Boys Cross Country are Miami County Champions

A celebration of seniors and a Miami County Championship win was in order for the boys cross country team on Saturday, Sept. 20, on their home turf. 

At the annual Miami County Championship cross country meet hosted at Milton-Union, the cross country team had a multitude of things to celebrate. The first one being their seniors!

This includes Andrew Oaks, Chase Parsons, Tyler Shoemaker, Alaina Manning, and Jessa Lightner, who have all been running for five or six consecutive years. 

The second thing this team accomplished was being the Miami County champions on the boys side. Leading the boys was Colin Hinkelman, who finished in first place overall with a time of 16:22.3. Following right behind him and finishing in second place was his younger brother, Grant Hinkelman. He finished the race in a time of 16:52.5.

Oaks came in next with an eighth place finish. He ran the race in a time of 17:30.3. Parsons finished in 18th with a time of 18:25.3, Finn Hinkelman in 20th with a time of 18:41.0, and Shoemaker in 54th with a time of 21:12.8. 

The team finished with a score of 49, which was nine points lower than the second place team, Bethel. 

On the girls side, Aubree Bates led where she finished in sixth place with a time of 20:29.5. Sydnie Bartlett was next in a placement of 11th and a time of 21:38.6. Following her was Amelia Iddings, who finished in 18th and a time of 22:15.9, Manning in 39th with a time of 24:54.3, Mallory Coate in 42nd with a time of 25:06.2, Lightner in 46th with a time of 26:13.2 and Lola Taylor in 49th with a time of 26:53.6.

The girls’ team finished in sixth place overall, with Newton Local as the champions.