ECI Weekly Recap

We will post reviews of some local meets in ECI that feature several ECI teams, or have a large impact on ECI individual and team rankings.

2021

Week 2
Boys
Week two is in the books where ECI schools competed in six different invites in two different states on Saturday. The meet that featured the most ECI flavor was the Wapahani Inv. at the Academy Barn (the former Muncie Sportsplex) where ECI schools Wapahani, Monroe Central, Shenandoah, Daleville, Cowan, Union, Union City, Winchester and Wes-Del all took on the high grass of the sectional/regional course. Top honors for the race went to Monroe Central's Tucker Burris who used a strong mid-race push to distance himself from Wapahani's Nick Cook, who finished in second. Following the script of the individual race, the Monroe Central boys also won the team title while Wapahani was runner up. Another team bright spot from Barn Academy was the Union City team who finished 3rd. Led by sophomore Conner Walser (who finished 7th individually) the Indians are stringing together some strong performances and will definetly have some big goals for the end of the season. Other top ten finishers on Saturday were Tucker Burris' teammates Carter Miller (4th), Eli Chamberlain (5th), and Kyler Shumaker (9th) and Wapahani's Brandon Ellis (6th) and Colton Boggs (8th.) Full results can be found here: https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/Results/Meet.aspx?Meet=191248&show=all

Other Boys Highlights this week include:

New Castle's Andrew Fewell (7th), Muncie Burris' Michael Canfield (6th) and Henry Cooper (10th), and Blue River's Gabe Saye (6th) all finished in the top 10 in their respective divisions at the Rushville Inv.
Wiley Close (18th) led Yorktown to a 5th place team finish at the Taylor Inv.
Clay Batio (11th) and Caden Clark (12th) paced Delta to a 7th place finish at the Oak Hill Invitational
Jay County had their season debut at the Celina Rotary Inv. with a 6th place team finish. The Patriots were led by Aaron Funkhouser who finished in 21st
Wapahani won the Arabian Roundup at Pendleton Heights on Wednesday

Girls
The girls side of the Wapahani Invite also saw the Monroe Central Golden Bears take home the team trophy as well as producing the individual champ as sophomore sensation Addison Coe came across the finish line first. Saturday's race marked the first time Coe has won an individual invite, a feat that Coe probably hopes will be the first of many. Following the Bears were a Jaci Knot-less Wes-Del team who took second with Cowan and Wapahani only being separated by a point for 3rd and 4th place team finshes. Behind Coe were top 10 performances from Cowan's Brynn Wright (2nd), Monroe Central's Katie Osborne (3rd), Daleville's Faith Norris (4th), Shenandoah's Kayci Hill (5th), Wes-Del's Emmy Justin (7th), Wapahani's Maddie Felton (8th) and Union's Lilly Pierce (10th.)

Other Girls Highlights this week include:

New Castle's Lydia Harvey won the Division I Race at the Rushville Inv. in a time of 20:25
Randolph Southern's Olivia Keesling finished 2nd in the Division III Race at the Rushville Inv.
Grace Huisman (17th) led Yorktown to a 6th place team finish at the Taylor Inv.
Nicki Southerland and Makayla Robes went 1-2 individually to propel Delta to a 4th place team finish at the Oak Hill Invitational
Jay County had their season debut at the Celina Rotary Inv. The Patriots were led by Lindy Wood who finished in 4th

Week 1
Boys
Week one is in the books and it looks like we are well on our way to a very competitive season across ECI. There were two showcase meets this weekend that featured most of the ECI teams in the County Clash at Taylor University and the Meister Memorial Invite hosted by Monroe Central and early season statements were made in each one. At Monroe Central, the Bears reminded the ECI world why they are reigning back-to-back Delta Sectional champs with a dominating win in the eleven team field. Leading Monroe Central was ECI standout Tucker Burris who paced the field with a :28 win over 2nd place in a 17:08 time. Following Burris, were solid runs by Eli Chamberlain (4th) and Carter Miller (7th) who also placed in the top 10 for Monroe Central. Other impressive local flavor at the Meister were top 10 runs by Union City's sophomore Conner Walser (8th) and Blue River's junior Gabe Sayre (10th.) Both Walser and Sayre have been looking strong this week with each also posting top 5 honors at their "Early Bird" invites last week as well. Other ECI runners placing in the top 20 were Monroe Central's Kyler Shumaker (11th), Henry Cooper (14th) of Muncie Burris, Blackford's Donavan Osborne (16th), Winchester's Aiden Moystner (17th) and Cowan's Logan Walker (18th.)
Full Results here: https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/Results/Meet.aspx?Meet=194309&show=all

The other meet on the ECI docket was the County Clash which also saw many strong ECI performances. On the team side of things, the Yorktown boys were narrowly able to take away the County Clash traveling trophy over Wapahani by placing three harriers including Luke Harber (1st), Wiley Close (5th) and Ryan Bade (8th) in the top 10. Wapahani was able to stay on the Tigers heals by strong runs by Nick Cook (2nd), Brandon Ellis (9th), Payton Baker (11th) and Colton Boggs (12th). The Yorktown/Wapahani matchup this season will definitely be something to pay attention to this year, especially with the Delaware County Meet only a couple of weeks away. Individually, as mentioned earlier Yorktown's Luke Harber won the meet out right with an eye-opening early season time of 16:49. Harber's run was great to see for a runner who is finally healthy after missing much of last year due to injury. Harber's run was also good enough to earn him the top spot in the ECI Individual Rankings, but for now, he's sharing that top spot with Monroe Central's Tucker Burris who dominated the ECI field all of last year and in his meet at the Meister on Saturday. Luckily for us all, Harber and Burris are both slated to compete at the Arabian Roundup hosted by Pendleton Heights this Wednesday (Aug. 25th) to help us determine next week's ECI rankings. Other top 20 runners at the County Clash include Delta's Clay Batio (7th) and Caden Clark (17th), Wes-Del's Luke Butler (13th), Muncie Central's Princeton Young (14th) and Gabe Reynolds (20th) and Yorktown's Sam Brumley (16th).

Other Boys Highlights this week include:

The Wapahani Boys team sweeping the Winchester Early Bird 4K on Wednesday
New Castle's Andrew Fewell started his senior season campaign with a 5th individual place finish at Richmond's Hare and the Hounds Invitational

Girls
The Meister saw the girls from Monroe Central take home the crown with four girls placing in the top 12 including Addison Coe (3rd), Katie Osborne (4th), Karly Puckett (8th) and Addison Puckett (12th). Leading the way individually for ECI was Randolph Southern's Olivia Keesling whose time of 21:43 was good enough for a second place finish. Also, posting impressive team results were Cowan (2nd) and Blackford (3rd) who both figure to be in the ECI team rankings mix this season as well. Other top 20 finishers from the meet include the Cowan trio of Brynn Wright (5th), Lauren Smith (13th) and Ashlynn Keith (14th), Olivia (6th) and Abi (15th) Covert of Daleville, Blackford's Allie Clamme (10th), and Monroe Central's Morgan Ferguson (20th.)
Full Results here: https://www.athletic.net/CrossCountry/Results/Meet.aspx?Meet=194309&show=all

Up front at the County Clash was Delta's Nicki Southerland who sought out the Taylor Course record, got the course record as well as top honors finishing the race in a record setting time of 18:13. Behind Southerland was her teammate Makayla Robles who placed second individually in a strong Eagle showing. Taking home the taveling trophy however were the Yorktown Tigers who completed the boy/girl sweep on the day by putting three runners in the top 10 including Grace Huisman (4th), Ali Smith (6th) and Rachael Stagge (7th.) The Delta/Yorktown rivalry appears to already be (to nobody's surprise) in full swing. Seeing how these teams go after one another will for sure be one of the biggest storylines in the ECI season. Other top 20 finishers at the County Clash were Wes-Del's Jaci Knott (12th), Muncie Central's Samantha Fowler (15th), and Wapahani's Maddie Felton (18th.)

Other Girls Highlights this week include:

Wes-Del won the Ethan Cheesman Invite at Union on Tuesday
Wapahani placed 1st at the Winchester 4K Invite on Wednesday (and Wapahani's Maddie Felton winning the race overall)
Blackford won the Blue River Valley Early Bird Invite last Saturday
New Castle's girls placed 3rd at the Richmond Hounds and the Hare Inv. on Saturday being led by sophomore Sydney Matthews who ran a 22:00 in a 6th place overall finished
Shenandoah placed 2nd at the Blue River Valley Bird Invite last Saturday before their season was shut down because of the HS going virtual. Their season will resume shortly

2020

Delta Sectional (10/10/20)

Girls:
The first race of the day was the Girls. Any time you reach the Sectional round of the IHSAA tournament the nerves are going to be high. It is what most teams in the ECI area have been preparing for all season. But as the girls race began, all the nerves subsided and it was just another XC race. The Delta Eagles sent their dynamic duo straight to the front, as Nicki Southerland and Makayla Robles were in 1st and 2nd place from the gun to the finish line. As we mentioned in our Sectional preview, this was expected. The race for the team title would be decided behind them. The difference today seemed to be the fantastic race by Shannyn Cox who notched a huge sectional-sealing 5th place finish for the Eagles. This had to be especially sweet for Cox, who could not even help her Delta team a year ago in the Sectional round due to injury. After the Eagles and Yorktown Tigers secured 1-2 in the team race, it was a race for the final 3 remaining spots. As also predicted in our Sectional preview, the Monroe Central Bears led by the increasingly-impressive duo of Addison Coe and Katie Osborne grabbed the 3rd place team finish. While the Jay County Patriots, led by the great 3rd-place finish of Lydia Keihn secured a Regional birth by finishing 4th as a team. The craziness of the jostling for the 5th place (and last advancing) spot, wound up being snagged by the Cowan Lady Blackhawks! The Blackhawk frontrunners of Lauren Smith and Brynn Wright led the charge with a pair of top-10 finishes (6th and 7th). It will be a much tougher challenge in the Regional round, but ECIRunner is looking forward to watching all the action next week as local teams try to survive and advance through another round of the tournament.

TOP ECI FINISHERS:
1.Nicki Southerland DELT
2.Makayla Robles DELT
3.Lydia Keihn                 JAY
4.Elizabeth Reece          YORK
5.Shannyn Cox DELT
6.Lauren Smith COW
7.Brynn Wright COW
8.Olivia Keesling RAND
9.Addison Coe MOCE
10.Katie Osbor MOCE
11.Sara Barnhizer YORK
12.Grace Huisman YORK
13.Ella Baldwin WIN
14.Kendyl Thrasher WAP
15.Lindy Wood JAY
16.Natalie Moulton YORK
17.Ashleigh Brelage DELT
18.Jaci Knott W-D
19.Emerson Justin W-D
20.Rachael Stagge YORK

Boys:
In the Boys race, it was another case of most eyes being on the top 2 teams. The Wapahani Raiders and the Monroe Central Golden Bears also had to have some nerves leading up to the start of the race as both squads knew they had a chance at a Sectional title. As the race started both teams went straight to the front to battle it out. In the early part of the race MC and Wap comprised 8 of the top 10 individual spots. As the race wore on, it became clear that the Monroe Central Bears, behind the 1-2 finish of Tucker Burris and Carter Miller had done enough to earn their 2nd straight Sectional championship with 36 team points. Wapahani finished in 2nd, close behind with 43 points. The Raiders were led by freshman Nick Cook in 3rd and Brandon Ellis in 7th. Behind those top 2 teams, The remaining 3 advancing spots would be decided. The Yorktown Tigers packed all 5 scoring runners inside the top 20 to claim the 3rd spot with 77 points. As the Delta Eagles and Daleville Broncos secured the final 2 advancing spots of 4th and 5th. Delta did so behind a strong top 2 of Clay Batio (4th) and Lucas Fox (10th). While the Broncos relied on front runner Khoa Weston getting a low stick of 17th and the rest of the Bronco scorers packing it up tight behind him. As usual it was a very exciting Delta Sectional meet, With many of the usual suspects showing up and having great performances as well as some new names popping up with amazing runs for their teams when they needed them most. It will be an exciting 2nd round next week at the Delta Regional.

