First-year Belleville Christian earns district title

18 local harriers bound for states

PORTAGE -- Belleville Christian started a cross country program this fall. By Saturday afternoon, its boys had won a District 6 championship and earned a trip to the PIAA Championships in Newville.

The smallest PIAA school in District 6 scored 62 points to win the Class A title at Maple Crest Golf Course, beating defending champion Marion Center by 22. Belleville Christian's seven state qualifiers led a local contingent of 18 that also included Juniata's entire girls team and four individual qualifiers from Juniata and Mifflin County.

Belleville Christian

Even coach Scott Falkner didn't expect that margin. He anticipated a three-team fight with Marion Center and United that might come down to a tiebreaker.

"We won by 22, which was a huge surprise," Falkner said. "This was an amazing accomplishment by some very gritty athletes. This obviously set the bar very high for the future of the program."

Many Thunder runners also play soccer, leaving the district's smallest PIAA school with a limited pool for two fall sports. Falkner called the championship "an amazing example of what friends can accomplish together."

Collin Hartzler led Belleville Christian by placing sixth in 17:29.6. Cade Yoder finished 13th in 17:58.5, Grant Yoder was 19th in 18:24.8, and Ethan Renno placed 20th in 18:29.

Devin Yoder finished 34th in 19:10.9, Elijah Stoltzfus placed 44th in 19:29.2, and Ethan Miller was 92nd in 23:47.4. All seven advanced to Saturday's PIAA championships at Big Spring High School in Newville.

Falkner said Renno "had the race of his life" and Devin Yoder produced his best race to secure the championship.

"This was a complete team effort," Falkner said. "The state meet as a team was the goal all season. They were not interested in individuals making states. It had to be as a team."

Bishop Carroll's Noah Knobloch won his second straight Class A boys title in 15:48.7. Richland's Natalia Mavridis captured the girls’ race in 18:28.8.

Juniata

The Juniata girls entered the meet seeded fourth, according to coach Jeff Miller. They left Portage with 119 points, a runner-up finish and the first state berth for a girls’ team in the program's 10-year history.

Miller said he hadn't told the runners before the race that a team berth was within reach. "Everybody had a good day," he said. "That was probably the key to it."

Carolyn Heidenreich placed 10th in 20:20.6, Hannah Wirt was 11th in 20:42.3, and Hannah Zeiders finished 14th in 21:01.7. Juliet Heidenreich placed 32nd in 22:10.6 after improving by about a minute, Miller said.

Charlotte Barner finished 56th in 24:35.3, Marissa Henry was 57th in 24:38.9, and Darcy Griffiths placed 60th in 24:59.8. The entire Juniata lineup advanced, and every runner is eligible to return next season.

Josiah Barner and David Mayall-Marker gave Juniata two more qualifiers in the Class AA boys’ race. Barner placed eighth in 16:59, while Mayall-Marker finished 13th in 17:10.4.

Miller ran the course before the girls’ race and warned his runners about its hills and sharp turns. Despite that warning, Barner covered the opening mile faster than he ever had.

"It was basically a suffer-fest from mile one," Miller said. "It was a guts race."

Barner moved between seventh and 10th after that opening mile before securing eighth. Mayall-Marker also went out hard but maintained his position through the second half.

Coy Kerstetter placed 22nd in 17:42.9, missing the final individual berth by one place and 1.9 seconds. Miller urged him to respond when another runner passed with about 150 meters remaining, but Kerstetter couldn't regain the position.

Elliott Miller was 40th in 19:06.9, Joel Hardin finished 41st in 19:07.6, John Randolph placed 51st in 20:21.4, and Luke Weiand was 52nd in 20:24. Juniata finished fifth with 116 points.

Forest Hills' Bella Ascherl won the Class AA girls’ race in 18:25. Bellefonte's Jonathan Gasper claimed the boys title in 15:33.7.

Mifflin County

Wyatt Kauffman and Hoyt Rodenbaugh returned to the state meet by placing fourth and sixth in the Class AAA boys’ race. Kauffman finished in 15:21.8, and Rodenbaugh crossed in 15:42.3.

"They both ran really sound races," Mifflin County coach Alex Monroe said. "Nothing is promised in the sport, but man, they needed this one."

Rodenbaugh separated from Kauffman early without realizing it. The best friends found each other about a third of the way through the race and held on as the first two individual qualifiers outside the winning team.

Koy Aurand placed 14th in 17:06.2, Craig Whitenight was 15th in 17:10.4, and Aidan Scavitti finished 21st in 17:27.2. Camryn Treaster placed 26th in 17:56.9. Logan Breneman finished 27th in 17:59.5. The Huskies placed second with 60 points.

"No Friday night lights and no fanfare," Monroe said. "Just hard work day in and day out for a chance at greatness."

The Mifflin County girls finished fourth with 78 points, nine points behind Altoona. Elissa Bell led the Huskies with a ninth-place finish in 19:26.7, missing a state berth by one place.

Esperanza Bargas placed 13th in 19:54.8, Daliyah Bargas was 15th in 20:23.8, and Liberty Cook finished 17th in 20:31.4. Madalyn Yoder placed 24th in 21:44.4, Jovie Kauffman was 31st in 22:08.6, and Abigail Anderson finished 34th in 22:27.9.

The unfamiliar course brought plenty of unknowns, but coach Kristin Kauffman said the girls trusted their training and raced without fear.

"What makes me most proud is the way these girls have learned to run for one another," Kauffman said. "They've seen firsthand what hard work, consistency, discipline, and believing in each other can accomplish."

State College's Luke Bradbury won the Class AAA boys race in 14:38.7. Williamsport's Isabelle Sanders captured the girls title in 17:42.7.

Mount Union

Anthony Cook represented Mount Union in the Class AA boys’ race, finishing 46th in 19:37.1. Vada Banks placed 47th for the Trojans in the Class A girls’ race with a time of 23:35.1.