The Cross-Country team participated in the Highlander Invitational on Saturday, September 11, 2021 at Heathwood Hall. The meet was held at the State Meet course. The Crusaders were down quite a few runners for the meet, but that did not prevent them from having an impressive showing.
The Varsity Girls started off the meet at 8:00 A.M. Bayleigh Womack paced the team with a 5K time of 23:02.86. The time was easily Womack’s best of the season by over 45 seconds. It was also one of Womack’s best races over the past two seasons. Kaitlynn Ford was right behind Womack, finishing with a season best time of 23:04.12. The time was Ford’s best this season by more than 35 seconds. Natalie Walke rounded things out for the team, finishing with a season best time of 24:35.80, which was approximately a 40 second improvement on her previous season best time.
Trenton Manzi toed the line as the only Boys Varsity runner for the Crusaders at the Highlander Invitational. Manzi finished with a season best and personal record time of 26:44.07.
Like Manzi, Madison Gause was the lone runner for the Crusaders in the JV Girls race. Gause had a phenomenal performance, as she finished second overall in the race, respectively, with a time of 22:15.62; the time represented a personal best by Gause by approximately four minutes.
Rounding out things for the Crusaders at the meet were Mark Diaz and Aiden Cripps who competed in the JV Boys race. Diaz finished with a personal record time of 23:52.18, which represents the fourth fastest time by a male Crusader runner this season. Cripps finished with a time of 27:54.39 to set his on personal record, and beat his previous best time by over three minutes.
Congratulations to all of the runners that continue to work hard at practices, and at meets as well for setting season best and personal best marks at the meet!