TOP ECI FINISHERS
1.Tucker Burris               MOCE
2.Carter Miller               MOCE
3.Nick Cook                    WAP
4.Clay Batio                    DELT
5.Michael Canfield         MUBU
6.Eli Chamberlain           MOCE
7.Brandon Ellis               WAP
8.Kyler Shumaker           MOCE
9.Griffen Miller WAP
10.Lucas Fox                    DELT
11.Andrew Shrock           WAP
12.Ryan Bade                   YORK
13.Colton Boggs               WAP
14.Luke Butler                  W-D
15.Conner Walser            UNCI
16.Gannon Crosser          YORK
17.Khoa Weston              DALE
18.Luke Harber                YORK
19.Wiley Close                 YORK
20.Cole Whitehead          YORK

Mid-Eastern Conference Meet (10/3/20)

The 2020 edition of the MEC Championship Meet was filled with impressive individual and team performances from many ECI schools. Taking home the hardware on the girls team side of things were the Monroe Central Bears who were able to use their strong 1-5 pack to set the tone of the meet winning with a team score of 49 points. Leading the Lady Bears was the freshmen duo of Addison Coe and Katie Osborne who finished 2nd and 5th followed by sophomore Karly Puckett who also received all-conference honors with her 11th place finish. Monroe Central was not the only team who ran well however as Wes-Del who scored 68 team points narrowly edged out 2nd place over Cowan who finished 3rd with 69 points; putting both squads in great spots to perhaps advance to Regionals at next week's Sectional meet. Both teams were led by a pair of all MEC runners with Wes-Del’s Emmy Justin and Jaci Knott who placed 8th and 9thoverall and then Cowan who had the overall individual winner in Lauren Smith who ran a time of 21:06 and sophomore Brynn Wright who busted out a :64 second PR to finish 3rd overall. Other top performances out of ECI included Randolph Southern’s Olivia Keesling who finished 4th, Blue River’s Sydney Fellers in 6th, Wapahani’s Kendyl Thrasher finished 7th and Olivia Covert of Daleville also made All-Conference with a 12th place finish.

Top ECI Finishes

COW               Lauren Smith                         21:06
MON               Addison Coe                           21:10
COW               Brynn Wright            21:15
RS                    Olivia Keesling                       21:17
MC                  Katie Osborne                       21:29
BRV                 Sydney Fellers                       21:30
WAP                Kendyl Thrasher                   21:36
WD                  Emmy Justin                         21:51
WD                  Jaci Knott                               21:53
MC                  Karly Puckett                         22:02
DALE               Olivia Covert                          22:17
SHEN              Hope Edwards                       22:35
MC                  Gracie Baker                          22:50
WAP                Maddie Felton                       23:11
COW               McKenna Minton                  23:24

The boys race was Cross-Country at its finest with the matchup up front between Wapahani and Monroe Central. Two of the best small schools in the state, dueling it out in perfect weather conditions at the end of the year as teams are beginning to peak is everything a cross-country fan can ask for and this meet did not disappoint. Up front from the time the gun went off were the Bears, who used PR’s by Tucker Burris and Carter Miller to finish 1-2 and set a tone that Monroe Central was not going to go away in this meet without a fight. Next up was the counterpunch by Wapahani who followed with a 3-5 finish by Brandon Ellis, Nick Cook and Andrew Shrock. The rest of the meet got wild as it was settled in a :16 second span as Monroe Central’s Kyler Shumaker placed 6th (another PR ran by the Bears), followed by Raider runner Griffen Miller in 7th and then the eldest Monroe Central Shumaker (Caden) in 9th followed then by a pair of sophomore 5th men in Wapahani’s Colton Boggs narrowly edging out Monroe Central’s Caden Landis for 10th and 11th. Just wow, and as mentioned in the previous run-on sentence we’re talking about a :16 second span where all of this happens and here’s your plot twist; we’re not done yet. We’re only 12 seconds into this so far and at this point in the race 5 Bears have crossed the line as well as 5 Raiders. What does each team have in common at this point? Both squads have 29 team points which means the winner of the MEC came down to the all important 6th man and on this day it was Monroe Central’s Eli Chamberlain whose 12th place all-conference finish narrowly edged Wapahani’s Landon Hutchens who finished 13th. What a race.

Top ECI Finishes

MONC             Tucker Burris 16:16
MONC             Carter Miller                         16:31
WAP                Brandon Ellis                         17:25
WAP                Nick Cook                               17:27
WAP                Andrew Shrock                      17:37
MONC             Kyler Shumaker                    17:39
WAP                Griffen Miller                         17:44
MONC             Caden Shumaker                  17:47
WAP                Colton Boggs                         17:49
MONC             Caden Landis                         17:51
MONC             Eli Chamberlain                    17:55
WAP                Landon Hutchens                  18:04
WD                  Luke Butler                            18:23
DALE               Khoa Westin                          18:48
COW               Nathaniel Kirby                     18:54

New Haven Classic (9/26/20)

Several ECI girls teams headed to Huntington University on Saturday to get a preview of some possible Semi-State competition as well as the new Semi-State course for the 2020 season. While there were 3 divisions racing, and ECI teams sprinkled amongst them, A few things that stood out throughout the day. First off, The Delta girls put one of their best team races of the season, and look to be rounding into form at the right time of the season. Led again by Nicki Southerland (1st) and Makayla Robles (6th), they also had great runs from Ashleigh Brelage (20th) and Shannyn Cox (33rd) to finish 3rd in the AA race...and possibly re-establish the Lady eagles as the Sectional Favorites. The Monroe Central Bears also had a solid team performance, which earned them a 4th place finish in the A Division. The lady Bears had the fabulous freshmen duo Katie Osborne (13th) and Addison Coe (15th) finish in the top 15. While Wapahani Raider Kendyl Thrasher notched a top-20 finish by coming in 18th. The Yorktown Lady Tigers were also in the AA Division on the day and had Elizabeth Reece finish in 17th to lead the team.

Top ECI Times:
Nicki Southerland       DELT    18:04
Makayla Robles           DELT    20:16
Elizabeth Reece          YORK   21:01
Ashleigh Brelage         DELT    21:06
Grace Huisman           YORK   21:27
Katie Osborne             MOCE 21:43
Shannyn Cox               DELT    21:47
Addison Coe                MOCE 21:54
Kendyl Thrasher          WAP    22:02
Sara Barnhizer            YORK   22:09
Ali Smith                      YORK   22:11
Emerson Justin           W-D     22:14
Karly Puckett               MOCE 22:23
Natalie Moulton         YORK   22:24
Jaci Knott                    W-D     22:34

The Boys from ECI also entered this meet with hopes of making a return trip in 4 weeks to compete in a Semi-State meet weekend. But, on this particular Saturday it was several of the usual suspects that had standout performances. The showdown most were looking forward to was the meeting of Wapahani and Monroe Central in the A Division of the New Haven Classic. Both teams ran extremely well, but it was the Wapahani Raiders that once again came out with the Invite hardware. They took home the trophy of Division A champs, led by Nick Cook (3rd) and Brandon Ellis (5th). The Top 2 Golden Bears ran just as well by Tucker Burris (2nd) and Carter Miller (4th) notching top-5 finishes as well. But the rest of the top 5 scoring runners for the Raiders continue to be the difference. In the AA Division Yorktown was the top finishing ECI team by coming in 7th in the 25-team field. But the Delta Eagles were close behind in 9th overall. Clay Batio of Delta was the only individual to achieve a top-15 finish in the AA Division.

Top ECI Finishers:
Tucker Burris               MOCE 16:23
Nick Cook                    WAP    16:58
Carter Miller               MOCE 17:12
Brandon Ellis               WAP    17:18
Clay Batio                    DELT    17:31
Andrew Shrock           WAP    17:40
Colton Boggs               WAP    17:54
Landon Hutchens        WAP    17:57
Caden Shumaker         MOCE 17:58
Ryan Bade                   YORK   18:01
Caden Landis               MOCE 18:01
Lucas Fox                    DELT    18:04
Eli Chamberlain           MOCE 18:05
Luke Butler                  W-D     18:12
Gabe Reynolds            MUCE 18:18

Yorktown "Jim Leffler" Invite (9/19/20)

In the Boy’s edition of the Yorktown “Jim Leffler” Invitational the Wapahani Raiders continued to flex on those inside and outside of the ECI area. They came out with the team championship over not only ECI schools like Yorktown, New Castle, and Muncie Central; but also over squads like Greenfield-Central and Lawrence North which are 4 to 8 times their size! The Raiders put these teams away early in the race by packing-up in the lead pack and driving to a team finish that saw 5 Raiders in the top 15 overall. It seems like there is a different Raider leading their squad each meet, and today it was Brandon Ellis that led the charge with a 4th place finish. The Yorktown Tigers were the 2nd ECI team in the final standings with a 4th place finish. The Tigers also competed well by placing 4 individuals in the top 20, led by Wiley Close in 12 and a breakout performance by Track-star-turned-XC-runner Cole Whitehead in 16th. The New Castle Trojans were close behind the Tigers in 5th place. The Trojans touted top-ten finisher Andrew Fewell, who finished 8th on the day. And the 6th-9th place teams were all ECI teams with Muncie Central, Muncie Burris, Daleville, and Jay County all enjoying top 10 team finishes. Top ECI finishers other than those mentioned above included Wapahani’s Nick Cook (5th), Griffen Miller (6th), and Andrew Shrock (10th). As well as Muncie Burris Owl Michael Canfield (9th).

Top ECI Finishers:
Brandon Ellis               WAP    17:10
Nick Cook                    WAP    17:11
Griffen Miller             WAP    17:14
Andrew Fewell            NC       17:19
Michael Canfield         MUBU 17:24
Andrew Shrock           WAP    17:28
Wiley Close                 YORK   17:40
Colton Boggs               WAP    17:48
Cole Whitehead          YORK   17:52
Harry Callaway            NC       17:55

In the girls race Yorktown led the way for all ECI in the team standings with a 2nd place finish by placing 6 in the top 20 overall. Leading the way for the Lady Tigers were ECI household names Elizabeth Reece and Grace Huisman who finished 5th and 6th respectively. Not too far behind were Sara Barnhizer (9th), Natalie Moulton (16th), Ali Smith (18th) and Rachael Stagge (20th). Even more impressive for the Tigers was that the Yorktown team only had a: 66 second spread between their 1-5 runners which could prove big as stakes rise in the meets ahead. Behind Yorktown was New Castle in 4th place with Wapahani placing in 6thwith a one-point edge over Wes-Del who finished 7th. Jay County, Cowan and Daleville all did not have 5 runners to receive a team score at this meet but figure to be very much in the mix from the team perspective to potentially advance to regional next month if they can solidify their squads. Individually, New Castle’s Sydney Matthews was the top ECI finisher with a 3rd place overall finish with a time of 20:24. Also in the top 20 in this very competitive field were Jay County’s Lydia Keihn (7th), Cowan’s Lauren Smith (9th), New Castle’s Lydia Harvey (12th), Wapahani’s Kendyl Thrasher (13th), Cowan’s Brynn Wright (14th), New Castle’s Ella Garvin, and Jay County’s Lindy Wood

Top ECI Finishes

NC                   Sydney Matthews                 20:24
YORK              Elizabeth Reece                     21:13
YORK              Grace Huisman                      21:19
JAY                  Lydia Keihn                           21:19
COW               Lauren Smith                         21:54
YORK              Sara Barnhizer                      21:37
NC                   Lydia Harvey                         21:41
WAP                Kendyl Thrasher                   21:41
COW               Brynn Wright                         21:41
NC                   Ella Garvin                             21:49

Randolph Southern Invite (9/12/20)

Girls:
On the girl’s side of action on the day, The New Castle girls were the highest placing ECI team when all was said and done. A very positive sight for New Castle, as they have struggled to field a full team at a few early season meets this year. The Lady Trojans were led by led by the individual champion on the day, freshman Sydney Mathews. Mathews has had a tremendous freshman campaign and has worked her way up to the #2 spot in the ECI Runner Top 25 Individuals. Her teammates Lydia Harvey and Ella Garvin were not that far behind in 6th and 8th place overall. If the Trojans can continue to add to the front-running talent of Mathews, Harvey, and Garvin they could be a strong team in ECI coming down the stretch run of the season. Winchester’s Ella Baldwin was the overall individual runner-up in the meet. Baldwin has been a standout ECI individual the past 3 years and her senior season looks to be no different! Blue River Valley freshman Sydney Fellers had the 3rd best individual race on Saturday, placing 5th overall. Other impressive ECI performances turned in on the day were Randolph Southern’s Olivia Keesling, who finished 7th overall. Wes-Del’s developing duo of Jaci Knott and Emmy Justin, who seem to be developing a great teammate chemistry of pushing each other throughout races. They finished 10th and 11th overall. Shenandoah junior Hope Edwards finished 12th, and Union’s Lily Pierce finished 13th. Some other team finishes of note were: Wes-Del fighting hard to notch a 3rd place team finish, and Shenandoah finishing just 13 points behind the Warriors to claim 4th as a team.

