Heath High School Boys Cross Country

No words.

Well we were sure hoping for better results today at the OHSAA State Championships, but I refuse to let it define the fabulous season our runners had!!! The team placed 15th in the team standings today, and quite honestly we just didn’t run as well as we thought we would. The hardest part of having a subpar day at this level is you don’t get the opportunity to pick yourself up, dust off, and use the experience to be better the next week.

That being said, what a great season these young men had!!! They finished the year as LCL Champs, Central District Champs, and as Regional Runner-Ups to a powerful Unioto team. These accomplishments were only possible due to the result of the tremendous amount of hard work these kids put in during very uncertain times. I could honestly not be more proud of not only their accomplishments but the work ethic they demonstrated during such crazy times in our world.

The hardest part of today is saying goodbye to our Seniors. They leave our program after being part of 4 LCL and District Championships, as well as 4 straight trips to the OHSAA State Championships. They have left quite a legacy, but I am most proud of the way they always represented our program.

I constantly tell our kids from the time they enter our program that when it is all said and done, I hope when they leave it was about a lot more than just the running. As I stood there watching all the tears flowing, it did give me satisfaction knowing it obviously was. The disappointment of the race had long passed, but the pain of knowing this chapter of their lives had come to a close was very evident. I love you guys, and thanks for everything you have given.

Exciting day Saturday, but back to work today...and CHOCOLATE MILK of course!!!!

When the team began putting in the tremendous number of miles required to be successful way back on June 1, they were told they would not be ready to run at their best until the last week of October at the Regional Championships. Saturday, they indeed turned in their best race of the season to this point and came away with a Regional Runner-Up trophy and a sixth consecutive birth at the OHSAA Championships!!!

We placed four runners on the All-Regional team, and Michael Imbody showed up huge with a MUCH improved race to cement the team’s second place finish. Competing against 168 runners who all had to qualify to run in the race, Jack Lutz (15th), Preston Pethtel (18th), Andrew Williamson (24th), and Aidan Schaffer (28th) all returned with individual medals. Michael Imbody rounded out our team scoring with an impressive 62nd place finish. Also competing were Sophomores Jake Elam placing 76th and Jonah Williamson 107th.

We will compete at the OHSAA Championships next Saturday at Fortress Obetz, and are extremely excited for the opportunity. Congratulations fellas!!!!

The team won their sixth consecutive Central District Championship over the weekend, with Jack Lutz leading the way with a Runner-Up finish in a time of 16:40. Also earning First Team All-District honors were Andrew Williamson placing 5th (16:58), Preston Pethtel 6th (16:59), and Aidan Schaffer 9th (17:09). Jake Elam saved his best race of the year for Saturday and rounded out team scoring by placing 26th in a time of 18:09. Also competing were Michael Imbody placing 27th and Jonah Williamson 29th.

We will compete next week at the Regionals held at Pickerington North High School, where they will be attempting to solidify a spot at the State Championships for the sixth consecutive season.

One of our quirky traditions is celebrating post-season successes with chocolate milk the day after...Coach Brown is truly the last of the big time spenders!!!!

The team ran at the LCL Championships Saturday, and came back with their sixth consecutive LCL title. The team also had the individual champion for the sixth consecutive year as well, as Jack Lutz cruised to the victory by 12 seconds in a time of 16:30. Also earning First Team All-LCL honors were Andrew Williamson placing 3rd (16:58), Preston Pethtel 4th (16:59), and Aidan Schaffer 5th (17:03). Earning Third Team All-LCL honors were Michael Imbody placing 15th, Jonah Williamson 16th, and Jacob Elam 18th.

In the Reserve race, Seth Mitchell placed 2nd out of 72 runners in a time of 18:53. Also competing was Wyatt Lawson finishing 17th (19:54), Tucker See 21st (20:15), Michael Pineda 43rd (21:57), and Long Lin 60th (23:24).

Our post-season journey continues next week as we travel to Hilliard Darby High School for the Central District Championships.

