Four cross country powerhouses and one newcomer will be representing Hamilton County next Saturday at the IHSAA state meet.
Carmel and Noblesville qualified both their girls and boys teams for state after their performances at Saturday’s Shelbyville semi-state at Blue River Park. The Greyhounds girls team won in dominant fashion, while Noblesville placed sixth. In the boys meet, Carmel finished second while the Millers were third.
The newcomer is the Guerin Catholic boys team. The Golden Eagles finished in fifth place to earn their first-ever trip to state, which again takes place at the LaVern Gibson course at Terre Haute. In addition to the teams, two girls and two boys runners qualified for state as individuals.
Meanwhile, the Hamilton Southeastern and Fishers teams all qualified for state out of the New Haven semi-state, which took place Saturday at Huntington University. The Royals won the boys team championship, while the Tigers were third. In the girls meet, Southeastern placed second and Fishers was fourth.
PERFECT 40 FOR 40
This year’s state meet will be the 40th annual competition for the girls, and Carmel has qualified for every one of them. The Greyhounds were in no danger of losing that streak on Saturday, as they cruised to victory by scoring 30 points, well outdistancing runner-up Franklin Central, which scored 125 points. It’s the 21st semi-state title for the ‘Hounds, by far a record.
Annie Christie was the race winner, just ticking under 18 minutes by finishing the race in 17:59.8. Jamie Klavon also reached the top 10 by placing 10th. Carmel’s first five runners all finished in the overall top 15, closing the scoring early.
Noblesville placed fifth with 209 points, securing its 11th trip to state and third in a row. Two freshmen led the way for the Millers: Summer Rempe placed 19th and Nadia Perez finished in 23rd.
Hamilton Heights senior Maria Mitchell will return to the state meet by finishing in fourth with a time of 18:21.7. Guerin Catholic sophomore Bridget Gallagher placed ninth in a time of 18:34.3 The top 10 runners not on advancing teams qualify as individuals.
Westfield finished eighth as a team, with Ashley Baldwin leading the Shamrocks by taking 46th.
In the boys race, Brebeuf Jesuit nosed out Carmel for top team honors. The Braves scored 68 points, while the ‘Hounds totaled 75. Noblesville wasn’t far behind, placing third with 107 points.
Carmel claimed the individual champion, as sophomore Kole Mathison won the race in 15:18.7. Millers senior Travis Hickner led the way for his team with a fifth-place finish, clocking in at 15:42.7. The Greyhounds qualified for state for the 47th time, and Noblesville made it for the 10th time.
Guerin Catholic scored 152 points to place fifth and earn its first-ever ticket to state. Senior Austin Callahan led the way for the Golden Eagles by placing 18th, followed by senior Dominic Stein finishing in 21st.
Westfield finished in ninth place as a team, but will have two individuals at state. Junior Kai Connor continued his solid post-season run by placing seventh, while senior Jacob Beene placed 33rd, earning the 10th state-qualifying spot.
ROYAL WINNERS
The Royals boys team won the semi-state championship, the first for the Southeastern boys since 2012. The Royals scored 109 points and were led by Nolan Satterfield, who placed eighth. This will mark HSE’s 15th appearance at state, its third year in a row.
Concordia Lutheran and Fishers both scored 124 points; Concordia got second place on the sixth-runner tiebreaker. The Tigers were led by Will Clark’s fifth-place finish. Fishers qualified for state for the seventh consecutive year and the 10th overall.
In the girls race, Southeastern placed second with 74 points; Fort Wayne Carroll won the championship with 46. Two Royals runners finished in the top 10: Halle Hill placed fifth and Maggie Powers finished eighth. This will mark Southeastern’s fourth consecutive and ninth overall appearance at state.
Fishers scored 171 points to take fourth place as a team. Anna Runion led the Tigers by taking ninth individually. Fishers qualified for state for the sixth straight year and the seventh overall.
At Shelbyville
GIRLS RACE
Team scores: Carmel 30, Franklin Central 125, Zionsville 135, North Central 179, Noblesville 209, Franklin Community 211, Center Grove 228, Westfield 228, Pike 232, New Palestine 232, Brownsburg 238, Batesville 259, Avon 352, Plainfield 366, Whiteland 374, Cardinal Ritter 378, Mount Vernon 403, Indian Creek 473, Roncalli 533, Centerville 542.
Race winner: Annie Christie (Carmel) 17:59.8.
Other Carmel runners: 10. Jamie Klavon 18:35.2, 12. Cara Naas 18:44.0, 13. Alivia Romaniuk 18:48.1, 15. Brooklynn Edwards 18:54.2, 18. Jasmine Klopstad 18:59.9, 33. Abby Parker 19:32.5.
Noblesville runners: 19. Summer Rempe 19:02.1, 23. Nadia Perez 19:07.6, 67. Kennedy Applegate 20:11.7, 70. Paige Hazelrigg 20:13.2, 95. Mya McGavic 20:31.1, 97. Brooke Lahee 20:33.2, 114. Bella Sharples-Gordon 20:55.4.