Top ECI Times:
Sydney Mathews        NC       20:49
Ella Baldwin                WIN     21:14
Sydney Fellers             BRV     22:01
Lydia Harvey               NC       22:02
Olivia Keesling             RAND 22:03
Ella Garvin                   NC       22:07
Jaci Knott                    W-D     23:05
Emmy Justin                W-D     23:08
Hope Edwards            SHEN   23:10
Lilly Pierce                   UNI      23:14
Delaney Strange         MUCE 23:59
Maysa Corya               WIN     24:21

Boys:
The Randolph Southern Invitational boys race consisted of 97 runners, and included 11 of the 18 ECI teams. ECI boys teams were dominant sweeping the top four team positions. Winning the boy’s race was a young and strong Muncie Central team lead by the duo of Sophomore Princeton Young and Freshman Gabriel Reynolds. The top runner for the ECI boys was New Castle's Junior Andrew Fewell who ran an exciting race battling back and forth for the number one position just coming up short to place second. The Muncie Burris duo of Michael Canfield and Josh Stephenson grabbed the 3 and 4 spots. Harry Callaway, a freshman from New Castle, caused a shakeup when he surged through a pack of Muncie Central runners crossing the line for the number 5 spot. Conner Walser of Union City hit a new PR and fought his way to the end finishing 6th overall.

TOP ECI Runners
Andrew Fewell        New Castle 17:18.9
Michael Canfield    Muncie Burris 17:32.4
Josh Stephenson         Muncie Burris 18:13.0
Harry Callaway         New Castle 18:20.5
Conner Walser        Union City 18:30.8
Princeton Young        Muncie Central 18:33.9
Gabriel Reynolds        Muncie Central 18:38.3
Ethan Moore        New Castle 18:38.6
Luke Butler         Wes-Del 18:43.1
Adian Moystner       Winchester 19:07.7

Delaware County Meet (9/8/20)

The Delaware County Meet this year brought together 3 of the Top 5 ECI teams on both the boys and girls side, which is always a great litmus test to see how some of the best in ECI stack up in early September.

GIRLS:
The Girls team race seemed on paper to be one of the tighter competitions on the day. The Yorktown Tigers and Delta Eagles are the top 2 teams in the ECI Runner Top 5 Team rankings and have already met once this season at Taylor University in the County Clash, with the Eagles taking the victory over the Tigers that day. As the race began, a familiar sight took place, Nicki Southerland surged to the front with ease. She would run dominantly from gun to tape to collect her first individual County Title. She did so, once again, in record-breaking fashion. She would shatter the old Delaware County record by over a minute! The team race that developed behind her was XC at its finest. The Tigers and Eagles jostled back-and-forth, tilting the points battle several times. Also, individuals from Cowan, Wapahani, and Daleville made pushes for a top-10 “All-County” distinction. Southerland’s Eagle teammate Makayla Robles made a strong push in the final stretch to secure a 1-2 finish for Delta. But, close behind Robles was Yorktown’s Grace Huisman in 3rd. For 4th place, Yorktown’s Elizabeth Reece surged ahead of Cowan’s Lauren Smith in the final meters to pick up enormous team points for the Tigers. Smith would finish 5th and Delta’s Shannyn Cox would be close behing in 6th. Wapahani’s Kendyl Thrasher would display a great kick of finishing speed to hold off Yorktown’s Sara Barnhizer for 7th place. Finishing out the All-County spots would be Barnhizer in 8th, Cowan’s Brynn Wright in 9th, and Yorktown’s Natalie Moulton in 10th. The team race truly came down to team depth as the Yorktown Tigers pulled off a 3 point edge of the Eagles for their 5th straight County title.

BOYS:
The Boys race was not as suspenseful as the previous girls race. As teams darted from the line after the gun fired, the Wapahani boys rushed to the front. All others scrambled to find positioning as the tone was being set early by the Raiders. As the race wore on, The Wap trio of Griffen Miller, Nick Cook, and Andrew Shrock held the pace strong at the front of the race. But, behind them things began to shake up a bit. Yorktown’s duo of Wiley Close and Ryan Bade began to navigate their way into the top 5, while Delta’s Clay Batio followed close behind. As the finish drew near, it was Wapahani freshman Nick Cook that took the individual honors, with teammates Griffen Miller and Andrew Shrock close behind in 2nd and 3rd. Yorktown’s Wiley Close and Ryan Bade held on for 4th and 5th, While Clay Batio finished 6th. Rounding out the rest of the top 10 All-County performers were another pair of Wapahani runners; Colton Boggs (7th) and Brandon Ellis (8th), as well as Batio’s teammate Lucas Fox in 9th. The fight for the final All-County spot was a great battle. Luke Butler of Wes-Del and Khoa Weston of Daleville both drew neck-and-neck with each other coming down the final stretch. In the end it was Weston who forced himself forward to grab the 10th place position. The team results were clear as the race finished, the Wapahani Raiders had won in convincing fashion, placing 5 in the top 10 and 7 in the top 20. The points for runner-up were much closer as Delta edged Yorktown by 3 points for 2nd place.

Top 10 "All-County" Girls:

Nicki Southerland Delta 18:47
Makayla Robles Delta 21:16
Grace Huisman York 21:18
Elizabeth Reece York 21:43
Lauren Smith Cowan 21:45
Shannyn Cox Delta 21:46
Kendyl Thrasher Wap 22:33
Sara Barnhizer York 22:35
Brynn Wright Cowan 22:52
Natalie Moulton York 22:55

Top 10 "All-County" Boys:

Nick Cook Wap 18:03
Griffen Miller Wap 18:06
Andrew Shrock Wap 18:11
Wiley Close York 18:17
Ryan Bade York 18:25
Clay Batio Delt 18:28
Colton Boggs Wap 18:32
Brandon Ellis Wap 18:37
Lucas Fox Delt 18:43
Khoa Weston Dale 19:18

Several Labor Day Weekend Meets (9/5/20)

For the sake of covering as much ECI action as possible this weekend, we took a look at the wide range of XC action around the area this weekend. Mainly looking at the Union City Invite and Marion Invite.

GIRLS:
First off at the Marion Invite, Nicki Southerland exceeded expectations once again. She ran a blistering 17:35 to narrowly win the Marion Invitational individual title. That time currently ranks her in the top 5-10 in the NATION! Her Delta teammates had a lot of success as well, as many of them ran personal season-best times to help the Eagles to a 10th place team finish. The Monroe Central Girls also had themselves a day in the Gold Division Race. They stacked 4 in the top-20, led by Karly Puckett in 9th at 21:58. What may be even more impressive, is all 4 are freshman or sophomores! The Golden Bears are looking at a bright future! Also, Emerson Justin and Jaci Knott from Wes-del both finished in the top 31 of the Gold Race.

At the Union City Invite, The Cowan Lady Blackhawks had an amazing runner-up finish in the team standings. Led by Lauren Smith, who continues to run well and improve throughout her junior season. Smith won the individual title on the day, finishing in 21:59. Wapahani sophomore Kendyl Thrasher notched a top 3 finish individually as well, finishing 3rd in 22:26. Wapahani's team finished 4th on the day.

Boys:
The boy's side of action on the day was highlighted by a couple of Invite wins by ECI teams. First off, the Monroe Central Golden Bears look to be returning to their 2019 Sectional Championship form. They won the Gold Division of the Marion Invitational by an impressive 77 point over the field!!! They were led by a school-record-breaking performance, as Tucker Burris pulled off a trifecta of an invite win, personal best time, and school record! His time of 16:27 is the fastest time of anyone in ECI this season. The Golden Bears went on to pack-up 5 more runners in the top 15 to run away with the invite team title. Muncie Burris's Michael Canfield and Josh Stephenson also raised many eyebrows in the race by finishing 6th and 8th respectively. Meanwhile, in the Purple Division race, Delta's Clay Batio was the lone ECI finisher in the top 20. Finishing 13th in 17:23.
The other invite win on the day went to the Wapahani Raiders, who took the Union City Invitational in equally dominating fashion. The Raiders packed 6 in the top-10 overall!!! For an unbelievable team score of only 20 points! The Raiders were led by junior Brandon Ellis in 2nd place, running 18:08 at the slower-than-blazing-fast-grass-track-of-Marion Union City course. He was followed closely by teammates Shrock, Miller, Cook, and Boggs in 3rd-6th place. There was also an impressive performance turned in by freshman Conner Walser of Union City in 7th.
The Wapahani-Monroe Central Boys match-up will be a thrilling one to watch throughout this season in ECI! Only time will tell how the story gets written come tournament time. But, as of now these 2 boy's teams are some of the best small school programs the state of Indiana has to offer.

Wapahani Invitational at Muncie Sportsplex (8/29/20)

The girl’s race featured a standout performance from Winchester’s Ella Baldwin upfront. Baldwin took control of the girl’s race from the start and never looked back as she finished with a winning time of 21:44. On the team side of things, pack running was the name of the game for Monroe Central and they were able to use that strategy to a team title. The quartet of Bears that finished in the top 10 included Karly Pucket, Addison Coe, Katie Obsborn and Gracie Baker. Cowan’s Lauren Smith, Wapahani’s Kendyl Thrasher, Daleville’s Olivia Covert and Union’s Lilly Pierce also all had strong performances, each finishing in the top 10.

Top ECI Finishes

WIN                Ella Baldwin                           21:44
COW               Lauren Smith                         22:40
WAP                Kendyl Thrasher                   22:54
MONC             Karly Puckett                         23:12
MONC             Addison Coe                           23:23
DALE               Olivia Covert                          23:47
MONC             Katie Osborn                         23:53
MONC             Gracie Baker                         23:59
UNION Lilly Pierce                             24:02
WAP                Lilly Neal                                24:10

The boys race featured several strong performances from ECI runners, most notably from the Wapahani and Monroe Central squads who figure to be going back and forth against each other all season long. On this day it was Wapahani who was able to pack it’s 1-5 runners together to come out victorious in their home invite. On the individual side of things it was Monroe Central’s Tucker Burris who ran away with top honors cruising in with a winning time of 17:14

Top ECI Finishes

MONC             Tucker Burris 17:14
WAP                Brandon Ellis                         18:01
WAP                Andrew Shrock                      18:22
WAP                Nick Cook                               18:25
WAP                Griffen Miller                         18:28
WAP                Colton Boggs                          18:30
MONC             Carter Miller                          18:39
MONC             Eli Chamberlin                      18:44
UC                   Conner Walser                      18:47
MONC             Kyler Shumaker                    18:56

County Clash at Taylor University (8/22/20)

The girls started off the action at the 2020 County Clash Meet at 9:00am. And before 9:01am had arrived, Nicki Southerland had made it very clear who the top girl in ECI may be for the foreseeable future. The Delta freshman phenom went straight to the front and never looked back. Finishing in a Course Record time of 18:15. The team raced proved to be much tighter than the individual race. The Delta Lady Eagles and Yorktown Lady Tigers both had very strong showings in leading Delaware County to the County crown. Delta walked away with the traveling trophy and placing 3 in the top 10 overall (individual champ Southerland, Makayla Robles, 4th and Shannan Cox, 5th). While the Tigers had 2 in the top 10, Elizabeth Reece as the individual runner-up, and Grace Huisman in 7th. The only other top-10 finisher from ECI was Wapahani's Kendyl Thrasher in 10th. Other top-20 medalists included Yorktown's Sara Barnhizer (14th), Ali Smith (15th), and Natalie Moulton (18th). As well as Delta's Ashleigh Brelage (16th), and Muncie Central's Delaney Strange (20th).

