Local runners dominate Boardman Regional, earn trips to state meet

The age-old saying goes, "The proof of the pudding is in the eating."

That means the true value, quality or success of something can only be determined by putting it to a real-world test.

If that’s the case, area boys and girls cross country runners passed with flying colors, shining bright Oct. 25 at the Boardman Regional.

Smithville's Kaitlyn Carr won her first regional title with a time of 17:44.83, and Rittman's Luke Snyder nailed a 15:55.02 to win his fourth regional title. 

For Carr, who already owns the area record with a time of 17:10.97, it’s just one more step to that elusive state title.

“I was very excited to have a great last race here at Boardman,” said Carr. “It feels good to be going back to state. There is definitely pressure going in, but I am also very excited to get to state, run one last time and just see how fast I can go.”

Snyder, who battled back tightness heading into the day, is headed back to state to defend his state title as he returns as a two-time state champion. A year ago, he won the Div. III title with a time of 14:58.13, and he posted a time of 15:23.03 to win it as a sophomore.

“I got out hard," said Snyder. "The plan was to just do me and run my race. I’ve been having back problems this year, and it hurt today, but the Lord gave me the ability to run through it and push my way to victory, so all glory to him.”

Carr’s running mate, Maryn Erdman, finished with a time of 19:59.05 to advance to state.

“It’s great that it happened; I know she is excited,” said Carr. “It’s always great to have a teammate that can push me and run some fast times too.”

“Maryn is super tough,” said Smithies coach Greg DeRhodes. “She is a sprinter at heart, and she loves to sprint, but she is tough as nails. She has been working through some injuries and still running really well. Often, she gets overshadowed by Kaitlyn, but that doesn’t bother her at all. She loves running with Kaitlyn, and they are great buddies, and they are a great duo to have on a team.”

It was extra special for the Indians, whose boys and girls teams both advanced to state for the second consecutive year.

“It feels great,” said Rittman coach Matt Snyder. “We started the summer with 7 a.m.'s, and it’s great to see all that hard work pay off. They deliver. They feel good about it. Getting to move on to state is always the pinnacle, so really happy for them.”

Leading the way for the girls was Adyson Fosen with an eighth-place finish in 19:29.60. Also running well for Rittman were Brooke Bowlby, who finished 10th with a time of 19:50.17, and Ryver Ramsier, who finished 16th with a clocking of 20:21.14.

Also advancing out locally were Waynedale’s Piper Polen (14th, 20:05.73) and Hillsdale’s Kloe Smith (17th, 20:24.24).

Joining Snyder were the rest of his teammates, highlighted by Caleb Bolender, who finished 19th with a time of 17:21.55, and Bryen Valerio, who finished 24th with a time of 17:37.14.

“It’s such a huge blessing to have something else to run, not just myself,” said Snyder.

Also advancing out was Dalton as a team, led by Judah Hershberger (17:08.99) and Cody Hofstetter (17:15.62) with a 14th- and 15th-place finish, respectively. Also finishing inside the top 25 was Holden Himes with a time of 17:24.31.

Other locals advancing were Smithville’s Nigel Wenger with a sixth-place finish in 16:43.76, and Central Christian’s Logan Kister with a 22nd-place time of 17:30.10.

In the Div. III race, Orrville senior Owen Lacy powered his way to the win with a time of 15:46.00. Not far back and also advancing was Norwayne's Romagn Wingate with a time of 16:17.08 for a seventh-place finish. Rounding out the individual locals advancing was Triway’s Brady Speicher, who finished 19th in 16:44.20.

Waynedale advanced as a team and was led by seniors Jackson Varner and Jaydon Varner, with Jackson posting a 16:09.57 for a fifth-place finish and Jaydon taking 16th with a time of 16:41.86.

In the Div. III girls race, Norwayne finished fifth as a team to advance, led by Lillith Dreibelbis, who placed sixth with a time of 19:20.68. The next top runner for the Bobcats was Eilash Widmer, who was 28th with a time of 20:35.96.