By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Seaman's girls cross country team turned in a strong performance in Saturday's Class 5A regional at the Kanza Park course.
In fact, the Vikings really couldn't have done much better.
Piper senior Grace Hanson won the individual title in a five-kilometer time of 18 minutes, 11.71 seconds, but Seaman claimed the next five spots to earn a perfect team score of 15 as the Pirates did not field a full team.
Junior Bethany Druse led the way with a second-place finish as Seaman's girls posted a perfect team score in Saturday's Class 5A cross country regional. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
Junior Bethany Druse led the Vikings with a second-place finish in 18:59.45 while freshman Joslynn Grace was third (19:30.28), freshman Stella Appelhanz fourth (19:52.15), senior Emma Schultz fifth (19:52.97) and freshman Anna Becker sixth (20:18.42) to round out Seaman's top five.
"They did do their job,'' Seaman coach Rick Brading said. "We thought it would probably be Hanson and then us. That's what we thought and it was.
"All of our girls ran well for the day and most of them ran (personal records) today.''
Shawnee Heights' Kory Sutton (right) and Jackson Esquibel posted a 1-2 finish in Saturday's Class 5A boys cross country regional. [Photo by Rick Peterson/TSN]
The boys race also had a distinct Topeka flavor, with Shawnee Heights junior Kory Sutton and sophomore Jackson Esquibel posting a 1-2 individual finish while Shawnee Heights and Seaman finished second and third behind Lansing to earn team berths for next Saturday's state meet at Augusta.
"I felt great, I was ready to go,'' said Sutton, who captured his first regional title. "I was looking forward to running here. Last time I was here I ran a really big PR so I looked forward to coming out here and running fast and trying to get in some practice in for the fast pace that it's going to be next week at state.''
Sutton claimed the individual win in 15:45.01 while Esquibel was the runner-up in 15:49.77.
"We were definitely fighting back and forth,'' Suttong said. "(Esquibel) had a huge PR today. He ran great and he challenged me today.''
The T-Birds also got an 11th-place showing from junior Andrew Emerson (17:07.49) while freshman Stephen Carter was 18th (17:25.31) and sophomore Landon Staniec 26th (18:07.63) to finish off Heights' top five.
Third-place Seaman was paced by senior Jace Moore, fourth in 16:21.19, while senior Anson Appelhanz was 13th (17:09.99), junior Landon Stuke 14th (17:17.63), sophomore Adrian Swaim 15th (17:22.88) and freshman Alexander Newell 16th (17:23.30).
Lansing won the team title with 44 points while Heights was second with 58 points and Seaman third with 62 points.
Topeka West qualified a pair of individuals for the state meet, with senior Anna Phelps finishing 10th in the girls race and Charger senior Louis Wilson taking eighth in the boys race.
CLASS 5A REGIONAL CROSS COUNTRY
Girls
Team scores
Seaman 15, Leavenworth 77, Basehor-Linwood 78, Lansing 79, Topeka West 133.
Individual results
1. Hanson, Piper, 18:11.71; 2. Druse, Seaman, 18:59.45; 3. Grace, Seaman, 19:30.28; 4. Appelhanz, Seaman, 19:52.15; 5. Schultz, Seaman, 19:52.97; 6. Becker, Seaman, 20:18.42; 7. Manley, Leavenworth, 20:28.99; 8. Spurlock, Seaman, 20:36.18; 9. Turner, Basehor-Linwood, 20:44.30; 10. A. Phelps, Topeka West, 20:47.38.
Other Seaman --13. Polter, 21:10.70.
Other Topeka West -- 30. Jeffries, 22:50.69; 35. C. Phelps, 23:24.32; 39.Richardson, 24:26.67; 41. Province, 25:49.20.
Shawnee Heights -- 29.Marney, 22:50.24; 32.Liedtke, 23:08.33; 34. Hogan, 23:20.68; 36. Myers, 24:00.64;
Boys
Team scores
Lansing 44, Shawnee Heights 58, Seaman 62, Basehor-Linwood 128, Topeka West 131, Leavenworth 135, Piper 167.
Individual results
1. Sutton, Shawnee Heights, 15:45.01; 2. Esquibel, Shawnee Heights, 15:49.77; 3. Howell, Lansing, 16:06.83; 4. Moore, Seaman, 16:21.19; 5. Steger, Lansing, 16:27.87; 6. Purvis, Leavenworth, 16:36.03; 7. Sullivan, Leavenworth, 16:42.84; 8. Wilson, Topeka West, 16:57.35; 9. Schintgen, Lansing, 17:03.04; 10. Rookard, Lansing, 17:03.24.
Other Shawnee Heights -- 11. Emerson, 17:07.49; 18. Carter, 17:25.31; 26. Staniec, 18:07.63; 30. Lehmann, 18:24.22; 31. Deitcher, 18:24.24.
Other Seaman -- 13. Appelhanz, 17:09.99; 14. Stuke, 17:17.63; 15. Swaim, 17:22.88; 16. Newell, 17:23.30; 21. Jowers, 17:43.92; 23. Buckley, 17:54.46.
Other Topeka West -- 25. E. Phelps, 18:02,59; 28. K. Padilla, 18:17.96; 32. Maag, 18:28.23; 38. WIlkie, 19:08.88; 49. E. Padilla, 21:01.00; 50. Clark, 21:35.63.