Top ECI Finishers:

Nicki Southerland      18:15
Elizabeth Reece 20:58
Makayla Robles 21:19
Shannyn Cox 21:21
Grace Huisman          21:33
Kendyl Thrasher 22:13
Sara Barnhizer           22:33
Ali Smith 22:33
Ashleigh Brelage 22:48
Natalie Moulton         23:00

The boys side of the County Clash saw Delaware County prevail over Madison and Grant counties with Wapahani taking home the traveling trophy as well as winning the meet outright. Leading the way for the Raiders was senior Griffen Miller who finished 1st overall, making it his first individual win in his high school career. Not too far behind Miller were Andrew Shrock (3rd place) and Brandon Ellis (6th place). Colton Boggs (11th place) and Nick Cook (15th place) rounded out a strong Raider performance. Also, contributing to the Delaware County win was an impressive 7th place performance from Yorktown’s Wiley Close (who set almost a 2 minute PR in his season debut!) Wiley’s Yorktown teammates Ryan Bade and Cole Whitehead as well as Muncie Central’s Gabriel Reynolds and Delta’s Clay Batio and Lucas Fox also medaled in the top 20 overall.

Top ECI Finishes

WAP                Griffen Miller                         17:44
WAP                Andrew Shrock                      17:47
WAP                Brandon Ellis                         18:01
YORK              Wiley Close                            18:04
DELTA Clay Batio                               18:06
YORK              Ryan Bade                              18:17
WAP                Colton Boggs                          18:18
YORK              Cole Whitehead                     18:33
DELTA Lucas Fox                               18:38
WAP                Nick Cook                               18:42

DELTA SECTIONAL (10/12/19)

The Delta Sectional brings the majority of ECI Cross Country together to battle it out in the first round of the IHSAA postseason. What was up for grabs? Obviously the Sectional Championship and ECI team bragging rights, but also the Top 5 teams will advance on to the Delta Regional next Saturday.

Boys Race: As the race began it became clear very quickly that the team race would come down to Wapahani or Monroe Central. Both teams packed their entire top 7 in the front of the race. Both teams battled extremely hard to the finish, but today lightning in a bottle was caught by the Monroe Central Golden Bears, who would bring home the school's first ever Sectional Cross Country title. The Bears put an amazing 6 individuals in the top 20 spots. They were led by sophomore Tucker Burris in 4th as well as top-10 efforts by Caden Shumaker (8th) and Carter Miller (9th). Wapahani's team runner-up finish was spearheaded by 3 top-10 finishes as well. Brandon Ellis (6th), Griffen Miller (7th) and Andrew Shrock (10th). Yorktown's Matthew Mitsch brought home the individual title in dominate fashion, running alone for most of the race. Mitsch and teammate Luke Harber (5th) led Yorktown to an advancing 3rd place team finish. The Muncie Central Bearcats claimed 4th place and will advance to Regional. The Bearcats were led by individual runner-up Isaiah Strong. Finally, the last team advancing was the Delta Eagles who were led by Cody Bivens (12th) and Clay Batio (13th). Other strong individual performances were turned in by Cowan's Ezra Daniel Wright (3rd), Randolph Southern's Luke Richmond (16th) and Daleville's Eli Isom (19th)

BOYS TOP 20 FINISHERS:
1.         Sr         Matthew Mitsch         16:37.3            Yorktown
2.         Sr         Isaiah Strong               17:14.2            Muncie Central
3.         Sr         Ezra Daniel Wright      17:24.0            Cowan
4.         So        Tucker Burris 17:37.5            Monroe Central
5.         So        Luke Harber 17:40.3            Yorktown
6.         So        Brandon Ellis 17:48.5            Wapahani
7.         Jr         Griffen Miller 17:50.8            Wapahani
8.         Jr         Caden Shumaker         17:56.4            Monroe Central
9.         So        Carter Miller 18:01.5            Monroe Central
10.       Jr         Andrew Shrock 18:10.1            Wapahani
11.       Fr         Caden Landis               18:11.7            Monroe Central
12.       So        Cody Bivens 18:16.1            Delta
13.       Fr         Clay Batio 18:16.6            Delta
14.       Fr         Colton Boggs               18:19.4            Wapahani
15.       Sr         A.J. Martinez 18:23.2            Muncie Central
16.       Sr         Luke Richmond           18:24.8            Randolph Southern
17.       Fr         Gannon Crosser          18:36.0            Yorktown
18.       Sr         Chris Nunez                 18:36.9            Monroe Central
19.       Sr         Eli Isom 18:37.5            Daleville
20.       So        Kyler Shumaker 18:38.6            Monroe Central

GIRLS RACE: The Girl's race was not as suspenseful as the previous Boy's race at the Delta Sectional. The Yorktown Lady Tigers went to the front from the gun and never looked back. The Lady Tigers put 4 in the top 20 overall to win the team title by over 35 points. Senior Amberleigh Sorensen set the tone for the Tigers with a 2nd place overall finish. Teammates Elizabeth Reece and Sara Barnhizer were close behind in 9th and 10th, as well as Natalie Moulton (17th) who posted a top 20 finish as well. The team runner-ups, also advancing to the Delta Regional next week, were the Delta Eagles. The Eagles were paced by Makayla Robles 3rd place finish and Ashleigh Brelage in 7th. Only 5 points behind Delta was Jay County. The Patriots finished 3rd as a team and had 3 individuals in the top 20 - Lydia Keihn (5th), Sophia Fugiett (13th), and Raven Weaver (20th). Cowan had a great team race to secure the 4th place overall team at the Delta Sectional. The Blackhawks were led by Lauren Smith in 4th and McKenna Minton in 12th. The final team advancing were the Muncie Central Bearcats, who finished 5th as a team. Sophomore Paris Turner (16th) and Senior Jenna O'Donohue (19th) were top-20 finishers for the Bearcats. The individual Delta Sectional champion was none other than Leah Keesling from Randolph Southern. The Senior capped off an amazing 4 years where she was crowned Sectional champion 3 times, and runner-up once (to her sister Emma in 2017). Other great ECI individual runs posted at the Delta Sectional included Wapahani's Lexi Wulff (6th), Winchester's Ella Baldwin (8th), Muncie Burris's Emeline Thygerson (11th), Wes-Del's Jaci Knott (14th), and Randolph Southern's Harley Shinn (18th)

GIRLS TOP 20 FINISHERS:
1.         Sr         Leah Keesling              19:04.1            Randolph Southern
2.         Sr         Amberleigh Sorensen 19:46.2            Yorktown
3.         So        Makayla Robles 20:08.4            Delta
4.         So        Lauren Smith               20:21.0            Cowan
5.         Fr         Lydia Keihn 20:35.1            Jay County
6.         Sr         Lexi Wulff 20:38.3            Wapahani
7.         Jr         Ashleigh Brelage 20:52.7            Delta
8.         Jr         Ella Baldwin 20:56.0            Winchester Community
9.         Jr         Elizabeth Reece 21:11.8            Yorktown
10.       Jr         Sara Barnhizer 21:13.6            Yorktown
11.       Sr         Emeline Thygerson 21:28.5            Muncie Burris
12.       Fr         McKenna Minton        21:29.9            Cowan
13.       Jr         Sophia Fugiett 21:34.0            Jay County
14.       So        Jaci Knott 21:36.0            Wes-Del
15.       Sr         Gabby Beckham 21:46.4            Monroe Central
16.       So        Paris Turner                21:53.1            Muncie Central
17.       Jr         Natalie Moulton 21:59.0            Yorktown
18.       Sr         Harley Shinn 22:00.0            Randolph Southern
19.       Sr         Jenna O'Donohue       22:05.7            Muncie Central
20.       So        Raven Weaver 22:12.9            Jay County

Mid-Eastern Conference Meet (10/5/19)

The Mid-Eastern Conference Meet saw 9 ECI teams participate including Blue River Valley,Cowan, Daleville, Monroe Central, Randolph Southern, Shenandoah, Union, Wapahani, and Wes-Del.

Girls Race:

In the girls individual race, the top ECI ranked runner Leah Keesling of Randolph Southern ran a time of 19:11! We knew Cowan and Randolph Southern would be the top contenders for the MEC crown in which Cowan won their first MEC title since 2009! Shenandoah finished 3rd, with Monroe Central following in 4th place.

Top 10 ECI Girl’s Times:

Leah Keesling   Randolph S. 19:11
Lexi Wulff Wapahani   20:41
Lauren Smith   Cowan 20:59
Stormie Fitch   Shenandoah 21:20
McKenna Minton Cowan   21:40
Harley Shinn   Randolph S.   22:01
Autumn Rice Union 22:10
Audrey Shepler Daleville   22:18
Brynn Wright Cowan 22:19
Faith Hanson Monroe C. 22:20

Boys Race:

In the boys individual race, Ezra Daniel Wright of Cowan took the lead right away and kept it throughout the whole race, finishing in a PR time of 17:20! We all knew the boys team race would be headlined by Monroe Central and Wapahani, and it didn’t disappoint. Wapahani edged Monroe Central by only 4 points with season best times had by 2 out of the top 7 Wapahani runners, and 5 out of the top 7 Monroe Central boys. The IHSAA Sectional Meet will be a great test to see the competition between these two teams as well as Yorktown, Delta, and Muncie Central! Cowan placed 4th, followed by Shenandoah in 5th.

Top 10 ECI Boy’s Times:

Ezra Daniel Wright   Cowan   17:20
Brandon Ellis   Wapahani   17:37
Josh Soden Shenandoah 17:49
Andrew Shrock   Wapahani 18:01
Caden Shumaker Monroe Central  18:03
Tucker Burris   Monroe Central 18:06
Carter Miller Monroe Central 18:07
Griffen Miller   Wapahani   18:08
Colton Boggs Wapahani 18:09
Caden Landis   Monroe Central  18:10

Delta Eagle Invitational (9/28/19)

With twelve ECI teams traveling to the Muncie Sportsplex for the Eagle Invite on Saturday it gave several chances to preview upcoming conference and postseason meets in the week’s ahead.

Boys Race
Across two race divisions Blackford’s Drew Caldwell was the lone ECI runner to break the 18:00 barrier on a warm and humid morning. Along with teammate Brayden Roberts, Blackford’s squad also had the most impressive team showing placing 3rd in the Navy Division putting the Bruins in position to perhaps enter the ECI top 5 team rankings in the near future. In the Gold Division Cowan’s Ezra Daniel Wright continued his stellar season with a top ECI finishing time of 18:03. Shenandoah’s boys was the top ECI team in the Gold Division placing 5th paced by solid runs from senior’s Josh Soden and Borru Kishpaugh.

Top ECI Finishers
BLAC               Drew Caldwell                                   17:58
COW               Ezra Daniel Wright                           18:03
BLAC               Brayden Roberts                               18:05
NC                   Skyler Dickey                                     18:13
SHEN              Josh Soden                                         18:19
SHEN              Borru Kishpaugh                              18:19
BLAC               Noah Kitterman                                18:44
DEL                 Clay Batio                                           18:44
WIN                Gage Patterson                                  18:50
DEL                 Sam Campbell                                   18:52

Girls Race
The girl’s Blue Division race saw two ECI powers in Delta and Jay County square off for a preview of what we will see in sectional, regional and perhaps semi-state races in the weeks ahead. On this day it would be Delta who came out on top using strong front running from Makayla Robles and Shannyn Cox as well as a developing 3-5 that has shown a lot of improvement over the last few weeks. Freshman phenom Lydia Harvey from New Castle had the best individual performance in the race with a 5th place finish in a time of 20:16. In the Gold Division, Cowan’s Lauren Smith was the top overall winner by just .8 seconds over the second place finisher. This continues a steak of good races by Smith who seems to be setting herself up for a lot of success in the next couple of weeks. And Smith’s upcoming success may just not be on the individual side of things either as her Cowan team had the top ECI finish in the Gold Division placing 3rd putting the Lady Blackhawks on short list of favorites for MEC Meet at Blue River next Saturday.

