The Princeton High School girls cross country team finished third and qualified for the Oregon Sectional at the IHSA Class 1A Bureau Valley Regional in Manlius, the team announced. The Princeton boys competed but did not field a full team.
The top seven teams and the top five runners not on a qualifying team advanced to the Oregon Sectional on Oct. 31.
Girls
Princeton placed third with 124 points. Mercer County won the team title with 64 points, and Dusti Smith of Stark County won the individual championship in 17:48 over the 3.02-mile course.
Princeton finishers:
- 5. Ruby Acker — 19:25
- 9. Payton Frueh — 19:43
- 18. Alexandra Waca — 20:37
- 52. Leila Acker — 22:57 (season best)
- 55. Natalie Meyer — 23:16 (season best)
- 68. Lily Simpson — 24:30
"This was perhaps the deepest Regional of the three feeding into the Oregon Sectional. We were pretty much 4th on paper, but I thought that we might have a shot at 3rd if our 4th and 5th girls were able to cut a little time down and that's what happened," Princeton coach Pat Hodge said. "Ruby, Payton, and Alex did their usual strong thing while Leila and Natalie stepped it up a notch, each finishing 5 or 6 spots higher than their projected places."
Boys
Rock Island (Alleman) won the team title with 55 points. Evan Knobloch of Lowpoint-Washburn won the individual title in 16:10. Princeton did not field a full team.
Princeton finishers:
- 75. Allister Swanson — 19:31 (personal best)
- 81. Brady Gross — 20:18
- 84. Jackson Drozda — 20:35
- 89. Cruz Rodriguez — 21:05
"Although we didn't have any Sectional Qualifiers, I was very proud of our boys' efforts this season. Everyone improved over last season, some of them significantly," Hodge said.
Source: the original release