The rough terrain was filled with runners but it was the Wolves succeeding at the Chesaning Invitational.
The Clarkston High School Boys Cross Country team took first place at the meet last Thursday.
“I was pleased,” said Coach Mike Taylor. “We ran well. The guys were excited. It was nice to have a good outing like that.”
Sam Tanielian finished in second place, at time of 16:30.2. Austin Draving followed closely behind, finishing in second at 16:47.8 and Nick Moore took third, 16:48.5.
“They formed a good nucleus for the team,” said Taylor. “Our varsity ran really competitive and they fought hard out front.”
Adam Bruderick finished in ninth place at 17:30, Ian Brennan in tenth place, Michael Culver, 17th place; and Daniel Billette in 21st place.
Taylor added a few aspects worked in their favor – the course, the weather and the competition.
“The courses we have ran on have twisted a lot and were crowded or narrow and Chesaning was nice,” he said. “Plus the weather was perfect. It was the perfect storm of weather and a good course.”
Four team members earned their varsity letter by running less than 18:30 and another won the reserve race, Jake Streng.
“He hadn’t won a race before,” said Taylor. “He was smiling ear to ear after that. It was nice to see.”
The boys don’t have another race until next Tuesday when they head into the OAA #2 at Stoney Creek Park, giving the boys a week off.
“We are just training this week,” said Taylor. “We finished a week of hard work. We can get back to the basics of training now.”
Plus, the time prepares them for the next OAA Red race. They finished in third place, scoring 94, behind Oxford, which scored 91 for their second place. Lake Orion took first with 55.
“We were close to Oxford,” said Taylor, focusing on the next meet. “We should be no worse than second. I don’t know if we can catch Lake Orion but we could certainly beat everyone else.”
Tanielian led the team, finishing in ninth place in the time of 17:07.3. Nick Moore finished in 13 and Austin Draving in 14th place.
Four more finished in the top 50, Bruderick, in 26th; Brennan, 32nd place; Culver, 33rd place and Nathan Ross in 50th place.
The team heads to the Hanson Invitational on Oct. 1.
“The kids look forward to it,” said Taylor.
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The girls cross country team had six members finish in the top 30 at the Chesaning Invitational.
Makenzie Proper led the team, finishing in 16th place at the time of 21:18. Sage Beauregard, followed in 20th; Mende Gleiss, in 25th; Morgan Martin, in 26th and Hannah Hawkins in 29th place.
They finished in sixth place at the OAA Red meet and Birmingham Seaholm took first. Natalie Smith led, placing in sixth with the time of 19:27.