Top ECI Finishers
NC                   Lydia Harvey 20:16
DEL                 Makayla Robles                                 20:20
JAY                  Lydia Keihn                                       20:25
DEL                 Shannyn Cox                                     20:27
COW               Lauren Smith                                     21:04
WIN                Ella Baldwin                                       21:11
DEL                 Ashleigh Brelage                               21:15
SHEN              Stormie Fitch                                     21:29
COW               McKenna Minton                              21:38
JAY                  Sophia Fugiett                                   21:40

New Haven Classic Invitational (9/28/19)

A total of 4 ECI teams trekked up to the Ft. Wayne area to run in the New Haven Classic Invitational. All teams were running on the same course that will serve as their Semi-State Course if they are fortunate enough to advance their teams or individuals to that level of the tournament in 4 weeks.

BOYS RACES:
The big news for ECI teams from the New Haven Classic came in the A Division, where Wapahani had a coming out party. They ran the type of team race that everybody in the area knew they were capable of running. With their entire top 5 posting season best times, they came away as Division A Champions. Monroe Central also ran in the A Division and had themselves break-out performance as well. With almost their entire top 5 running season best times as well, and the return of Carter Miller, a star freshman for the Golden Bears a year ago, returning to action. This is huge news for the Golden Bears who look to be a real Sectional contender now. As the Division AA and AAA races went off, the weather had warmed and times slowed a bit for Yorktown and Muncie Central. Both teams, though, had some impressive individuals, Matt Mitsch running 15:59, and Isaiah Strong running 16:50.

TOP 10 ECI TIMES:
Matt Mitsch                YORK   15:59
Isaiah Strong MUCE 16:50
Brandon Ellis WAP    17:29
Andrew Shrock           WAP    17:50
Caden Shumaker MOCE 17:55
Griffen Miller              WAP    17:57
Tucker Burris MOCE 18:09
Caden Landis MOCE 18:13
Colton Boggs MOCE 18:14
Gannon Crosser YORK   18:18

GIRLS RACES:
On the Girls side of things, all 4 ECI Teams were in also in action at New Haven. Yorktown posted the best team finish of the day by getting 5th in the AA Division. Amberleigh Sorensen and Elizabeth Reece both had top 15 finishes in that race. Monroe Central and Wapahani both competed in the A Division, where Monroe Central finished 9th and Wapahani finished 13th. Those teams were led by Lexi Wulff's 10th place finish for Wapahani and Gabby Beckham's 12th place finish for the Golden Bears. The Muncie Central Bearcats competed in the AAA Division where they finished 12th, led by the 67th place finish of Paris Turner.

TOP 10 ECI TIMES:
Amberleigh Sorensen YORK   20:38
Elizabeth Reece                      YORK   20:46
Lexi Wulff                                WAP    21:11
Gabby Beckham MOCE 21:21
Natalie Moulton                     YORK   22:17
Sara Barnhizer YORK   22:19
Paris Turner MUCE 22:23
Karly Puckett MOCE 22:32
Ali Smith YORK   23:23
Jenna O’Donohue MUCE 23:26

Yorktown "Jim Leffler" Invitational (9/21/19)

A majority of the ECI teams met in Yorktown on Saturday to do battle. With the Conference and Sectional championship weekends looming in the near future, this week was a great late season measuring stick for how the ECI teams are stacking up against each other. Also, with teams such as Jay County not competing in the ECI area much early in the season it provided a first glance at where they truly belong in the Top 5 ECI Team rankings.

Girls Race:
The Girl's race showed a lot of Green and Blue up front for the ECI teams as New Castle, Yorktown, and Jay County all had multiple runners in the top 25 early in the race. Wapahani's Lexi Wulff, and the Cowan duo of McKenna Minton and Lauren Smith were also in the front of the pack from the very beginning. As the race came to a conclusion, there were many spots in the top 25 that were jostling back and forth. When it was all said and done, Yorktown prevailed as the top ECI team with Amberleigh Sorensen posting a great time and finish of 20:01 to take 2nd place, which was the top ECI finish. Jay County made the largest splash of the day, showing that they may have the best top 4 runners in all of ECI. The Patriots finished in 3rd overall as a team. Muncie Central and Cowan were separated by a single point for 4th and 5th in the team standings.

Top 15 ECI Girl Finishes:

Amberleigh Sorensen YORK   20:01
Lydia Harvey NC       20:13
Lydia Keihn JAY      20:50
Elizabeth Reece YORK   21:06
Lexi Wulff WAP    21:11
Lauren Smith COW    21:48
Ella Garvin NC       21:58
McKenna Minton COW    22:05
Raven Weaver JAY      22:06
Sophia Fugiett JAY      22:06
Lindy Wood JAY      22:11
Natalie Moulton YORK   22:23
Stormie Fitch SHEN   22:25
Emeline Thygerson     MUBU 22:48
Paris Turner MUCE 22:52

Boys Race:
The Boy's race featured 4 different ECI teams that received votes this past week in the ECI Top 5 Teams. Yorktown and Wapahani have been battling back and forth all year, and Muncie Central and New Castle have showed flashes of being teams that can compete with any ECI team on a given day. On this day, at Yorktown, Matt Mitsch continued his amazing season with another individual win. He finished the 5K course in a time of 16:10. Mitsch's performance led Yorktown to the top ECI team finish as well, by a narrow 2-points over Wapahani. Isaiah Strong led the Muncie Central Bearcats with a top 5 overall finish. and Andrew Fewell had a great race for the New Castle Trojans, finishing 7th overall.

Top 15 ECI Boys Finishes:
Matt Mitsch YORK   16:10
Isaiah Strong               MUCE 17:07
Andrew Fewell            NC       17:35
Luke Harber YORK   17:38
Ezra Daniel Wright      COW    17:38
Skyler Dickey NC       17:52
Andrew Shrock WAP    17:58
Brandon Ellis WAP    18:05
Borru Kishpaugh         SHEN   18:08
Colton Boggs WAP    18:15
Griffen Miller WAP    18:15
Gannon Crosser          YORK   18:32
Ryan Bade YORK   18:38
Robert Thomma          MUCE 18:47
Ayden Humbles NC       18:51

Randolph Southern Invitational (9/14/19)

The Randolph Southern Invitational saw 9 ECI teams participate including Cowan, Monroe Central, Muncie Burris, Muncie Central, New Castle, Randolph Southern, Union, Winchester, and Yorktown. Since the cancellation of the Blackford Invitational this has become the go to meet.

Girls Race:

For the girls, the top ECI ranked runner on the top 25 list Leah Keesling of Randolph Southern ran a time of 19:33 on her home course! Freshman phenom Lydia Harvey of New Castle ran a blazing 20:07 to place second. The Muncie Central, Cowan, and Monroe Central teams all had great races. A very tightly packed ECI Team results were as follows: Muncie Central placed 2nd, Cowan 3rd, Monroe Central 4th, Yorktown 5th, and Randolph Southern 6th.

Top 10 ECI Girl’s Times:

Leah Keesling Randolph S. 19:33
Lydia Harvey New Castle 20:07
Ella Baldwin Winchester 21:06
Lauren Smith Cowan 21:12
Amberleigh Sorenson Yorktown 21:16
Gabby Beckham Monroe C. 21:33
Stormie Fitch Shenandoah 21:57
Paris Turner Muncie C. 21:59
Ella Garvin New Castle 22:00
McKenna Minton Cowan 22:23

Boys Race:

For the boys, the top ECI ranked runner on the top 25 list Matthew Mitsch of Yorktown ran a time of 16:39! Monroe Central had a great race from their top 3 runners to place 3rd six points away from Yorktown! Muncie Central placed 5th, and New Castle placed 6th.

Top 10 ECI Boy’s Times:

Matthew Mitsch Yorktown 16:39
Isaiah Strong Muncie C. 17:21
Ezra Daniel Wright Cowan 17:38
Luke Harber Yorktown 17:59
Andrew Fewell New Castle 18:13
Caden Shumaker Monroe C. 18:18
Tucker Burris Monroe C. 18:18
Skyler Dickey New Castle 18:21
Borru Kishpaugh Shenandoah 18:31
Josh Soden Shenandoah 18:38

Delaware County Meet (9/10/19)

The Delaware County Meet brought the top 2 teams in ECI together for both the boys and the girls races. On the Girl's side Yorktown and Delta would battle for county bragging rights, and on the Boy's side Yorktown and Wapahani would battle for ECI supremacy. Overall, the hot conditions at Cowan High School would serve as a struggle for all competitors. Especially after a very cool first few weeks of the XC season.

BOYS RACE:
As the gun fired for the Boy's race individuals from Yorktown and Wapahani went straight to the front. One predictable factor in this race is that Yorktown's Matthew Mitsch would dominate from start to finish. But, after Mitsch the strong pack of Wapahani would put the Raiders right in contention for the team title. As the race entered the final stages it looked to be dead-even between the Raiders and the Tigers for the team title. Both teams crammed 4 individuals in the top-10 overall. As the results started to trickle out it was the Yorktown Tigers who took a narrow one-point victory over the Raiders. It was truly a race where both teams were deserving of the Delaware County title. In the individual placings, Yorktown took the top 2 spots with Matthew Mitsch and Luke Harber, followed by an amazing 3rd place run from Cowan's Ezra Daniel Wright. Close on Wright's heels were the formidable Wapahani pack of Andrew Shrock, Brandon Ellis, and Colton Boggs.

TOP 10 BOYS INDIVIDUALS:
Matthew Mitsch YORK 16:44
Luke Harber YORK 18:05
Ezra Daniel Wright COW 18:19
Andrew Shrock WAP 18:33
Brandon Ellis WAP 18:38
Colton Boggs WAP 18:42
Ryan Bade YORK 18:47
Gannon Crosser YORK 19:13
Griffen Miller WAP 19:22
Cody Bivens DELT 19:46

GIRLS RACE:
In very similar fashion to the Boys race, the top contending Girls also went right to the front at the beginning of the race. Yorktown's Amberleigh Sorensen and Elizabeth Reece, Delta's Makayla Robles, Wapahani's Lexi Wulff, and Cowan's Lauren Smith made up the Top-5 for much of the early stages of the race. As the race entered the final kilometer many individuals made a surge to the front in an effort to claim a top-10 All-County spot. One individual that made such a surge was Robles, she took the lead going in to the 3rd K of the race and never relinquished it. Behind her, Yorktown piled up 7 runners in the top 18 to secure their 4th Delaware County Team Championship in a row.

TOP 10 GIRLS INDIVIDUALS:
Makayla Robles DELT 20:55
Amberleigh Sorensen YORK 21:14
Elizabeth Reece YORK 21:20
Shannyn Cox DELT 21:42
Lexi Wulff WAP 22:01
Ashleigh Brelage DELT 22:12
Lauren Smith COW 22:19
Natalie Moulton YORK 22:34
McKenna Minton COW 22:52
Kendyl Thrasher WAP 23:00

Marion Invitational (9/7/19)

Boys Races:
Throughout the day there were several ECI schools that raced the fast Marion Invitational course. In the Elite Boys race Yorktown and Muncie Central both competed and several individuals saw PR and SR times. Top ECI finishers were Matt Mitsch in 8th and Isaiah Strong in 40th. A couple New Castle runners also had stellar races later in the Gold Race as Andrew Fewell (5th) and Skyler Dickey (9th) both finished in the top 10.

Top ECI Boys Times:
Matt Mitsch                YORK   15:48
Isaiah Strong MUCE 16:41
Luke Harber                YORK   17:17
Andrew Fewell NC       17:55
Skyler Dickey NC       18:09
Cody Bivens                DELT    18:32
Dylan Bradford MUCE 18:37
Gannon Crosser YORK   18:37
Robert Thomma MUCE 18:39
Josh Stephenson MUBU 18:47
Ryan Bade                   YORK   18:55
A.J. Martinez               MUCE 19:01

Girls Races:
In the Girl's races at Marion on Saturday, Leah Keesling continued her winning ways by dominating the Red division race in 19:28. Most ECI competitors ran in the Gold Girls race, leading all ECI competitors in that race was freshman standout from New Castle Lydia Harvey, who finished 2nd overall. Also, in the Gold race Yorktown junior Elizabeth Reece (5th), Delta sophomore Makayla Robles (6th), and Delta freshman Shannyn Cox (8th) all posted top-10 finishes.

