Otsego Invitational

These girls continue to show grit, and I love it! In last season’s Otsego Invitational we placed 12th, but this year we moved up four places to 8th. More importantly, of the teams in our region we were second. By no means does this mean we will get second in our region, but it lets us know we are legitimately in the hunt to be in the top three. However, it will be no easy task, and we will have to be very strong on the day. We beat out Coldwater and Marshal today, each by just two points (they tied), and South Christian was not there who we barely beat out in our first OK Gold Jamboree. To me, this all good news. Again, it tells me we are in a competitive position for the regional meet.

The Otsego course is a fast one where many get season or personal bests, but it’s fast for everyone, so regardless of times, we were competitive with the teams we needed to be. Knowing we would not be in contention for any trophies, I did not want to put targets on any team’s backs. I wanted us to race the race we were in, and let the chips fall where they may. I also did not want to bring too much attention to Coldwater or Marshal because I didn’t want the girls to go deep into the well to beat these teams...yet. That time will come, but it wasn’t today. 

With all of this said, there was a lot of really good racing going on today. In the varsity race sophomore, Jessica Durkee (20:19), who didn’t have the race she wanted, but took care of business on the pointy end of the race, which is a critical component to our success. Next was sophomore Kendall Snyder (21:04) who ran a season best, but more importantly, it reminded her of what she is capable of, and what she can do for our team. Following Kendall was Audrey Meyering (21:20), which was a season best for her, and this was also an indication of the kind of performance she can put together. I know Audrey can be faster still, even on more challenging courses, and it was good to see her continuing to head in this direction. Next was freshman Lucy VanDemark (21:25), who was only a few seconds off her season best time, and had a great race for us today. Following her was freshman Maddie Nagel (21:30), who also chipped away at her season best and gutted out a great effort. Next was senior Elizabeth Meyering (21:44), dropping a season best, and showing signs of what she is capable of, and putting in a strong performance. Elizabeth ran very well and she is strong in body and mind, and we’ll need that deeper into the season, so hopefully this gave her additional confidence while traveling this road. Rounding out the varsity race for us freshman Lindsey Velting (22:54), who matched her previous race time, but wasn’t her season best. She’s another that has shown she’s capable of more, and not every race is going to be a diamond, but she still had a strong performance given what she had on the day.

In the junior varsity race, sophomore Ainsely Oliver (22:31) had herself a great race and led the charge. Although she was in the JV race, placed 7th for us, in varsity position. This is what I know Ainsley is capable of and I expect she will be shaking up the proverbial apple cart deeper into the season. Following here was sophomore Kelsey Smith (22:48) who also laid down a season best, in a real strong showing. She’s another one who may challenge for a varsity spot as the season progresses. Next was freshman Emma Thompson (22:59), who raced a season best as well. She is stronger than she thinks she is, and I think the more she develops more of a killer instinct, the strong she will be. Following Emma was sophomore Shayne Krystyniak (24:05) who was not about to be left out of the season best party. She ran great and is also one who has yet to realize her potential as a runner. Next was junior Haven Beyer (24:41) who ran really well, while battling some leg muscle issues. Following her was senior Gracie DeWent (25:01), who didn’t have her fastest day, but in true Gracie form, she never backed down, and gave what she had on the day. Rounding out our JV top seven was Spaniard Clara Argenta-Laorga (25:11), who ran tough and was only one second off her season’s best. Following her were junior Megan Bargy (26:29), sophomore Olivia Landry (27:58), who got herself back under 28-minutes, and senior Kristina Cuison (28:31) who ran a season best. This seems to be Kristina’s course, and I would love to see this kind of effort from her in every race. She has that kind of potential.

It was nice to race in cooler weather, the girls ran great, and I think they all made it on time for what they had to do to prepare for the Homecoming Dance...or whatever other plans they had after the race.