Freddies, Trojans punch tickets to state meet

PICKERINGTON – Coming into her freshman year, Fredericktown’s Elsa Hoam had dreamt of making it to state.

She’s been a runner her whole life – her mother runs marathons, and Elsa picked up the sport at a young age – and last year, she held one of the top junior high two-mile times in the state.

But high school cross country is a different animal. And trips to state are anything but guaranteed.

That’s why Hoam seemed lost for words on Saturday, just minutes after she’d punched her ticket.

“I really wanted to make it to state,” said Hoam, smiling ear-to-ear as the rain rolled off her braided pigtails. “For my first year in high school, it’s really exciting.”

Hoam’s first regional race was a nailbiter. She placed 25th individually, and only the top 28 finishers in the Div. II race got to move on. Hoam said she was counting places the entire way.

“I was pretty close,” she conceded. “I heard a lot of people just saying, ‘You’re in 23rd, you’re in 25th,’ and I wanted to get under 28th.”

Hoam ranked 27th after running a 6:03 first mile – which she said was a bit fast for her liking – but stayed in the hunt by excelling on hills and keeping a consistent pace the rest of the way. The weather at Pickerington North High School on Saturday was brutal – cold with sweeping rain – but Hoam said she used it to her advantage.

“Honestly, colder weather makes me run better than hot weather because I always have room to heat up when I’m cold,” Hoam said. “When it’s hot, I don’t have places to cool down. So it’s really helpful when it’s cold.”

Hoam maintained a solid kick toward the finish, as she came in three seconds ahead of 28th place. The freshman earned her first trip to state.

Her team wasn’t so lucky. After qualifying for state four straight years, the Fredericktown girls missed the cut by one spot on Saturday. The Freddies moved up to Div. II this year and still nearly continued the streak.

“We were trying and hoping to get down into the top seven of teams, to try to get to state,” Hoam said. Fredericktown placed eighth, 21 points behind seventh-place Vinton County.

“It’s our first time being a Div. II school, we just moved up from Div. III, so it’s really a lot of pressure and it’s hard for us, but we were hoping. We were so close.”

After Hoam, Fredericktown’s top five finishers were Georgie Caputo (52nd), Natalie VanMeter (53rd), Macy Thorne (75th) and Sammy Maglott (76th).

Despite the rise in competition this year, Hoam felt her team adjusted well. The Freddies placed fifth at districts last weekend and nearly made the cut again Saturday.

When it comes to state next weekend, the freshman is most excited about one thing:

“Just getting to be there for my team,” she said.

KMAC BOYS: Indians, Freddies state-bound after 1-2 finish

Saturday was a statement day for the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference.

Hoam was one of 45 KMAC runners to qualify for state next weekend. Five teams and five individuals made the cut, as the conference’s top runners proved once again to be among central Ohio’s fastest.

“We have a lot of good – not good, but great – runners in the KMAC…” Fredericktown junior Thomas Caputo said. “It’s no surprise that the KMAC represented as well as it did because no offense, but we’re a really good conference, at least that’s my biased opinion. I’m not surprised; I don’t think anyone is.”

Caputo’s Freddies punched their ticket to state by finishing second in the Div. III boys race, 50 points behind champion Mount Gilead. Caputo placed fourth overall with a time of 16:07. By the end of his race, the rain had turned from light to torrential, but Caputo said he never let excuses creep into his mind.

“If it impacts me, it impacts everyone else,” he said afterwards. “We’re all running in the same conditions.”

A similar mindset propelled teammate Evan France to 13th place, as he used a gutsy home-stretch kick to pass Bellaire’s Jacob Defibaugh at the finish line. Every place – every millisecond – counts in races like this.

“My PR is 16:35, I ran a [16:50] I believe,” said France, when asked about the weather. “So it was slow, but all the guys pulled through big-time.”

The Freddies will be making their third straight trip to state next weekend. That didn’t make Saturday any less thrilling for France.

