THS boys take second at home invitational

Justin Nutter
The Tonganoxie High boys took second at their home cross country invitational on Tuesday at Tonganoxie Middle School.
The Tonganoxie High cross country team got to run in familiar territory on Tuesday when it played host to several local schools for the Tonganoxie Invitational.
The Chieftain boys finished second in the team standings with a score of 80. Kansas City Christian won the boys title with a score of 59. The THS girls came in fourth with a score of 108. They finished behind champion Topeka-Hayden (26), runner-up Pleasant Ridge (61) and Anderson County (82).
The top 30 finishers in each varsity division earned medals. Garrett French led the Chieftain boys, finishing fifth individually with a time of 17:15. Other THS boys to medal were Jeff Neal (10th, 17:58), Andrew Behm (19th, 18:34), Ethan Phillips (20th, 18:37) and Dylan Staatz (30th, 19:05).
Jake Tollefson (19:50) and Brett Morey (21:45) rounded out the boys individual finishers.
“I was very happy,” coach Phil Williams said. “With our boys, I though if they had a chance to get in the top three, that would be great. They came out with one of their best races of the year.”
Sophia Wetta paced the girls with her 16th-place time of 16:38. Other medalists were Emily Williams (22nd, 16:51), Nicole Zerrer (24th, 16:55) and Tressa Walker (25th, 16:57). They were followed by Amanda Shepley (17:43), Alissa Donnelly (18:06) and Shelby Fatherley (18:39).
“I thought (the girls) ran very well,” Williams said. “Hayden won it and Pleasant Ridge is pretty good, so I was very pleased with fourth. Just like the boys, they kept their gaps much closer together than they had been.”
The Chieftains will be back in action at 10 a.m. Saturday when they run at the Rim Rock Invitational in Lawrence.
Middle school runners find success at home
The Tonganoxie Middle School runners had several strong individual performances at Tuesday’s home meet. The Warriors combined for seven top-20 finishes at the meet, which took place near the middle school.
Zeb Huseman led the seventh-grade boys with a time of 5:50.9, good enough for third place overall. Bowen Jones (6:03) and Chandler Hamman (6:05) joined Huseman in the top 10, coming in sixth and eighth, respectively.
Erin Williams was the only TMS seventh-grader in the girls race. She finished 18th with a time of 6:56.
Eighth-grader Drew Cook took third in the boys race with a team-best time of 11:55. Isabella Behm (14:14) and Emily Chambers (14:27) led the girls with their sixth- and eighth-place finishes.
Girls team results
- Topeka-Hayden, 26; 2. Pleasant Ridge, 61; 3. Anderson County, 82; 4. Tonganoxie, 108; 5. Bishop Ward, 138; 6. Spring Hill, 142; 7. Kansas City Christian, 170; 8. Jeff West, 212.
Boys team results
- Kansas City Christian, 59; 2. Tonganoxie, 80; 3. Jeff West, 90; 4. Topeka-Hayden, 96; 5. Anderson County, 98; 6. Spring Hill 137; 7. Piper, 169; 8. Pleasant Ridge, 171.
Girls Top 10 results
- Rachel Ash, KCC, 15:21; 2. Mary Kate Franklin, HAY, 15:26; 3. Peyton Finley, HAY, 15:30; 4. Sarah Pimintel, HAY, 15:34; 5. Maria Doyle, HAY, 15:36; 6. Amanda Moody, AND, 15:49; 7. Rachel Hattok, PR, 15:55; 8. Katherine Culbertson, MAN, 15:58; 9. Isabel Sibley, AND, 16:03; 10. Hailey Worthington, PR, 16:04.
Boys Top 10 results
- Tony Weber, PR, 16:15; 2. Eli Alholm, KCC, 17:05; 3. Michael Gallagher, SH, 17:07; 4. Michael Hanson, SH, 17:12; 5. Garrett French, TON, 17:15; 6. Jacob Klemz, HAY, 17:22; 7. Nicholas Beach, KCC, 17:32; 8. Sam Livesy, MAN, 17:35; 9. Stephen Kaufman, AND, 17:39; 10. Jeff Neal, TON, 17:58.
TMS seventh-grade results
BOYS: Zeb Huseman, 5:50.9; Bowen Jones, 6:03; Chandler Hamman, 6:05; Gage Smith, 7:15; Steven Arguyo, 7:28.9; Tanner Walden, 8:19.9; Colton Aaron, 8:31. GIRLS: Erin Williams, 6:56.
TMS eighth-grade results
BOYS: Drew Cook, 11:55; Brock Ladesik, 13:39; Tommy Wetta, 13:40; Josiah Papa, 14:22; Nick French, 15:59; Luke Falk, 16:16; Jayden Kuzmic, 16:43; Gage Langston, 17:11. GIRLS: Isabella Behm, 14:14; Emily Chambers, 14:27; Anahi Puebla, 15:12; Grace Woods, 18:36; Ricki Griffith, 20:28.
- The Tonganoxie High boys took second at their home cross country invitational on Tuesday at Tonganoxie Middle School.