Westfield runners: 46. Ashley Baldwin 19:55.7, 53. Julia Clark 20:00.1, 57. Sophie Porter 20:00.6, 66. Sarah Coates 20:10.5, 69. Margaret Barnett 20:12.6, 94. Sophia Brown 20:30.6, 123. Robyn Schemel 21:06.9.
Hamilton Heights runner: 4. Maria Mitchell 18:21.7.
Guerin Catholic runner: 9. Bridget Gallagher 18:34.3.
BOYS RACE
Team scores: Brebeuf Jesuit 68, Carmel 75, Noblesville 107, Center Grove 110, Guerin Catholic 152, Zionsville 153, Franklin Central 165, Brownsburg 176, Westfield 208, Ben Davis 290, Whiteland 344, Mount Vernon 347, Batesville 363, Avon 398, Plainfield 412, Franklin Community 463, Greenfield-Central 465, Warren Central 486, Greenwood 493, New Castle 545.
Race winner: Kole Mathison (Carmel) 15:18.7.
Other Carmel runners: 11. Jacob Fisher 15:57.1, 17. Charlie Schuman 16:08.4, 26. Charlie Leedke 16:26.5, 28. Hudson Alden 16:26.9, 75. Nate Seketa 17:01.0, 94. Bing Hudson 17:10.8.
Noblesville runners: 5. Travis Hickner 15:42.7, 20. Cole Kimmel 16:11.2, 24. Asher Propst 16:22.6, 31. Caden Click 16:28.7, 37. Andrew Anderson 16:31.9, 54. Joel Mumaw 16:46.6, 79. Billy Gregory 17:03.5.
Guerin Catholic runners: 18. Austin Callahan 16:09.4, 21. Dominic Stein 16:13.4, 29. Holden King 16:27.4, 44. Ethan Hines 16:37.9, 60. Gavin Morrow 16:52.3, 67. Nicholas Schramm 16:55.8, 126. Evan McNeany 17:41.7.
Westfield runners: 7. Kai Connor 15:52.6, 33. Jacob Beene 16:29.3, 46. Tyler Smith 16:38.2, 64. Joshua Barnett 16:54.1, 95. Kyler Koning 17:10.9, 101. Emerson Bostic 17:15.5, 104. Josh Springborn 17:17.8.
At Huntington University
GIRLS RACE
Team scores: Fort Wayne Carroll 46, Hamilton Southeastern 74, Concordia Lutheran 124, Fishers 171, Penn 183, Homestead 200, Huntington North 202, Northridge 205, Fort Wayne South Side 245, Leo, 282, Bishop Dwenger 299, Norwell 317, Oak Hill 327, Delta 346, Pendleton Heights 410, South Bend St. Joseph 411, Elkhart 412, Woodlan 432, Mishawaka 440, Yorktown 491.
Race winner: Zoe Duffus (Carroll) 17:52.8.
Southeastern runners: 5. Halle Hill 18:27.8, 8. Maggie Powers 19:02.0, 11. Destiney Rose 19:08.2, 18. Allie Latta 19:26.4, 38. Grace Newton 20:08.6, 49. Katherine Kesler 20:19.0, 113. Brooke Ratliff 21:17.8.
Fishers runners: 9. Anna Runion 19:05.4, 17. Vera Schafer 19:25.2, 29. Elizabeth Barrett 19:50.7, 72. Brynn Urban 20:44.9, 84. Mia Yates 20:56.1, 99. Carolyn Szilagyi 21:08.7, 133. Kaitlyn Moriarty 21:35.3.
BOYS RACE
Team scores: Hamilton Southeastern 109, Concordia Lutheran 124, Fishers 124, Fort Wayne Carroll 165, Goshen 188, Penn 206, Northridge 214, Homestead 219, Bellmont 239, Bishop Dwenger 278, Wabash 303, NorthWood 368, Huntington North 368, Pendleton Heights 369, New Haven 371, Oak Hill 385, Monroe Central 391, South Bend Adams 411, Wapahani 413.
Race winner: Izaiah Steury (Angola) 15:25.7.
Southeastern runners: 8. Nolan Satterfield 15:58.0, 13. Bennett Dubois 16:05.9, 17. Will Marquardt 16:11.3, 25. Garrett Hicks 16:25.4, 65. Jack Patrick 17:09.2, 72. Ash Caylor 17:09.2, 83. Connor Sarkovics 17:15.8.
Fishers runners: 5. Will Clark 15:48.0, 22. Jaylen Castillo 16:23.0, 24. Tate Meaux 16:24.7, 43. Nick Pulos 16:45.4, 52. Jonathon Roth 16:53.8, 68. Matthew Leppert 17:05.8, 99. Alec Foster 17:30.3.