WL-S Cross Country Shines at Columbus Grove Invitational

The WL-S Varsity Boys Cross Country team after their Columbus Grove Invitational Championship on Saturday.

The West Liberty-Salem Big Orange cross country program turned in an outstanding performance at the Columbus Grove Invitational on Saturday morning, with varsity, junior varsity, and junior high athletes all delivering strong results against top competition.

Varsity Boys
The Tiger boys, ranked No. 3 in Division III, captured the Red Division championship with 64 points, edging Bryan (73) and Findlay (123).
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Sophomore Asher Cole highlighted the day with a school-record run of 15:31.5, finishing 2nd overall. He broke the record previously held by teammate Caleb Larson, who placed 3rd in 15:42.3. Rounding out the varsity scoring were Brayan Gullett (11th, 16:27 PR), Dylan King (13th, 16:32 SB), and Owen Hardwick (35th, 17:16 PR).

Other varsity contributors included Garrett Wallen (49th, 17:53 SB) and Eric Hoover (62nd, 18:08 PR).

The varsity boys now hold a 20-0 meet record and 35-0 season record.

Junior Varsity Boys
The JV squad finished 5th out of 14 teams, led by Zac Carter (9th, 18:52 SB). Other top performances came from Gauge Lee (18th, 19:15), Zeke Sidders (28th, 19:41 PR), and Landon McKenzie (52nd, 20:39 PR). The JV now sits at 9-4 on the season.

​Coach’s Comments
“The guys took full advantage of amazing weather and strong competition to put up some fast times,” said coach Mike Louden. “We had eight career personal records today, highlighted by Asher breaking the school record. I’m extremely proud of the way he and Caleb continue to push each other. It was an amazing day all around for both varsity and JV.”

Varsity Girls
The WL-S girls placed 3rd out of 19 teams in a highly competitive Red Division field that featured six state-ranked squads.

Leading the way were Malia Miller (12th, 19:36), Addi Wallen (20th, 20:17), Isla Leichty (21st, 20:18), Gwen McCullough (27th, 20:42), and Ivy Matthews (46th, 21:30).
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The Big Orange scored 122 points, trailing only Lancaster (62, ranked #5 D1) and Ottawa-Glandorf (91, ranked #5 D3).

Milo Matthews leads the WL-S junior high CC team with a 5th place finish, followed closely behind by Caizen Anders (6th) and Zeke Lauck (7th).

Junior High Boys & Girls
The WL-S junior high boys took 2nd place out of 20 teams with 51 points, just behind Botkins (44). They were led by Milo Matthews (5th, 11:35), Caizen Anders (6th, 11:40), and Zeke Lauck (7th, 11:43), giving the Big Orange three runners in the top 7. Saturday's field featured 213 junior high boys.

Junior High Boys Team Scores:
1st - Botkins 44
2nd - West Liberty-Salem 51
3rd - Van Wert 51
4th - Minster 186
5th - Liberty Benton 205
6th - Lincolnview 240

WL-S Finishers:
Milo Matthews (5th) 11:35
Caizen Anders (6th) 11:40
Zeke Lauck (7th) 11:43
Chafer Matthews (15th) 11:58
Liam Harrington (30th) 12:38
Raylan Wulf (31st) 12:47
Lance Hinds (57th) 13:19
Harrison Sutherin (60th) 13:25
Wyatt Brooks (93rd) 14:16
Jacob Bahan (94th) 14:22
Mason Hinds (113th) 14:47
Jett Ziegler (135th) 15:12
Wyatt Phelps (144th) 15:31
Malachi Titus (146th) 15:38
Bryce Michael (150th) 15:54
Connor Watson (152th) 16:07
Gabriel Wilson (176th) 17:27
Jude Roberts (203rd) 20:30

The WL-S junior high girls were paced by 7th grader Nika Matthews who placed 8th overall with a PR of 12:45.

The junior high girls placed 4th out of 15 teams, paced by Nika Matthews (8th, 12:45), Elayna Hoover (15th, 13:07), and Elin Leichty (18th, 13:09). There were 171 runners in the junior high girls race.

Up Next
The Big Orange Varsity teams will be back in action on Saturday, September 13th, at the Troy Twilight Invitational. The junior high teams hit the course again next Saturday, September 6th at Spencerville before joining the Varsity teams again on the 13th at Troy.

WL-S junior high girls' finishers:
Nika Matthews (8th) 12:45
Elayna Hoover (15th) 13:07
Elin Leichty (18th) 13:09
Iris Meister (42nd) 14:18
Emily Finch (80th) 15:31
Violet Kauffman (157th) 20:14
Issabella Meyers (164th) 22:08