gooderl who with a time of 23:35.0 earned a tenth place finish, while Katie Hanshaw placed 12th and Kikto Thomas finished 14th. 

Sabetha Bluejay, Keegan Cox finished second (17:47.0) in the boys competition by less than a second and the Bluejays were just a few points off of first place as a team, also. Braeden Cox posted a time of 19:19.9 to earn sixth place for the Bluejays, while Henry Glynn placed 14th in the boy’s race. Taryn Schuette led the lady Bluejays finishing fourth with a time of 22:27.9, while Megan Meyer finished right behind her in fifth behind a time of 22:32.7. Emily Strathman also notched a Top 20 showing for the Bluejays as she finished 15th. 

A pair of Top five finishes led the Riverside Cyclones as Cole Hinton and Triston Hinton finished fourth and fifth, respectively with times of 18:37.2 and 18:47.7. 

The ACCHS Tigers were led by Beba Scholz who behind a time of 21:53.8 earned the bronze in the girls race, while her teammate, Madison Bissel took ninth place with a time of 23:17.3. Mackenzie and Maddison Forbes placed 16th and 19th for the Tigers. 

Lexia Jamison led the Perry Lecompton Kaws as she raced her way to the silver with a time of 21:46.4, while Josh LeClair picked up a seventh place finish in the boys race with a time of 19:27.8. Bjorn Funk earned a 15th place finish also for the Kaws in the boy’s competition. 

Jeff West Tigers were led by Makenzie Tucker who with a time of 22:38.9 placed sixth in the girls race, while her teammate, Destiny Wright finished 20th. In the boys race three Tigers finished in the Top 20 with Will Jernberg, Collin Ellis and Hunter Carter placing 13th, 16th and 17th, respectively. 

Nemaha Central had just one Top 20 finish as Jordan Peterson earned 12th in the boys race, while Holton was led by a 20th place finish in the boys competition by Wyatt Marriott.