R-II girls take eighth at Class 1 state cross country meet
The Marion County R-II girls cross country team competed at the state meet in Columbia Saturday.
Delaney Straus receives her medal after her third-place finish at the Class 1 state cross country meet. (Photo by Will Johnson, Gasconade Republican)
The Lady Mustangs finished in eighth place, one point behind Smithton and 44 points behind last year’s state champions from Blue Eye in a 16 team field.
College Heights Christian took first place followed by Valle Catholic in second place, Harrisburg third and Van Buren fourth.
Delaney Straus led the Lady Mustangs with her third straight, third-place finish with a time of 20:14. Riley Arnold was the state champion for the third year in a row.
Rounding out the scoring for the Lady Mustangs were Olivia Wood, 67th place, Tristen Holt, 78th, Riley Donath, 108th, Madison Stewart, 148th; and Rachel Byers, 156th.
“We were really proud of our girls”, said Coach Dale Gosney. “The girls didn’t run their best times by any means at the state meet but they ran hard and competed.”
High temperatures and windy conditions took a toll on several runners.
For the boys, freshmen Andy Gerding finished 154th, and senior Lander Holt placed 173rd.
