OBETZ, Ohio – The West Liberty-Salem girls cross country team finished fifth at the Division III state meet on Saturday. This was the fourth consecutive top five finish at state for the Big Orange.
Minster was first with 66 points, followed by Liberty Center with 108, Fort Loramie with 124, Gilmour Academy with 167 and WL-S with 179.
WL-S senior Megan Adams became the first runner in Tigers’ history to earn All-Ohio honors four consecutive years, finishing in second place with a career-best time of 18:22.0. Sophomores Ashley Yoder and Addison McAuley also earned All-Ohio honors with Yoder finishing 20th (19:10.02) and McAuley finishing 29th (19:28.1).
Also scoring for WL-S were Taylor Kennedy 118th place (21:08.0), Claire Longshore 132nd (21:32.2), Mandilyn Weaver 145th (22:05.6), and Lily Smith 166th (22:42.1).
“I’m so proud of the effort our team gave (Saturday),” said WL-S Coach Ann Vogel. “Qualifying for the state meet isn’t easy, and we don’t take for granted the hard work and true commitment it takes to get to this level. I can’t say enough about Megan’s gritty race. She left it all on the course in her last appearance in a Big Orange uniform. She has been a leader for us from day one and is a true gamer on race day. Ashley and Addison also had strong races and held their own in a very competitive field. To have three athletes earn All-Ohio is a testament to their dedication to our program.”
West Liberty-Salem finishes the season with a record of 140-8.
In Division II girls, Graham’s Hailey Nash placed 69th in 19:59.3.
