SABETHA — Crest High’s Lady Lancers found themselves in familiar territory — atop the medal stand — in unfamiliar territory, the Sabetha Country Club grounds in far northeast Kansas.
The Crest squad captured the Class 1A Regional championship Saturday, the third straight such title for the Crest squad, which now advances as a team to the 1A State Meet Saturday in Wamego.
“It was a special day,” head coach Kaitlyn Cummings said. “The girls ran amazing this weekend. They all showed up and did their job.”
Josie Walter’s second-place finish came with a time of 20 minutes, 25.5 seconds. Teammate Peyton Schmidt secured a top-five finish as well at 21:25.0. Aubrey Allen placed 12th at 22:11.60, while freshman Kallei Robb secured 18th with a personal-best time of 23:5.20.
With all four of Crest’s runners finishing in the top 18, it led to a convincing team title. Crest’s 27 points were 14 points better than runner-up Northern Heights. Centralia was next with 52.
Perhaps most notably, Robb’s time was about 30 seconds better than her previous mark, and it came on one of the hilliest courses in the state.
“It’s definitely very comparable to what we’ll see in Wamego,” she said. “She did an amazing job.”
At Wamego, the runners will vie for the first state championship in school history.
Crest is currently voted as the No. 3 ranked team in Kansas, alongside top-ranked South Gray and No. 2 Ness City.
Cummings says Saturday’s showdown could be an epic one.
“Gosh, looking at everybody’s times, they’re very comparable,” she said. “It’s all gonna come down to who runs the best.”
ON THE BOYS’ side, Crest’s Gunner Ellington ran the course in 19:39.0, good for 27th.
Grady Allen, Jimmy Ayers and Elijah Taylor took 33rd, 36th and 38th, respectively. Ryan West finished in 56th.
“It was a tough race,” Cummings said. Ellington, Taylor and West saw their high school careers come to an end.
“They ran together most of the way, and Ryan was with them for quite a bit of it,” Cummings said.
