The atmosphere at Thomas Worthington High School on Saturday morning was vibrant, focused, and exciting. The 32 high school teams were all eager to race to the best of their abilities. The three races began at 9:30, 10:35, and 11:40. This allowed for all the athletes to have time to get a proper warm-up and cool-down in, and cheer on their teammates before or after they ran their race. The 9:30 race was the varsity team race. At the startling line was Reed Henderson, Colt Whitt, Kellan Durbin, Austin Rhoads, Caiden Blackburn, Ryder Sykes, CJ Jett, Carson Leonard, Ian Duncan, and Jett Eitel. Coming off strong races last weekend at Olentangy Berlin, the guys started out aggressive and ready to compete once again. Continuing his leading for the Vikings, Reed Henderson ran one second off his season best, at a more elevated, and slick course than the week prior. Colt Whitt ran another great race after coming back from his major breakthrough at Olentangy Berlin last weekend. Austin and CJ both ran strong races and looked fresh, despite having soccer practice, or a game every night last week. Caiden Blackburn continued to make his debut cross country season one of impact, by lowering the team average, and PRing while doing so. Carson Leonard raced his first meet back in three weeks and showed that his hard work, and consistency has been working on his behalf. Ryder Sykes ran yet another strong race, negative splitting throughout each mile. Jett Eitel and Ian Duncan kept one another within reach and both ran races that promoted our team goal of, “Run as One.” Earning personal records in the team race was Austin Rhoads (2 second PR), Caiden Blackburn (8 second PR), Carson Leonard (35 second PR), CJ Jett (28 second PR), and Jett Eitel (23 second PR). The 10:35 race was the 11th-12th open race. This one was fun to watch as the guys competed through the finish line. Senior Clark Thompson led the team and earned his season best with junior Xavier Clay not far behind. Dayton Craft earned himself a major achievement as he ran 19:59.2, getting himself closer and closer to the varsity standard. Eli Hilgenberg ran his absolute hardest, earning himself a personal record of 20:16.4, with Josh Langley close by. Lane Myers ran his last race of the season, before transitioning into basketball, with a 11 second PR. Earning personal records in this race was Dayton Craft (37 second PR), Eli Hilgenberg (18 second PR), and Lane Myers (11 second PR). The 11:40 race was the last one of the day, and was the 9th-10th open race. This one was also scored as a team with Kyler Lewis, Kael Thompson, Liam Hill, Declan Furby, and Ami Clay toeing the line. Kyler led this race, running a personal best by 0.1 seconds. Kael Thompson, Liam Hill, Declan Furby, and Ami Clay all ran great races as well by pushing one another to do their very best. Finishing in the top seven last Saturday was Reed Henderson (16:20.7), Colt Whitt (17:54.9), Austin Rhoads (18:15.4), Caiden Blackburn (18:26.5), Kellan Durbin (18:26.9), Carson Leonard (18:41.4), and CJ Jett (18:42.9). The varsity boys finished 19th out of 23. A major “Thank you,” to our bus driver, the Jett and Hilgenberg families for providing our Saturday morning snacks, Heather Rhoads and Julian Davis for taking amazing pictures, and the team for all cheering and encouraging their teammates when not racing. The Vikings will compete in the Ohio Capital Conference (OCC) Buckeye Division on Saturday, October 17th at 1:30 PM at Westerville North High School. Official Results: https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/meet/278216/info