Fairfield 5 November 2017

Fairfield Lions 4th at state cross-country for 2nd consecutive year

By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com

HEBRON — The Fairfield Lions proved once again they are one of the top teams in the state by placing fourth overall at the 2017 OHSAA State Cross-Country Championships.

In the Division III state race — run at National Trail Raceway — the Lions didn’t have the overall finish they wanted or had in mind, but overall they continued their consistency of having productive seasons in 2017, plus they ran a better total team time at 1:24:47 than they did one year ago when they were also fourth at state.

The fourth-place finish saw the Lions score 158 points, trailing eventual Division III state championships East Canton at 120 points. McDonald was second with 140 points, and Columbus Academy was third with 144 points. There were a total of 20 schools in the race and a total of 183 runners in the Division III event.

During the race the Lions were fifth place after the one-mile split and then third place at the two-mile split.

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One Fairfield runner in senior Noah Richmond finished in 11th place overall for the second consecutive year. This year, Richmond had a time of 16:16.9, with the senior using every ounce of energy he had to complete the race, allowing him to reach the podium for the second straight year for All-Ohio honors.

At the two-mile split, Richmond was 22nd at 10:31.1, and at the one-mile split he was 39th at 5:06.8.

Next for the Lions was senior Matthew Mangus in 33rd place with a time of 16:46.4, having a one-mile split of 5:08.1 (47th place) and a two-mile split of 10:37.7 (31st overall).

Junior Bennett Hodson finished in 59th place with a time of 17:01.3, as he was in 70th place overall when the two-mile split occurred and 85th (10:53.7) when the one-mile split was recorded at 5:16.9.

FHS junior Austin Setty ended the day 86th overall with a time of 17:19.2, having a two-mile split of 10:56.3 (79th) and a one-mile split of 5:13.8 (75th overall).

Senior Andrew Davis was 89th place for the Lions, finishing with a final time of 17:22.7. The senior had a two-mile split of 11:08.8 (99th place) and a one-mile split of 5:21.5 (111th place).

Next for the Lions was junior Brandtson Duffie in 119th place at 17:52.7, with the junior having a two-mile split of 11:09.7 (101st) and a one-mile split of 5:18.6 (99th).

Wrapping up the scoring for the Lions was sophomore Ethan Davis with a time of 17:56.2 for 127th place overall. Davis had a two-mile split of 11:25.7 (128th) and a one-mile split of 5:26.0 (135th).

Besides the Top 5 finish as a team at state, the Lions also won their seventh consecutive Southern Hills Athletic Conference (SHAC) championship, their seventh consecutive SE District championship and their second straight regional championship.

In each of the past five years, the Lions have placed in the state championships, starting in 2013 with a 15th-place finish (1:31:11.64), followed in 2014 with a 16th-place finish (1:31:33.26). In 2015, the Lions had an eighth-place finish (1:26:25), and in 2016 the Lions were fourth at 1:24:41.

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