Indians have strong showing at Early Bird Preseason Invitational

Along with hundreds of teams from around Ohio and over 2,000 athletes, the Hillsboro Indians opened the cross-country season at the highly competitive Early Bird Preseason Invitational, held Saturday, Aug. 18 at Fortress Obetz.

Opening the day for the Indians were junior newcomer Alizeh Hudson and sophomore Claire Winkle. Running in the Open 2-Mile race, Hudson finished in 41st place with a time of 17:33. Winkle finished a little more than a minute later at 18:42, good for 67th place.

Hillsboro Lady Indians coach Rob Snavely, was pleased with his runners.

“Alizeh and Claire both did well in their first race of the year,” said Snavely. “After just a few weeks of conditioning, Alizeh finished in the top third of the runners and has a lot of potential to see her times come down this year. And Claire probably ran the fastest two miles of her career. She started the race aggressively, and it showed by the end of the race.”

Four Lady Indians competed in the Team 5000-Meter Race. In a race with more than 400 runners, juniors Taylor Thoroman and Kennedy Sexton led the way. Thoroman finished in 75th place with a time of 23:39 and Sexton completed her run at 24:52, good for 122nd place.

Less than a minute behind was senior Abbey Letts. Letts crossed the finish line in 151st place at 25:31. Brynne Holsted, a sophomore and Hillsboro’s final runner in the race, finished at 27:58 to earn 213th place.

“It was pretty hot and difficult conditions to run in,” said Snavely. “I think our team is in better shape this year than we have been in the past. We just need to stay steady and work hard. I was especially excited to see Abbey Letts come out and run a 25:31. I know she was disappointed in practice with her time. I kept telling her that she was faster than what she ran at practice. Very happy with Abbey’s hard work.”

As the sun blazed overhead, the men’s team took to the course and came away with several outstanding performances and finished in first place, defeating nine other teams.

Competing in the Open 5000-Meter Run, four Indians placed in the Top 16 to earn medals. Leading the way was senior Corbin Winkle. Winkle, a state qualifier in 2023, placed second with a time of 17:46.

Indians coach Ed Letts praised Winkle’s performance.

“Corbin was in a tough spot when he lost contact of the lead runner, and he was left running on his own most of the race,” Letts said. “I look forward to seeing what he can do when pressed a little more. He’s had a great summer of training and I think he’ll have a solid year.”

Sophomore Rason Brunck was the second Indian runner to complete the race. Brunck ran the course in 18:41 for 4th place.  A short distance behind, junior Ryan Howland followed to earn 12th place with a time of 19:10. Senior Chris Sowders rounded out the Indian medalists in 16th place by running a 19:23.

Rounding out the efforts for the team were Cooper Swope who earned 46th place (21:57), Trenton Gulley with 66th place (23:24) and Jayden Wells at 69th place and a time of 23:40.

“I was pleased with Ryan Howland and Rason Brunck,” said Coach Letts. “I thought they had a good opening race as well. I’m also proud of the way Cooper Swope hung in there today. He’s had a rough go at it lately with a bad back. But he stayed competitive and rounded out the win. We were only seven points ahead of the second-place team, so he came through nicely as our No. 5 runner. I thought the boys had a solid first race. Anytime you can win a meet, it’s a good thing.”

The Indians will travel to Greenfield and compete in the McClain Invitational on Aug. 24.

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