The Harlan County and Harlan cross country teams opened their seasons Saturday at Lynn Camp for an invitational meet. The Lady Bears won with 22 points, while the Bears placed second overall with 50 points. Corbin won the boys race with 44 points.
“I’m really proud of my teams today. I thought both groups were focused and ready to compete,” Harlan County cross country coach Ryan Vitatoe said. “It was a highly competitive meet to open the season with, and I felt like both teams stepped up to the challenge.”
Harlan County’s Gracie Roberts led the girls, winning the race with a time of 21:01.70. She was immediately followed by Peyton Lunsford (21:19.46). Kiera Roberts finished fourth with a time of 21:45.15. Lauren Lewis (22:07.27) and Preslee Hensley (22:33.42) placed sixth and ninth, respectively. Aliyah Deleon was 20th with a time of 24:18.29, while Jaycee Simpson (24:51.32) was 22nd. Suzy Mumford finished 45th with a time of 28:38.07. Madison Daniels placed 50th with a time of 30:05.30.
“The girls had a great performance today,” Vitatoe said. “I’ve been saying all summer that we (both groups) are leaps and bounds ahead of where we were this time last year, and it’s apparent from this race today. I felt like they were on the attack from the gun, and they did a great job of staying tough in the middle part of the race. That’s typically the part where you can lose focus and begin to struggle, but they avoided that. Like the boys, we had some fast times, and they were all faster today than they were last year.
“I thought Gracie ran a great race today. She’s grown a lot since last year and she’s continuing to improve. All of these girls were lights out. It’s hard to pinpoint one who deserves credit. It was a total team effort.”
For the Harlan girls, Harper Carmical placed 12th with a time of 22:58.21. Abbigaile Jones (25:55.69) finished 26th, immediately followed by Ella Farley (26:16.51).
“Our ladies had great runs. Abbie and Ella as our senior girls had a good start to their final season,” Harlan cross country coach Anne Lindsey said. “Harper has been working hard in the off season and we can already see that is paying off for her.”
To lead Harlan County in the boys race, Kaden Boggs placed third with a time of 17:42.02. Elijah Moore (18:21.24) was ninth, while Jacob Schwenke (18:27.27) finished 11th. Ethan Simpson placed 17th with a time of 19:47.58. Evan Simpson (19:55.36) was 19th, immediately followed by DaShaun Smith (19:59.95) and Caleb Schwenke (20:12.24). Jonavan Rigney (26th) and Christopher Johnson (29th) finished with times of 20:41.46 and 21:04.30, respectively. Kaylob Stevens was 41st with a time of 23:03.11. Landon Cook (30:48.49) finished 71st. He was immediately followed by Jaxton Miller (31:27.01) and Caden Craig (31:48.87).
“The boys ran great today despite coming up just short against a great squad from Corbin. I thought we competed hard, and when you look at what the times these guys ran here last year compared to today, you can see massive improvement,” Vitatoe said. “I’ve said all summer this group is going to be special, and I think they all see how far they’ve come in the last year. We’ve still got a lot of work to do, but it’s obvious that this group has a lot of potential. I thought they packed up well and they raced hard. We have to work on our start before our next meet, but this is going to be a good season for these guys. I love their closeness, the leadership we have, and how they enjoy being around each other. Those are ingredients for success.
“I thought Kaden Boggs had a great race today. A top-three finish in this field of runners is a solid finish. We had some great performances from all of our kids. I’m so proud of all of them. Literally nobody struggled in this meet. They were fantastic.”
Tanner Daniels won the boys race with a time of 16:56.02 to lead Harlan. Dylan Cox was 39th with a time of 22:16.32. Gabriel Xavier Farley (23:05.94) finished 42nd.
“Our high school teams had a good start to their season. Tanner, Dylan, and Xavier ran really well, and we know that their times will continue to go down throughout the season,” Lindsey said.
The elementary races had to be split due to the number of participants.
Harlan County’s fourth to sixth grade girls won their race with 65 points, while the boys placed fourth with 112 points.
Lillie Carver won the girls race with a time of 7:27.22. Ella Brock (8:25.78) finished ninth. Alysia Johnson placed 14th with a time of 8:53.74. Rounding out the results were Isabella Burkhart (28th, 10:02.72), Nevaeh Perkins (33rd, 10:28.69), Madilyn Turner (36th, 10:43.43), Krislyn Clem (38th, 10:56.32), Payton Blackwelder (34th, 11:18.31), Peyton Sherman (48th, 11:38.18), Emily McKnight (58th, 13:34.09) and Zoey Gadow (63rd, 15:18.58).
Jace Hensley (8:11.48) placed 28th in the boys race. Conner Banks finished 31st with a with a time of 8:14.82. He was immediately followed by Dalton Johnson (8:17.71) and Levi Hensley (8:20.62). Other finishers were Deacon Lisenbee (39th, 8:52.56), Colton Hensley (46th, 9:16.48), Easton Halcomb (59th, 9:58.49), Hunter Evans (60th, 10:01.84), Zakk Collins (70th, 10:58.42), Sawyer Shackleford (73rd, 11:06.20), Jordan Sargent (77th, 11:29.54), Stephen Colinger (78th, 11:33.30), Jace Sargent (82nd, 12:02.96) and Jonah Doyle (84th, 12:12.90).
Harlan’s fourth to sixth grade boys were third overall with 94 points, while the girls finished fourth with 87 points.
