Area prep runners place at state cross country meet
WAMEGO — Running in only his second state cross country race, Crest High’s Dustin Davis-Jones captured his first state medal at Saturday’s 2010 Kansas Class 4-3-2-1A State Cross Country Meet.
Davis-Jones was the lone medal winner from the area in three classification races. There were area runners in the boys’ races in 1A, 2A and 4A and in the 1A girls’ race on the Wamego Country Club golf course.
Davis-Jones ran the Class 1A boys’ 5K state race in 18 minutes, 3.43 seconds to finish eighth. That finish earned Davis-Jones All-Class 1A state honors. He is the first CHS boy to win a state cross country medal.
Gunner Hays of Northern Valley was the Class 1A individual champion, running the race in 17:34.72.
Iola High junior Roman Yocham and Crest senior Italy Loving came up two places short of state medals.
Yocham ended up 22nd in the Class 4A boys’ 5K race in 17:29.93. Evan Landes, a senior from Mulvane, won the state title in 16:08.47. It was Yocham’s third straight year qualifying for the 4A state race.
“Roman did not have a good race at state. He has not been feeling well. He did not run his normal race and it cost him,” said Marvin Smith, Iola High head coach. “Since running so well at Rim Rock, Roman has not had a quality race. He’s won races but not by times we thought he could win in.”
Smith said several runners, whom Yocham has beaten this season, finished ahead of him at the state meet. Yocham finished ninth at the Class 4A state meet last year.
Loving is a four-time state qualifier in the Class 1A girls’ 4K race. She hadn’t been able to win a medal in her three previous trips to state. Loving went out to get a state medal as a senior and finished 22nd in 17:53.81.
Audrey Schmitz of Axtell pulled away from the Class 1A field to win the state individual championship in 15:51.91.
Back in the Class 1A boys’ race, Davis-Jones paced the Crest Lancers to their second consecutive eighth-place finish as a team at the state meet. The Lancers finished with 122 points Saturday as Greeley County took the 1A state championship with 40 points.
Junior Trevor Holman was Crest’s second runner to finish the race, posting a time of 19:40.39 for 47th place. David Womelsdorf, a sophomore, took 59th in 20:15.68 and junior Chris Brallier was 72nd in 21:28.62. Freshman Craig Brallier took 90th in 24:30.60 and junior Jory Ramsey took 93rd in 25:19.48.
Marmaton Valley High junior Zachary Louk was running in his third straight Class 2A state cross country race. Louk got out and ran in the lead pack early but fell off the pace later in the 5K race Saturday.
Louk placed 41st in 19:09.46 while his teammate, Ryan Smith, a sophomore, ended his first state race in 49th place in 19:21.09. James Farris of Lincoln was the 2A individual champion in 16:37.26.