Top ECI Girls Times:
Leah Keesling              RAND 19:28
Lydia Harvey               NC       19:53
Elizabeth Reece          YORK   20:43
Makayla Robles           DELT    20:47
Shannyn Cox               DELT    21:04
Paris Turner                MUCE 21:46
Ashleigh Brelage         DELT    21:48
Ella Garvin                   NC       21:53
Natalie Moulton         YORK   22:22
Hannah Smith             MUBU 22:25
Sara Barnhizer            YORK   22:32
Emeline Thygerson     MUBU 22:34

Wapahani 5K Invitational (9/3/19)

Wapahani 5K

Boys Race
The Wapahani Boys team placed 5 in the top 14 to secure a 1-point win over a very good Cambridge City Lincoln team in the Wapahani Inv. Leading the way for the Raiders was Junior Andrew Shrock who set a new personal best to finish second overall in a time of 17:51. Not too far behind Shrock were teammates Brandon Ellis and Griffen Miller who both were also in the top 10. On the individual side, Muncie’s Isaiah Strong dominated the meet from the start, coming into the finish line at a solid time of 17:13 on a very hilly course at Prairie Creek Reservoir. Strong’s teammate Robert Thomma was also in the top 10 overall by placing 10th and Daleville’s Eli Isom, Wes-Del’s Luke Butler, Winchester’s Gage Patterson, Shenandoah’s Josh Soden and Blackford’s Brayden Willams and Drew Caldwell all finished in the top 20.

ECI Team Scores
1. Wapahani 41
3. Muncie Central 68
4. Blackford 112
5. Shenandoah 127
6. Winchester 140
7. Daleville 182
8. Union City 227

Top ECI Finishers
MUNC             Isaiah Strong                                     17:13
WAP                Andrew Shrock                                  17:51
WAP                Brandon Ellis 18:09
SHEN              Borru Kishpaugh 18:18
WAP                Griffen Miller                                     18:29
MUNC             Robert Thomma                                18:46
BLAC               Brayden Roberts                               18:48
WAP                Colton Boggs                                      18:55
MUNC             A.J. Martinez                                       19:02
WAP                Joey Dickinson                                   19:03

Girls Race
The girl’s race saw Muncie Central pace two runners in the top six overall to help seal the victory for the Bearcats. Leading the charge was Central’s tandem of Paris Turner and Jenna O’Donohue who placed 5th and 6th. An improving Blackford squad placed second as a team with freshmen Cami Caldwell showcasing a very nice run to lead her team with a 4th place overall finish. On the individual side of things Lexi Wulff continued her big season by winning the race in a person best time of 20:35. Winchester front-runner Ella Baldwin also had a nice day with a 4th place finish. Wes-Del’s Jaci Knott, Wapahani’s Kendyl Thrasher, Shenandoah’s Stormie Finch and Union City’s Chloe Wyatt all secured top 10 finishes as well.

ECI Team Scores
1.Muncie Central 67
2.Blackford 84
3.Shenandoah 100
4.Wapahani 104
5.Wes-Del 107
7.Winchester 131
8.Daleville 136

Top ECI Finishers
WAP                Lexi Wulff                                          20:35
WIN                Ella Baldwin 21:28
BLAC               Cami Caldwell 22:11
MUNC             Paris Turner 22:26
MUNC             Jenna O’Donohue 22:36
WES                Jaci Knott                                           22:50
WAP                Kendyl Thrasher 22:54
SHEN              Stormie Finch 23:02
UNC                Chloe Wyatt 23:08
UNION Autumn Rice 23:42

Pendleton Heights Arabian Roundup (8/28/19)

The Arabian Roundup saw 9 ECI teams participate including Blue River Valley, Cowan, Monroe Central, New Castle, Shenandoah, Union City, Wapahani, Wes-Del, and Yorktown.

Girls Race:
For the girls, the top runner for ECI was senior Amberleigh Sorensen with a great time of 20:17 already beating her season best from last year! Two freshmen from New Castle (Lydia Harvey, and Ella Garvin) led the way with some very impressive times. Yorktown was the top ECI team placing 6th, with four runners making the top 10 ECI Girl’s list below. Lexi Wulff (Wapahani), Lauren Smith (Cowan), and Stormie Fitch (Shenandoah) continued their great start to their season!

Top 10 ECI Girl’s Times:
Amberleigh Sorensen   Yorktown    20:17
Lydia Harvey   New Castle 20:27
Elizabeth Reece Yorktown   20:58
Lexi Wulff Wapahani   21:32
Lauren Smith Cowan   22:15
Stormie Fitch Shenandoah 22:18
Natalie Moulton   Yorktown 22:43
Ella Garvin   New Castle 22:47
Kendyl Thrasher   Wapahani 23:14
Sara Barnhizer Yorktown   23:29

Boys Race:

For the boys, the top ECI runner returning for his first race of the season was senior Matthew Mitsch of Yorktown running a blazing time of 16:33 and coming in second place overall! Wapahani had a KILLER 1-2-3 punch running 18:38, 18:39, and 18:40! Only 3 seconds between them, craziness! Yorktown was the top ECI team placing 6th, followed by Wapahani in 8th. Ezra Daniel Wright (Cowan), Skyler Dickey (New Castle), and Caden Shumaker (Monroe Central) once again had great races!

Top 10 ECI Boy’s Times:
Matthew Mitsch Yorktown   16:33
Luke Harber   Yorktown 18:05
Ezra Daniel Wright    Cowan    18:26
Gannon Crosser   Yorktown    18:29
Andrew Shrock   Wapahani   18:38
Brandon Ellis Wapahani 18:39
Griffen Miller   Wapahani 18:40
Skyler Dickey   New Castle 18:42
Caden Shumaker Monroe C. 18:43
Ryan Bade Yorktown 18:44

The Meister Family Memorial Run (8/24/19)

This year’s meet at the beautiful Monroe Central Jr.-Sr. High School course saw 9 ECI teams participate including Blackford, Blue River Valley, Cowan, Monroe Central, Muncie Burris, Randolph Southern, Union, Union City and Winchester.

Maria Mitchell of Hamilton Heights ran a new course record of 18:57 to win the meet. On the girl’s side Ella Baldwin of Winchester got off to a great start to her Junior year with a 2nd place finish in 21:13! Lauren Smith (Cowan), Cami Caldwell (Blackford), Hannah Smith (Muncie Burris), and Karly Puckett (Monroe Central) all placed in the top 20. Cowan was the top ECI team which placed 5th overall, followed by Blackford in 6th place.

Top 10 ECI Girl’s Times:

Ella Baldwin   Winchester   21:13
Lauren Smith Cowan   21:36
Cami Caldwell Blackford   22:41
Hannah Smith Muncie Burris   23:20
Karly Puckett   Monroe Central 23:29
Emeline Thygerson  Muncie Burris   23:37
McKenna Minton Cowan   23:38
Chloe Wyatt   Union City 23:45
Savannah Kernel Blue River Valley  24:08
Autumn Rice   Union   24:10

Luis Saldana of New Haven won the meet in a time of 16:50. On the boy’s side the top finisher was Caden Shumaker of Monroe Central placing 18th overall in 18:24, closely followed by fellow teammate Tucker Burris in 18:31. Brayden Roberts (Blackford), Ezra Daniel Wright (Cowan), Gabe Sayre (Blue River Valley) all placed in the top 25. Monroe Central was the top ECI team which placed 6th overall followed by Blackford in 7th.

Top 10 ECI Boy’s Times:

Caden Shumaker   Monroe Central   18:24
Tucker Burris Monroe Central   18:31
Brayden Roberts Blackford 18:35
Ezra Daniel Wright Cowan 18:35
Gabe Sayre Blue River Valley   18:36
Caden Landis Monroe Central   19:06
Josh Stephenson Muncie Burris 19:13
Luke Richmond Randolph Southern 19:25
Drew Caldwell Blackford 19:26
Nathaniel Kirby   Cowan 19:29

County Clash at Taylor University (8/24/19)

Boys Race:
The boys race saw Delaware County run away with the County Clash Championship and Wapahani taking home the travelling trophy while placing three individuals in the top ten. Leading the charge for the Raiders were Sophomore Brandon Ellis (6th), and Junior’s Griffen Miller (9th) and Andrew Shrock (10th). The top individual finisher from ECI was Muncie Central’s Isaiah Strong who finished 2nd overall for the Bearcats. Delta’s Lucas Fox (3rd) and Yorktown’s Luke Harber (4th) also had top 10 runs on the day.

Delaware County Team Scores
1. Wapahani 38
2. Muncie Central 54
3. Delta 57
4. Yorktown 67
5. Daleville 132

Top ECI Finishers
MUNC Isaiah Strong 17:26
DEL                 Lucas Fox 17:50
YORK              Luke Harber 17:52
WAP Brandon Ellis 17:58
WAP Griffen Miller 18:08
WAP Andrew Shrock 18:20
DEL Cody Bivens 18:34
MUNC Dylan Bradford                                 18:36
YORK Gannon Crosser 18:49
MUNC A.J. Martinez 19:00

Girls Race:
The Girl's race also saw Delaware County win top County honors, in blowout fashion. Delaware County took 9 of the first 11 spots in the race. The traveling trophy went to the Yorktown Lady Tigers after they placed 3 in the top 10, as well as taking 11th place overall to break the trophy tie with Delta. Amberleigh Sorensen (2nd), Elizabeth Reece (3rd), and Natalie Moulton (9th) were top 10 finishers for Yorktown. Makayla Robles (1st), Shannyn Cox (6th),Ashleigh Brelage (7th) were top 10 finishers for Delta. Also, Paris Turner from Muncie Central also turned in a top 10 finish by finishing 10th.

Delaware County Team Scores
1. Yorktown 33
2. Delta 50
3. Wapahani 97
4. Muncie Central 105
5. Wes-Del 114
6. Daleville 129

Top ECI Finishers
DELT Makayla Robles 20:23
YORK Amberleigh Sorensen 20:48
YORK Elizabeth Reece 21:02
WAP Lexi Wulff 21:06
DELT Shannyn Cox 21:52
DELT Ashleigh Brelage 22:07
YORK Natalie Moulton 22:31
MUNCE Paris Turner 22:35
YORK Sara Barnhizer 22:36
WAP Kendyl Thrasher 22:57

Winchester 4K Invite (8/21/19)

Boys Race:
A few ECI schools headed to Winchester on Wednesday night for a 4K to start their respective seasons. In the boys race there was strong pack running up front by the Wapahani squad that placed 3 of the top 4 race finishers (including overall winner Andrew Shrock), 5 in the top 10 and 7 in the top 15. Muncie Burris finished 2nd as a team in the meet led by Lunden Olinger’s 5th place finish. Wes Del’s Luke Butler and Winchester’s Gage Patterson had impressive starts to their seasons finishing 7th and 8th respectively.

ECI Team Scores:
1. Wapahani 22
2. Muncie Burris 64
4. Winchester 100
INC. Wes-Del

Top ECI Finishers
WAP                Andrew Shrock                                  14:40
WAP                Brandon Ellis 14:43
WAP                Griffen Miller                                     15:15
BUR                 Lunden Olinger                                 15:19
WAP                Colton Boggs                                      15:23
WES                Luke Butler 15:24
WIN                Gage Patterson                                  15:29
WAP                Joey Dickinson                                   15:42
WAP                Jon Shrock 15:42
BUR                 Max Davis 15:45

Girls Race:
The girl’s race saw the top 3 teams finish within 2 points of each other in a very competitive field. The Lady Raiders of Wapahani posted the best team score of all ECI teams with a 2nd place team finish overall. Wapahani’s Lexi Wulff was also the top ECI finisher with a 2nd place individual finish. Not to far behind Wulff was Winchester’s frontrunner Ella Baldwin who finished 3rd overall.