“It feels great. You know, the guys put in a lot of work and it pays off,” the sophomore said. “It pays off big-time. State meet, it’s a big deal.”

Fredericktown finished 13th at state in 2017 and eighth last year. Caputo said the goal is to improve once again this time around.

“Big race, big mentality,” France said. “We’re gonna go in there strong and just do what we do every day.”

Northmor, Cardington and Centerburg all competed in the Div. III boys race as well on Saturday, but finished 8th, 11th and 12th, respectively, thus missing the top-five state cut. Two freshmen – East Knox’s Nathan Streby and Highland’s Hunter Bolton – qualified for regionals individually, but both missed the state mark. Streby finished 36th in the Div. III race, while Bolton placed 64th in Div. II.

Cardington junior Mason White qualified for state individually by placing fifth overall, and Northmor senior Gavvin Keen made the cut at 20th. They’ll represent the KMAC alongside Mount Gilead and Fredericktown at National Trail Raceway next Saturday.

FULL RESULTS: Boys Div. III race | Boys Div. II race

KMAC GIRLS: Indians, Trojans, Golden Knights heading to state

On the girls side, Mount Gilead, Centerburg and Northmor all qualified for state in the Div. III race. The Indians placed first on Saturday, followed by Centerburg (second) and Northmor (fourth).

Mount Gilead’s Allison Johnson and Baylee Hack took first and second place, respectively. When asked how they felt moments after the race, they responded simultaneously:

“Awesome.”

Hack and Johnson said they felt relaxed and in-control the entire race. They planned to hang back until the final mile, Johnson said, then “take off and go hard.”

“It was just fun,” Hack said. “I didn’t feel like I was straining to run fast, it was just like we were more pushing together.”

Much like Hoam, Johnson said she didn’t mind the sleeting rain.

“Mount Gilead and the tough weather, they go well together,” she said. “We love it.”

Johnson finished with a time of 19:02, and Hack was three seconds behind her. The next closest runner came in at 19:15.

This has become customary for Johnson and Hack, who often find themselves alone at the front of the pack.

“It pushes both of us,” Johnson said. “And to have your teammate next to you, who you practice every workout with, it makes it a lot easier to run faster and harder… Running’s what ties us together, but we’re just so similar that there’s a comfort knowing your best friend’s right beside you.

“We’re both hurting, but it’s fun. It’s not as stressful as having some unknown runner next to you. You have your best friend.”

When it comes to expectations for next week’s state meet, Mount Gilead’s blazing one-two punch didn’t mince words. This is the team’s fourth straight year qualifying, and the Indians were ranked fifth in the state in this week’s OATCCC poll.

“Obviously gold would be great,” Johnson said, “but we’re going to go out there and be strong…”

Hack chimed in: “All-Ohio isn’t a goal anymore. I want to be out in front.”

Johnson smiled. “We want to give everyone a run for their money, basically.”

Centerburg will also be looking to make some noise at state, coming off a strong regional performance on Saturday. Sophomore Avery Tucker finished sixth overall and senior Aeryn Walters placed 17th. Both said they battled adversity on the final mile at Pickerington, but neither let it affect their finish.

“My first two miles felt solid. I struggled my third mile, but you just had to push through it,” Tucker said. “I was just thinking how I had to run for my team, so that we could go to state.”

“A lot of teams, when it gets down, they just shut down,” Walters added. “But our team, as a whole, we really push through the tough weather. We really embrace it.”

The Trojans will make their third consecutive state trip next weekend. The expectations are higher this year, Walters said.

“We got eighth last year, so we’re hoping to get at least eighth or better,” the senior said. “But we all are going in like, ‘You know what, it’s for the team. It’s not us personally. It’s for the team.’”

Hoam, Cardington freshman Louie Hallabrin and Highland sophomore Camberly Schade all qualified for state individually this weekend. They’ll represent the KMAC alongside Mount Gilead, Centerburg and Northmor at National Trail Raceway next Saturday.

FULL RESULTS: Girls Div. III race | Girls Div. II race