Courtesy of Shari Miller

On a near perfect day for distance racing, the Juniata boys and girls cross country teams competed against Mifflin County and Williamsport in Reedsville on Thursday, October 17th.

In the first race of the day, senior Wyatt Stroup led the Indians to a second place overall with a time of 16:17.  Shortly after, teammate senior Joey Bomberger come in 3rd with a time of 16:33.  Senior Wesley Ehrisman placed 5th with a time of 17:18, sophomore Coy Kerstetter ran to a 13th place finish with a time of 18:12 and senior Teagan Trout rounded out the scoring with a 14th place finish in a time of 18:25.  Junior Kade Wagner placed 16th with a time of 18:55.  Freshman Josiah Barner was 18th with a time of 19:02.  Sophomore Joel Hardin placed 25th with a time of 20:32.  Freshman David Mayall-Marker was 26th with a time of 20:39 and senior Luke Fowler was 28th with a time of 21:23.  “I told the kids when we arrived in Reedsville it was nearly perfect weather to run a 5k and to take advantage of it because you never know what the weather will be like next week at Districts on this same course” Juniata Coach Jeff Miller said.  “Nearly every boy ran a person best today except Joey and Wyatt and that was because I had them help pace teammates and do a workout within the race.  Wesley has a season best and looked good tonight.  They all ran with heart and that’s all you can ask for as a coach.”  Juniata took a win against Williamsport 21 – 34, but fell to Mifflin County 29 – 26 in boys team competition.

In the girls race, sophomore Sylvia Brubaker took the lead from the gun and never looked back taking the win with a new personal best time of 18:32.  Freshman Carolyn Heidenreich was next for the Indians with a 5th place finish in a new personal best time of 21:30.  Freshman Hannah Zeiders came in shortly after in 7th place with a new personal best time of 21:37.  Sophomore Hannah Book placed 17th with a time of 25:33 and senior Jessie Bomberger rounded out the scoring with a 20th place finish in a time of 28:18.  “The girls were on fire tonight.  They all gave it their best for the day and walked away proud of their performances.  I was glad to see Sylvia take charge of the race and run a time I knew she was capable of.  Hannah Zeiders and Carolyn impressed me with the way they raced tonight.  I seen them many times throughout the race and could tell they were going for a fast time.  Hannah Book ran a season best and put in a great effort tonight.  Jessie has missed nearly the entire season with an injury so it was great to have her on the starting line tonight.  Shari and I love having her on the team and so do all the kids.  She’s had some tough times with running, but never gives up.” Juniata Coach Jeff Miller said.  The girls took a win against Mifflin County 27 – 28, but lost against Williamsport 30 – 25 in the girls team competition.