Delmott, Reynolds place 2nd; EHS boys win Manhattan Invitational
By Michael Ashford
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Displaying the depth that is expected to make it one of the top teams in the state this season, the No. 2-ranked (Class 5A) Emporia High boys cross country team came away with a season-opening first-place finish Saturday at the Manhattan Invitational.
Led by the second-place showing of senior Asher Delmott, who completed the 5-kilometer course in 16 minutes, 45.01 seconds, the Emporia High boys totaled 57 team points to clip Manhattan (69) by 12 points. The Spartan boys defeated four ranked teams on the day: Manhattan, ranked fourth in 6A; Lawrence, ranked fifth in 6A; Lawrence Free State, ranked seventh in 6A; and Seaman, ranked sixth in 5A.
On the girls side, EHS finished sixth as a team, with senior Michaela Reynolds pacing the squad with a second-place finish in a time of 14:57.01 over the 4K course.
Seniors Mike Robinson and Tyler Anliker joined Delmott in the boys’ top-10, as Robinson came in fourth in a time of 16:59.88 and Anliker finished seventh in 17:09.61.
Senior Jacob Davies did not run in the race because of a swollen knee caused by a spider bite, denying the Spartans of what could have been another top-10 finisher.
Senior Andrew Wayman was 19th (17:52.64) and junior Tavo Dikin was 25th (18:06.24) to finish out the Spartans’ scoring, and senior Andrew Heermann (45th, 19:05.73) rounded out the EHS field.
The victory for the EHS boys was their sixth consecutive season-opening win as a team.
Reynolds was the lone placer for the EHS girls, finishing 12 seconds behind Manhattan’s Marley Crusch. The Lady Spartans were short-handed, however, as Jenna Stanbrough and Abby Lake — the team’s No. 2 and No. 3 runners — were held out of the race.
Joslyn Barton finished 37th (18:21.16), Katie Weaver came in 39th (18:22.91), Caesie Reynolds placed 44th (18:41.08), Tanya Morales finished 46th (18:41.53) and Liliana Morales placed 50th (19:06.86).
The EHS girls finished with 160 team points, 24 points behind fifth-place Washburn Rural. Manhattan won the team title with 39 points.
Also of note, sophomore Lance Sadler and freshmen Tyler Tilton and Jack Heim went 1-3-5 in the boys JV race to give EHS a sweep of the boys team races.
The EHS cross country teams next will play host to their home invitational at 9 a.m. Saturday at Jones Park. The field will be a tough one, as five ranked teams on both the boys and girls sides are expected to compete.
Manhattan Invitational
Saturday at Manhattan
Boys Team Scores
1. Emporia 57, 2. Manhattan 69, 3. Junction City 90, 4. Lawrence 98, 5. Washburn Rural 135, 6. Shawnee Heights 170, 7. Lawrence Free State 174, 8. Topeka West 191, 9. Seaman 193, 10. Topeka 228, 11. Leavenworth 270.
Individual results — 5K race
1. Dylan Hedges, Lawrence, 16:43.46; 2. Asher Delmott, Emporia, 16:45.01; 3. Brian Hageman, Washburn Rural, 16:59.46; 4. Mike Robinson, Emporia, 16:59.88; 5. Logan Sloan, Free State, 17:02.21; 7. Tyler Anliker, Emporia, 17:09.61; 19. Andrew Wayman, Emporia, 17:52.64; 25. Octavio Dikin, Emporia, 18:06.24; 45. Andrew Heermann, Emporia, 19:05.73.
Girls Team Scores
1. Manhattan 39, 2. Lawrence Free State 60, 3. Seaman 85, 4. Lawrence 109, 5. Washburn Rural 136, 6. Emporia 160, 7. Newton 164, 8. Shawnee Heights 175, 9. Leavenworth 178.
Individual results — 4K race
1. Marley Crusch, Manhattan, 14:45.25; 2. Michaela Reynolds, Emporia, 14:57.01; 3. Kyra Kilwein, Free State, 15:36.38; 4. Caroline Hale, Shawnee Heights, 15:48.04; 5. Erica Testa, Junction City, 15:59.79; 37. Joslyn Barton, Emporia, 18:21.16; 39. Katie Weaver, Emporia, 18:22.91; 44. Caesie Reynolds, Emporia, 18:41.08; 46. Tanya Morales, Emporia, 18:41.53; 50. Liliana Morales, Emporia, 19:06.86.