Iola High’s Cross Country team put on quite a show Thursday, even with both the top boy and girl Mustang runners having issues along the way.
Iola’s boys captured three of the top four places, and five of the top 12 to easily win the school’s second consecutive Pioneer League championship.
A dandy finish saw Iola’s Kaster Trabuc, Cole Moyer and Jesse Taylor running stride for stride alongside Wellsville’s Nash McDaniel.
The quartet ended the 5-kilometer race at a full sprint, with McDaniel winding up a stride in front of Trabuc, or about a half of a second separating the two runners. Moyer took third and Taylor fourth.
McDaniel finished in 18 minutes 34.68 seconds. Trabuc finished in 18:35.11.
“Kaster had an amazing day,” Mustang head coach Brit Daugharthy said. “One of the things they’ve worked on all season is a strong finish. I was proud to see that happen, to see them finish up front like that. It was very exciting.”
Trabuc agreed.
“All of us have worked so hard in practice,” Trabuc said. “We run as a team; as a family. We work well together.”
The sterling finish came after a rough start, particularly for Taylor, typically Iola’s fastest runner.
Taylor was tripped at the starting line, and after getting back to his feet, had to work his way up through the entire field.
He was able to do so, even running at the front by the end of the first mile, but it came at a cost.
By extending so much energy early on, Taylor was unable to match the other frontrunners in the last 100 meters.
“I never could find a good pace,” Taylor said.
But more importantly, he was uninjured with his early stumble.
“It was unfortunate,” Daugharthy said. “It just wasn’t his normal race.”
Eli Adams, on the heels of a blistering sprint at the finish, took eight, while J.J. Rutoh finished 12th.
The top 15 varsity runners in each division received a medal and all-league designation.