The team wrapped up its regular season schedule today by winning the championship at the Panther XC Invitational at Pickerington North High School. It was a great day as we placed FOUR runners in the top 10 out of 136 runners. We faced some quality competition, and we feel very good about where we are at heading into the postseason! We always look forward to this meet as it is a great “prep race” to give us a run on the Pickerington North Regional course, which never runs fast but always provides us with great competition.

Jack Lutz once again led the way with a 3rd place finish (16:48), with Preston Pethtel placing 8th (17:11), Andrew Williamson 9th (17:14), and Aidan Schaffer 10th (17:22). Michael Imbody rounded out team scoring with a 19th place finish (17:49). Also earning individual award plaques were Jonah Williamson placing 22nd and Jake Elam 26th.
Also racing today were Wyatt Lawson placing 82nd (19:58), Seth Mitchell 86th (20:02), Tucker See 97th (20:42), Michael Pineda 122nd (22:38), and Long Lin 128th (23:29).

It is now time for what motivates our kids to put in all the miles they do throughout the year…the postseason!!!! We will be shooting for our 6th consecutive LCL title on October 17th and Central District title the 24th.

Just a pack of Dogs out for a morning run together at the Don Hardin!!!!

The team ran at its lone home meet of the year today, the Don Hardin Invitational, and earned the championship trophy. Jack Lutz led the way by taking the individual championship in a time of 16:47, with our pack finishing closely behind. Preston Pethtel placed third (17:20), Aidan Schaffer fourth (17:23), Andrew Williamson fifth (17:28), and Michael Imbody sixth (17:47) to round out team scoring. Times were not blistering today, which is to be expected for our course at Geller Park, but we continue to improve and frankly learned some valuable lessons that will pay off down the road.

Also running today were Jonah Williamson just missing out on a medal by placing 11th, Jake Elam 16th, Seth Mitchell 18th, Wyatt Lawson 21st, Tucker See 27th, Michael Pineda 32nd and Long Lin 33rd.

We also honored our Seniors today following the day’s races. There is a lot of season to go, and a LOT of goals remain for us to shoot for. However, it was nice to show our appreciation for everything they have done for our program. This group has been very fortunate to have been part of many exciting accomplishment enjoyed by our teams the past four years, but I got a great deal of satisfaction listening to what most of them shared as their fondest memories. There was very little mentioned about placings or trophies, but a lot said about simply the time spent with their cross country family. As is with the case of their predecessors before them, they have heard since the first day they enter the program, “I hope when you leave our program, it was about a lot more than just the running”. I am glad it has been, and love them all a great deal.

Enough of the “mushy” talk…we will be back at work Monday continuing our quest to improve. We have one last meet at Pickerington North next Saturday before we head into our postseason!

The team ran at the Newark Invitational today and came away with the championship trophy, defeating 11 schools including strong teams from Pickerington Central and Granville. Jack Lutz led the way by finishing 2nd overall (16:41), with Andrew Williamson 7th (16:59) and Aidan Schaffer 9th (17:05) also turning in Top 10 performances. Rounding out team scoring was Preston Pethtel finishing a much-improved 13th (17:12) and Michael Imbody 21st (17:33). Another of our runners earning individual honors by “medaling” was Jonah Williamson with a 28th place finish (17:52). Also running in the Varsity race were Jake Elam placing 51st (18:20) and Wyatt Lawson placing 78th (19:29).

In the Open race Seth Mitchell lead the way with an 8th place finish in a time of 18:49. Freshmen Tucker See and Michael Pineda continued showing great improvement, with See placing 55th (20:48) and Pineda 99th (22:55). All three of these finishes resulted in “personal best” times. Running his “season-best” time was Long Lin who placed 99th in a time of 23:49.

The team continues working hard and we are striving to get better every week. It was great to see the kids rewarded for a tremendous amount of hard work with a championship trophy earned against some very quality competition. We will enjoy today, but be back at it Monday training to keep things moving in the right direction!!!