The cross country season concluded Saturday with all five runners in the program competing at the state championships.
The runners took on Hershey’s challenging 5k course that winds up and down the hills of a former golf course. Only those that qualified at district championships are eligible to run it.
Daniel Ringenberg capped his best season with a strong effort in his first trip to states. The senior captain placed 82nd out of 267 in the boys A division. He finished in 19:01, faster than Josh Bauman ’21 ran at states in 2020 and placed higher than Matt Birch, who was 96th in 2018.
Aaron Sensenig made his first trip to the states as well. The sophomore who will star as the lead in the school’s musical production of “Elf,” bettered his personal record for the Hershey course when he ran 21:02 for 212th.
Marlyse Giesbrecht concluded her cross country career by placing 141st in the girls A division in her first time at the state championships. The senior co-captain ran 24:06, which was more than a minute faster than she had run on the course previously.
Maddy Churches finished her second trip to the state meet in 223rd in 27:26. Returning for a third career trip will be a big goal for the co-captain who missed more than a month of her junior season before being cleared to run in time for the Bicentennial Athletic League Championships three weeks ago and districts.
Bobby Jo Dodds held the lead in the girls race for the first 700 meters in her first state championships. The senior went on to place 232nd in 27:41 in her final cross country race.