Tucker White led the boys, placing 15th with a time of 7:33.57. He was immediately followed by Aiden Browning (7:35.08). Thomas Miller was 30th with a time of 8:13.20. Other finishers for Harlan were Canaan Bolton (34th, 8:23.83), Andrew Alred (37th, 8:40.56), Cole Lunsford (57th, 9:46.22) and Paxton Hensley (97th, 17:30.80).
Julianne Miller (8:05.58) finished sixth to lead the girls. Cora Jones placed 10th with a time of 8:27.69. Josephine Toll (22nd) finished with a time of 9:30.87. Rounding out the results were Emma McMillian (37th, 10:46.45), Rebecca Adams (42nd, 11:17.20) and Hannah Adams (44th, 11:19.31).
In the kindergarten through third grade race, Harlan’s boys placed third overall with 96 points. The girls were fifth with 113 points.
Kash Bailey placed second overall with a time of 7:37.13 to lead the boys. Braxton Sizemore (16th) finished with a time of 8:25.09, while Kelton Dean was 20th with a time of 8:37.44. Other finishers were Emmett Alred (28th, 8:56.10), Jess Bennett (43rd, 9:42.64), Ben Parsons (45th, 9:57.33), Ashwin Ghanti (63rd, 10:49.20), Mason Howard (81st, 11:57.39), Trey Wynn (86th, 12:28.15) and Parker Hensley (102nd, 16:59.37).
In the girls race, Mallory Sizemore (9:16.99) finished 15th. Shelby Parsons placed 31st with a time of 9:54.78. She was immediately followed by McKinley Taylor (9:59.11) and Lucy Miller (10:01.05). Rounding out the results were Meredith Lawson (45th, 10:31.10), Rayleigh Harris (59th, 11.29.27), Leah Burkhart (83rd, 13.19.61), Amelia Hensley (88th, 13:36.85), Micah Rowe (93rd, 17:49.15) and McKenzie Collett (94th, 17:59.11).
“Our elementary teams have many new runners this year. Our veterans have taken on the role of leading our team and that support and guidance showed in their performance at the Lynn Camp Invitational,” Lindsey said. “As we continue to grow our elementary teams we hope this will translate, in future years, to growth in our middle and high school programs.”
Harlan County placed third with 70 points in the girls kindergarten through third grade race. The boys placed 10th with 223 points.
Leading the girls, Bella Burkhart placed ninth with a time of 8:47.81. Lakynn Clem was 12th with a time of 9:07.26. Sadie Shackleford (9:15.21) finished 14th. Rounding out the results were Ellianna Carver (25th, 9:39.08), Landri Dagnan (34th, 10:05.92), Kadie Lawson (39th, 10:16.89), Evva Hensley (40th, 10:18.27), Kaylyn Lawson (42nd, 10:21.23), Sawyer Millikan (50th, 10:47.76), Charlotte Mitchell (54th, 11:08.98), Emberlynn Miller (50th, 11:34.14), Emma Mitchell (57th, 11:51.20), Kellee Doyle (58th, 11:52.97), Nevaeh Stone (59th, 11:54.90), Skylar Belcher (72nd, 12:04.02) and Caroline Collins (92nd, 17:22.47).
In the boys race, Jonah Sargent placed 23rd with a time of 8:44.08. Skylar Boggs finished 53rd with a time of 10:21.13, while Eli McKnight (10:26.86) was 55th. Other finishers were Brayden Perkins (73rd, 11:17.92), Noah Blackwelder (74th, 11:28.50), Corben Snelling (82nd, 11:59.61), Micah Lawson (84th, 12:04.63) and Oliver Hensley (88th, 12:39.36).
“Our elementary runners started the season by making a name for themselves. Bella Burkhart led the kindergarten through third grade race but fell a bit short at the end. With a little work on her pacing, I believe she is going to make some noise this season,” Harlan County elementary cross country coach Jennifer Brock said. “Lillie Carver has been a wonderful addition to our team, finishing first in the fourth through sixth grade race, followed by Ella Brock in ninth. We had a lot of first-time runners today. I couldn’t be more proud of all of them and I am so excited to see what they do this season.”
In the girls middle school race, Harlan’s Priscilla Stewart finished fourth with a time of 13:27.17. Zoe Lawson placed 13th with a time of 14:45.49.
Harlan’s Cooper Thomas placed seventh with a time of 12:29.55 in the boys middle school race.
“We have a solid start to our middle school team with Cooper, Zoe, and Priscilla,” Lindsey said. “I believe their dedication and love for the sport will continue to encourage future runners in this age group. All three of them had great races yesterday.
“We couldn’t be more proud of our runners. The first race of the season always presents many nerves for these young runners. The new runners are anxiously anticipating what their first race experience will be like, and our experienced runners are nervously awaiting the start to another season hoping for their best performances.“
To lead Harlan County’s middle school boys, Braxton Duncan finished sixth with a time of 12:15.41. Jackson Mackowiak placed 17th with a time of 13:45.38. Landin Blackwelder was 28th with a time of 16:02.73. Eli Nolan (38th) finished with a time of 18:18.85.
Harlan County’s Julionna Johnson placed sixth with a time of 13:50.15 in the girls middle school race. Aiselyn Sexton was 18th with a time of 16:51.41.
“Our junior high kids ran great as well,” Vitatoe said. “Nearly all of them were in their first race ever, so I know they were nervous, but they did really well. Julionna had a great race, finishing in the top 10. I thought she ran well.
“This is a great starting point for us. What I love about these kids is they’ll get their run in on Sunday and will show up ready to get back to work on Monday. We have a long way to go, but we are in a great position to move forward.”
Both teams’ next meet will be Tuesday at Pineville for an all comers meet.