ECI Team Scores:
2. Wapahani 58
4. Wes-Del 67
5. Winchester 91
INC. Burris

Top ECI Finishers
WAP                Lexi Wulff                                          17:14
WIN                Ella Baldwin 17:28
BUR                 Emeline Thygerson 18:21
BUR                 Hannah Smith 18:25
WES Jaci Knott 18:44
WAP                Kendyl Thrasher 18:49
WES                Kamryn McGlothlin 20:02
WAP                Khloe Felton 21:05
WES                Andrea Stoughton 21:30
WES                Aleigha Swift 22:03

2018 XC Season

Mid-Eastern Conference Meet (9/29/18)

Girls Race

The Girls MEC Race was the tale of two dominating performances. One by front-runner Leah Keesling whose 19:34 (on a traditional slower Blue River course) was more than enough to give her the same MEC individual crown that her older sister Emma was able to win a season ago. And the second impressive performance was by the Wapahani Lady Raiders, who were led by the dynamic duo of Lexi Wulff (3rd) and Olivia Neal (4th) as well as solid runs by Jasmine Mountcastle, Sydney Cook and Carlie Boggs to cruise to a 40 point win for their first MEC title since 2007. Another outstanding performance was by Cowan’s Lauren Smith who continued her successful season by finishing 2nd overall and continues to set herself up for a serious run at a semi-state bid in the weeks ahead.

Top 10 ECI Girls Times

1. Leah Keesling                  RAND             19:34
2. Lauren Smith                   COW               21:10
3. Lexi Wulff                         WAP               21:47
4. Olivia Neal                        WAP               21:52
5. Madi Jenkins                    SHEN              22:06
6. Jaci Knott                          WESD             22:17
7. Autumn Rice                    UNION            22:28
8. Audrey Shepler               DALE              22:38
9. Brooke Pritchett             DALE              22:42
11. Jasmine Mountcastle   WAP               22:53

Boys Race

The Monroe Central boys have relied on pack running for their success most of the season and that was evident on this day as they were able to place three Bears in the top 10 including Carter Miller (7th), Caden Shumaker (8th) and Dalton Winans (9th) to out pace the Wapahani Raiders for the MEC title. Monroe Central also saw solid runs from seniors Zane Kear and Riley Moulton to give the Bears the edge. Second place Wapahani was led by All Conference performances by Blake Ellis (4th) and a solid PR by Griffen Miller (6th). On the individual side of things Blue River’s Andrew Whittinger was able to outdistance the field for the win while Shenandoah’s front-runner Borru Kishpaugh used a nice second half race push to finish second.

Top 10 ECI Boys Times

1. Andrew Whitinger                     BRV                17:11
2. Borru Kishpaugh SHEN              17:43
4. Blake Ellis WAP               17:56
6. Griffen Miller                              WAP               18:16
7. Carter Miller                                MONC             18:19
8. Caden Shumaker                         MONC             18:23
9. Dalton Winans                             MONC             18:25
10. Joey Liles                                      BRV                18:39
11. Luke Butler                                WESD             18:48
12. Preston White                           COW               18:49

New Haven Classic (9/22/18)

Girls Race:
op Five teSeveral ECI Girl's teams traveled up to the New Haven Classic course, in hopes that they might return here in 4 weeks to compete at the New Haven Semi-State. The 4 ECI teams were spread out through 3 different divisions, but the weather and course conditions were primed for some fast racing no matter what division you competed in on this morning.

"A Race"
The Monroe Central Golden Bears and Wapahani Raiders both competed in the first ECI competition of the day. Wapahani was missing half of their frontrunning duo, with Lexi Wulff missing the meet. But, her teammate Olivia Neal had a solid race finishing 29th in 21:43 to lead the Raiders to a 13th place team finish. Raider teammate Jasmine Mountcastle, continued a really impressive season of continued improvement with a 48th place finish in 22:42. The top Golden Bear finisher was Madyson Davison in 80th, running 23:57. The Monroe Central squad also seemed to missing their top runner, Gabby Beckham for this contest, but still managed a 19th place team finish.

"AA Race"
The Yorktown Lady Tigers competed in the middle-sized AA race. The were led by Amberleigh Sorensen (14th) and Elizabeth Reece's (26th) medalist performances. The Tigers also received a PR performance from their #3 runner Sara Barnhizer, who finished in 52nd place with over a minute PR, finishing in 21:54.

"AAA Race"
The Large school division consisted of school with an enrollment of 1400 or more students. So, it was definitely going to be chalked full of great competition. And that is where the Muncie Central Lady Bearcats found themselves racing. The Bearcats were up to the task and used the great competition to post some impressive times. Janelle Woods-Barnes was the top finisher for Muncie Central, running a 21:09 and finishing in 51st place. The next bearcat to cross the line was Paris Turner in 97th. The Bearcats finished in 14th place as a team on the day.

Top 10 ECI Girls Times:

Amberleigh Sorensen YORK 20:21
Elizabeth Reece YORK 21:09.6
Janelle Woods-Barnes MUCE 21:09.6
Olivia Neal WAP 21:43
Sara Barnhizer YORK 21:54
Jasmine Mountcastle WAP 22:42
Paris Turner MUCE 22:47
Jenna O'Donahue MUCE 23:16.3
Sydney Cook WAP 23:16.4
Kaitlynn Santino YORK 23:50

Boys Race:
Four of the top Five teams from last week’s ECI poll including Muncie Central, Yorktown, Monroe Central and Wapahani rolled into the New Haven Inv. this Saturday to compete in three different races for a nice little appetizer of what will be some very competitive races against each other in the weeks ahead. And with the aid of some much appreciated mild weather, these teams were able to turn in some of their best races of the year.

“A Race”
Monroe Central and Wapahani competed in the Small School “A Race” with Monroe Central finishing 5th and Wapahani 10th out of 25 complete teams. Monroe Central was able to get solid performances of their 1-4 who all finished within 15 seconds of each other ranging from 17:59-18:14 as they are definitely throwing their hat in the ring for a sectional crown in the weeks ahead. Wapahani’s Blake Ellis continued his steady improvement this year with a new PR of 17:21 which gave him an 11th place overall finish. However, Wapahani will definitely need more help from their 2-5 if they hope to compete with the Bears for the MEC Conference next week.

“AA Race”
The Yorktown boys ran in the Division AA race and finished 14th out of 16 teams sans Matt Mitsch who opted to run in the large school race. That said, the Tigers still saw some nice runs from Sean Weiss and Caleb Bonsack who both broke the 18 minute as they continue to set themselves up as a three headed monster up front come tournament season.

“AAA Race”
The large school race saw Muncie Central and Yorktown’s Matt Mitsch competing in what was a very fast race. Matt Mitsch continued his tear this season with a 16:07 time and a 8th place overall finish. Impressive, especially considering he was facing many of the same runners he will see next month as he makes a bid to qualify for the state meet. Muncie was led by Isaiah Bennett who placed 60th overall with a 17:07 time. The Bearcats finished 18th out of 19 teams but still seem to be very much in the mix of things once their top five runners set into place.
Individual Top 10 Times
1. Matt Mitsch                  YORK            16:07
2. Isaiah Bennett             MUNC           17:07
3. Blake Ellis                      WAP              17:21
4. Sean Weiss                    YORK            17:51
5. Caleb Bonsack             YORK            17:52
6. Carter Miller                 MONC           17:59
7. Dalton Winans            MONC           18:00
8. Kavon Byrd                   MUNC           18:05
9. Zane Kear                      MONC           18:07
10. Kadin Shumaker      MONC           18:14

Yorktown "Jim Leffler" Invitational (9/15/18)

9 ECI Teams rolled into the Muncie SportsPlex on Saturday morning to compete after many had meets rained out earlier in the week. For many teams this was also a nice preview of the Sectional and Regional site that many of these same teams will battle on less than a month from now.

On the Boy's side The Muncie Central Bearcats showed why they are the defending Sectional Champs. The Bearcats ran a strong team race to take 5th overall as a team and lead all ECI teams. They were led by 2 top-20 finishes with Isaiah Bennett finishing 7th and Kavan Byrd finishing 19th. The Yorktown Tigers were 9 points behind the Bearcats, in 6th place. They were led by the individual champ Matt Mitsch and Sean Weiss in 17th. Other top 10 finishers from ECI schools were Elliott Whiteside from Muncie Burris in 6th overall. Shenandoah's Borru Kishpaugh finished 8th overall, and Cowan's Daniel Wright finished in 10th.

In the Girl's race, the Yorktown Tiger Girls grinded out a 3rd place team finish. The Lady Tigers were led by a 4th place finish by Amberleigh Sorensen, which was the top finish of any ECI runner on the day. Elizabeth Reece also ran to a top 10 finish for Yorktown, finishing 8th overall. The Wapahani Lady Raiders were close behind the Tigers, 8 points back in 4th place. The Raiders were led by 2 top 20 finishers, Lexi Wulff in 11th and Olivia Neal in 16th. Other ECI finishers in the top 10 were Jay County's Sophia Fugiett, who had her best performance of the 2018 season by finishing 5th. And speaking of great performances, Lauren Smith from Cowan had an amazing run, finishing 6th overall.

Top 10 ECI Girls:

Amberleigh Sorensen YORK 21:05
Sophia Fugiett JAY 21:11
Lauren Smith COW 21:25
Elizabeth Reece YORK 21:42
Lexi Wulff WAP 21:58
Madi Jenkins SHEN 22:04
Janelle Woods-Barnes MUCE 22:10
Olivia Neal WAP 22:15
Hannah Smith MUBU 22:22
Audrey Shepler DALE 22:42

Top 10 ECI Boys:

Matt Mitsch YORK 16:35
Elliott Whiteside MUBU 17:27
Isaiah Bennett MUCE 17:30
Borru Kishpaugh SHEN 17:33
Daniel Wright COW 17:43
Blake Ellis WAP 17:50
Sean Weiss YORK 17:58
Kavan Byrd MUCE 17:58
Caleb Bonsack YORK 18:15
Britton Adkins NC 18:22

Delaware County Meet (9/4/18)

6 ECI teams rolled into the Delaware County Meet on a hot and humid Tuesday evening to battle it out for county bragging rights. The Boy's race featured 3 teams that have been in the ECIRunner Top 5 teams this year, while the Girl's race featured the 3 teams that are currently perched at the top of the Top 5 team rankings.

The girl's race sure looked to be a tight one on paper and it lived up to the billing as Delta, Yorktown and Wapahani have been very evenly matched this year. Yorktown pulled out the close win on this day as the Tigers outpaced the Eagles by 6 points to win the Delaware County trophy for the 3rd year in a row. The Tigers were led by junior Amberleigh Sorensen, who held off a charging Makayla Robles down the stretch to win the individual county title. The Tigers also had 3 other All-County top 10 finishers in Elizabeth Reece (3rd), Sara Barnhizer (8th), and Grace Huisman (9th). The Eagles had Ashleigh Brelage (4th) join her teammate Robles as a top-ten ALL-County finisher as well. The Wapahani Raiders finished 3rd place as a team behind the All-County Duo of Lexi Wulff (6th) and Olivia Neal (7th). Other top-10 All-County finishers were freshman Lauren Smith (5th), who had a fantastic race for the Cowan Blackhawks, and Daleville's Audrey Shepler (10th), another freshman that posted a great race in tough conditions.

On the Boy's side of things the Yorktown Tigers were victorious as well. Winning their first Delaware County championship since 2012. Also, marking the first time that one school has collected both Delaware County team titles in over 10 years. The Tigers were led by individual champion Matt Mitsch. But, he had Tiger teammates that were not too far behind with Caleb Bonsack and Sean Weiss taking 2nd and 3rd respectively. One other Tiger, senior Sam Willey, posted an All-County top-10 finish by crossing the line in 9th. The team runner-up was the Delta Eagles, making a pretty strong statement after dropping out of the ECIRunner Top 5 Teams poll this past weekend. The Eagles were led by Cody Brelage (6th) and Lucas Fox (7th). The Wapahani Raiders were only 8 points behind the Eagles, placing 3rd in the team race. They were led by Blake Ellis in 4th place overall. Other top-10 All-County Finishers were Daniel Wright (5th) and Preston White (8th) from the Cowan Blackhawks, who looked to have very strong races on their home course. And Khoa Weston from Daleville, who placed 10th overall.

