By Amanda Perkins & Chris Parker
The Nixa boys cross country team had been arguably the best in program history coming into the Class 5 state meet on Saturday.
It is safe to remove ‘arguably’ from that statement after the Eagles brought home the program’s first team trophy from the state cross country meet by placing fourth.
The race got off to a blazing start with 63 runners in the field coming through the first kilometer in under three minutes. A three-minute kilometer pace is a 15-minute 5k.
“We were looking to get in that mix. We knew it was going to be fast,” Nixa head coach Lance Brumley said. “We try to simulate that with races we go to earlier in the year. We’ve talked about it, but being in it and talking about it are two different things. We hoped they could manage the emotion and excitement.”
Ultimately the pace cooled way off, as only three runners in the field finished under 15 minutes.
Junior Aaron Ashley weathered the early speed storm and ran a steady race for Nixa coming through the first kilometer in 11th place. He moved up as high as fifth place before finishing seventh in a time of 15:23.9.
“He (Ashley) has been a leader for us all year and he is tremendous competitor,” Brumley said. “He wants to get in there and just compete.”
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE BOYS RACE
Senior Logan Richart was second across the line for Nixa in 25th with a time of 15:41.6. Sophomore Reyes Martinez was 32nd in a time of 15:52.6. Devon Kemp, a senior, was fourth for Nixa in a time of 16:00.3.
No. 5 runner Zane Novinger was one of the biggest movers in the entire field. After one kilometer, Novinger sat in 108th place overall. Over the next four kilometers, Novinger moved up 48 places to 60th overall with a time of 16:20.2. He picked off 21 of those runners from 2,000 to 3,000 meters.
“That’s kind of how he (Novinger) races. He gets faster and faster as the race unfolds,” Brumley said. “We have had tremendous depth. That’s a strength of our kids, that they want to work at it knowing they might not be ‘the guy.’ They are willing to sacrifice for each other.”
Sophomore Nicholas Flannery and senior Mason Shank were Nos. 6 and 7 for Nixa in times of 16:23.9 and 16:32.4, respectively.
The future is bright for Nixa cross country, but the leadership of the senior class will be missed.
“We lose tremendous leadership,” Brumley said. “We are here because of them (the seniors). This journey started when they were freshmen. So, the young kids coming up will need to recognize that, that they are coming back, but it isn’t something that happens in a year, it takes a long time. But I’m excited for them.”
FULL RESULTS: CLASS 5 BOYS RACE – CLICK HERE
Webb City also represented the area in the team competition, placing eighth overall with 218 points.
Joplin’s Chance Tindall gave the area a second top 10 finisher placing ninth overall in a time of 15:29.6. Rolla’s Cameron Martensen placed just inside the all-state cutline in 23rd with a time of 15:41.1.
On the girls’ side, the area was paced by Republic’s Gracie Troester in seventh place with a time of 18:15.7.
The top 10 finish was a relief for Troester after she placed 60th at state last year.
“It feels really good and honestly it is a big confidence booster going into indoor season, and even for next year for cross country and marks I want to hit then,” Troester said. “It definitely was a good feeling considering this is not my favorite course. Every time I’ve hit this course, I haven’t run to the best of my ability, so it felt great to accomplish that.”
Troester was consistent throughout the race, never slipping lower than ninth or climbing higher than sixth.
“I had (kilometer) times to hit on my wrist, and I was way ahead of it when we went out,” Troester said. “I was trying to hold my pace. People were passing me, and I didn’t let that get in my head like I normally do. I was just like, right now, you are running your race, people are going to die out. Breathe and focus. It was a great race.”
Troester is just a junior meaning she hopes to get one more shot at the Gans Creek Course next November.
“Out of people returning, I would be third as of right now, going into rankings,” Troester said. “My goal for next year is top five.”
Ozark’s Ellsie Estes (16th – 18:33.0) and Nixa’s Mackinzie Harris (24th – 18:45.0) were the area’s other all-state finishers.
Ozark (13th), Kickapoo (14th) and Webb City (16th) represented the area in the team competition.