Top 10 Girls ECI Times:

Amberleigh Sorensen YORK 21:17
Makayla Robles DELT 21:20
Elizabeth Reece YORK 21:58
Ashleigh Brelage DELT 23:00
Lauren Smith COW 23:03
Lexi Wulff WAP 23:24
Olivia Neal WAP 23:39
Sara Barnhizer YORK 24:21
Grace Huisman YORK 24:26
Audrey Shepler DALE 24:38

Top 10 Boys ECI Times:

Matt Mitsch YORK 17:31
Caleb Bonsack YORK 18:12
Sean Weiss YORK 18:16
Blake Ellis WAP 18:22
Daniel Wright COW 18:32
Cody Brelage DELT 19:03
Lucas Fox DELT 19:10
Preston White COW 19:23
Sam Willey YORK 19:46
Khoa Weston DALE 19:52

Marion Invite (9/1/18)

Girls Race Recap:

Although many Girl’s ECI teams raced at the Marion Invitational on Saturday, very few were actually on the course at the same time. 6 different ECI teams competed in 4 different races, but when you start to put the times together, you start to see a lot of parity throughout the area.
In the Red Division Randolph Southern and Winchester started off the day with a race that was led from wire-to-wire by the Rebels Leah Keesling. The top ECI runner looked smooth as she won in a time of 19:46, the best time posted by an ECI female for the day. But, not far behind was another top ECI girl in Winchester’s Ella Baldwin. Baldwin finished 7th overall in 21:46. In the team race the Winchester ladies (8th) edged out Randolph Southern (9th) by 21 points.

Next up was the Elite race, which featured Yorktown. The Lady Tigers were in the race due to their 2nd place finish in their division race last year. But, after losing 5 seniors, this year’s Yorktown squad looked to be a bit too large of a stage. They finished 18th in the 18 team field. They were led by junior Amberleigh Sorensen in 83th place (21:24) and Elizabeth Reece in 97th (21:46).

In the Gold race the Delta Eagles paced their way to a 5th place overall finish. The Eagles top runner, Freshman Makayla Robles had a fantastic day, finishing 3rd overall and posting the 2nd best 5k time of the day by an ECI girl at 21:20. Her teammate, sophomore Ashleigh Brelage also medaled in the race by finishing 14th overall in a time of 22:31.

Finally, in the Purple division, the New Castle Trojans and Muncie Central Bearcats competed in noticeably warmer, late-day conditions. Muncie Central ended up finishing 7th overall in the team race, while the Trojans fell just short of fielding a full team. The Bearcats were led by Janelle Woods-Barnes who finished 11th overall in 22:18, teammate Paris Turner also medaled by finishing 32nd in 23:55. New Castle was paced by freshman Lily Saunders who finished 40th in a time of 24:31.

Top 15 ECI Girls Times:

Leah Keesling RAND 19:46
Makayla Robles DELT 21:20
Amberleigh Sorensen YORK 21:24
Ella Baldwin WIN 21:46
Elizabeth Reece YORK 21:46
Janelle Woods-Barnes MUCE 22:18
Ashleigh Brelage DELT 22:31
Paris Turner MUCE 23:55
Sara Barnhizer YORK 24:03
Lily Saunders NC 24:31
Jenna O’Donahue MUCE 24:34
Kaitlynn Santino YORK 24:34
Ashley Rees WIN 24:44
Skyann Cansler DELT 24:45
Harley Shin RAND 24:53

7 ECI teams took to the flat course of the Marion Invitational at Indiana Wesleyan University. After most teams had meets cancelled for last weekend, several came in with several extra days since their last meets. Stepping to the line for the Red race were the smaller schools. Winchester and Randolph Southern were the ECI participants in this race. Winchester frontrunner Camden Abernathy led the way with a strong performance with a 4th place overall finish in a time of 17:09.5. The next ECI finishers were Camden’s teammates, Trenton Sanders and Gage Patterson in 37th and 38th places, respectively. Randolph Southern’s top finisher came in at 45th place, Luke Richmond, followed closely by teammate Joseph Hosbrookin 46th.

Next up for the varsity boy’s races was the Gold division, as temperatures started to raise from the cooler weather of the first race. Delta and Muncie Burris were the ECI participants in this race. Elliott Whiteside of Muncie Burris led the way for ECI individuals with a 4th place finish in a time of 17:15.9. The next ECI finisher was Delta’s top individual in 21st place, Cody Brelage.

In the final high school race of the day, Yorktown, Muncie Central and New Castle took to the course. Matthew Mitsch took to the lead early in the race and never relented, leading wire-to-wire in a personal best time of 16:30.9, cementing himself as the top ECI runner in the area. The next ECI runners, following Mitsch, were his teammates Caleb Bonsack (6th) and Sean Weiss (10th) and Muncie Central’s Isaiah Bennett (9th). New Castle’s top finisher was Britton Adkins in his season debut in 14th place.

Top 15 ECI Boys Times

Matthew Mitsch YORK 16:30
Camden Abernathy WIN 17:09
Elliott Whiteside MUBU 17:15
Caleb Bonsack YORK 18:05
Isaiah Bennett MUCE 18:10
Sean Weiss YORK 18:13
Kavan Byrd MUCE 18:26
Britton Adkins NC 18:31
Cody Brelage DELT 18:33
Lucas Fox DELT 18:48
Jaycee Wilburn NC 18:49
AJ Martinez MUCE 19:12
Trenton Sanders WIN 19:12
Cody Bivens DELT 19:14
Gage Patterson WIN 19:21

Wapahani Invite (8/28/18)

The Wapahani Invite’s hilly terrain always makes it for a challenging course but Tuesday evening’s heat and humidity made it all the more challenging. That said, several ECI teams were eager to get back out on the course after many teams were rained out of their races this past weekend.

On the girls side, Wapahani showed out in a big way placing 5 in the top 12 overall with Lexi Wulff and Olivia Neal leading the way with 4th and 5th places respectively as they try to build momentum toward the Delaware county meet next week against very good Delta and Yorktown teams. Individually, Winchester’s Ella Baldwin continued her early season success with a great second half finish to the race to finish as the overall winner (as well as leading her team to a second place team finish) and Union City’s Reagan Hoggett paced Union City with a third place overall finish.

Top 10 ECI Girls Times

Ella Baldwin WIN                21:45
Reagan Hoggatt UCHS              21:49
Lexi Wulff WAP               22:17
Olivia Neal WAP               22:29
Madi Jenkins SHEN              22:45
Audrey Shepler DALE              23:35
Sydney Cook WAP               23:41
Jaci Knott WESD             24:24
Natalie Thurman BLACK            24:48
Jasmine Mountcastle WAP               25:14

The top boys team in the ECI area was the Wapahani Raiders who placed 2nd in the 11 school field. The Raiders were led by top 10 finishes from Blake Ellis (8th) and an emerging Andrew Shrock who finished 10th. The biggest surprise of the night however may have been the Winchester Falcons who were paced by Camden Abernathy’s second place overall finish (not a surprise there) but also saw an improving 2-5 that helped the Falcons to a 3rd place team finish. The season may be early but the Falcons must be eyeing a possible team regional birth by the season’s end if this group can continue to develop.

Top 10 ECI Boys Times

Camden Abernathy WIN    17:15
Borru Kishpaugh      SHEN 17:45
Blake Ellis WAP   18:37
Andrew Shrock WAP   19:00
Dawson Mattox WESD 19:21
Trenton Sanders       WIN    19:34
Eli Isom DALE 19:43
George Patterson WIN    19:51
Griffen Miller WAP   19:55
Nate Kimball SHEN 20:14

County Clash (8/18/18)

The County Clash Meet this year was held at the Muncie Sportsplex and as the participating teams rolled in on Saturday they were greeted by a very soggy course with ankle-deep water in several locations. But, even with those conditions several local ECI runners had very impressive early-season showings.

On the Girl's side, Yorktown's Elizabeth Reece (one of the few remaining members from last year's Regional Championship team) led not only her team, but all ECI runners as well with a 2nd place overall finish (21:54). A pair of young Delta runners were also in the top 10 overall, as freshman Makayla Robles and Ashleigh Brelage finished 5th and 6th respectively. The Eagles were not the only ECI team to place 2 in the top 10 however, as the Wapahani duo of Lexi Wulff and Olivia Neal finished right behind in 7th and 8th. Daleville's impressive sophomore Heather Paulter finished in 10th to round out the top 10 finishers in the girl's race from ECI. In the team contest the Delta Eagle made a strong early-season statement by winning the meet by a significant margin, 28 points, over Wapahani. The Raiders had to be happy with their runner-up finish though, as they are putting together a good squad of runners behind the proven duo of Wulff and Neal. Rounding out the top 5 team finishers were Yorktown in 4th and Muncie Central in 5th.

In the Boy's race, Yorktown's Matthew Mitsch showed off what looks to be a strong offseason of summer running by finishing in 2nd place overall behind Brennan Butch (a top 5 finisher in last year's State Meet) and ahead of Eastbrook's Ben Neideck (who just ran sub-16 less than a week ago). That looks to be a good sign for the Yorktown Junior. The Tigers also had 2 more individuals in the top 10 overall as seniors Caleb Bonsack (6th) and Sean Weiss (9th) also had strong first races in 2018. Muncie Central's Isaiah Bennett showed out on Saturday as well by finishing 5th overall and had the 2nd best run of ECI runners. Finally, Wapahani's Blake Ellis looks to lead a Raider team that lost the Herbst brothers to graduation, yet still look to be contenders in ECI this season. In the overall team race the Yorktown Tigers led all ECI teams with a 3rd place finish. But, Muncie Central and Wapahani were close behind in 4th and 5th in this early-season contest.

Top 10 ECI Girl’s Times:

Elizabeth Reece                YORK                     21:54
Makayla Robles                DELTA                   22:33
Ashleigh Brelage DELTA                   22:40
Lexi Wulff WAP                      23:01
Olivia Neal WAP                      23:03
Heather Paulter DALE                      23:40
Sarah Whitesel DELTA                   24:00
Janelle Woods-Barnes MUNCE                 24:09
Brooke Pritchett DALE                      24:13
Jenna O’Donahue            MUNCE                 24:17

Top 10 ECI Boy’s Times:

Matt Mitsch                       YORK                     17:08
Isaiah Bennett MUNCE                 18:11
Caleb Bonsack YORK                     18:30
Blake Ellis WAP                      18:34
Sean Weiss YORK                     18:40
Lucas Fox DELTA                   19:12
Cody Brelage DELTA                   19:16
A.J. Martinez MUNCE                19:16
Robert Thomma               MUNCE                19:20
Griffen Miller WAP                      19:26

The Meister Family Memorial Run (8/18/18)

This year’s meet at beautiful Monroe Central Jr.-Sr High School saw 10 ECI teams participate including; Blackford, Blue River Valley, Cowan, Monroe Central, Muncie Burris, Randolph Southern, Shenandoah, Union, Union City, and Winchester.

On the girl’s side Leah Keesling of Randolph Southern got off to a great start to her Junior year with a 2nd place finish in 20:27. Ella Baldwin (Winchester), Gabby Beckham (Monroe Central), and Reagan Hoggatt (Union City), Stormie Fitch (Shenandoah), and Madi Jenkins (Shenandoah) all placed in the top 15. Shenandoah placed 5th overall, followed by Monroe Central in 6th.

On the boy’s side Winchester’s Camden Abernathy began his senior season with a 2nd place finish (17:22), closely followed by fellow senior Andrew Whitinger (17:37) of Blue River Valley in 3rd. Borru Kishpaugh (Shenandoah), Elliott Whiteside (Muncie Burris), and Dalton Winans (Monroe Central) all placed in the top 15. Monroe Central was the top placing ECI Team in 3rd, followed by Winchester in 7th place.

Top 10 ECI Girl’s Times:

Leah Keesling Randolph Southern     20:27
Ella Baldwin                Winchester                  22:04
Gabby Beckham Monroe Central          22:06
Reagan Hoggatt Union City                   22:12
Stormie Fitch Shenandoah                22:30
Madi Jenkins               Shenandoah                22:42
Chloe Wyatt                Union City                   22:59
Natalie Thurman Blackford                     23:44
Lauren Smith Cowan                         24:18
Hannah Smith Muncie Burris             24:24

Top 10 ECI Boy’s Times:

Camden Abernathy Winchester                  17:22
Andrew Whitinger      Blue River Valley         17:37
Borru Kishpaugh Shenandoah                17:57
Elliott Whiteside         Muncie Burris             18:12
Dalton Winans            Monroe Central          18:34
Carter Miller               Monroe Central          18:39
Caden Shumaker Monroe Central          18:43
Daniel Wright Cowan                         19:06
Luke Richmond Randolph Southern     19:31
Preston White Cowan                         19:32