It was also an opportunity for the Dragons to experience a collegiate level meet, as the Top 10 nationally ranked University of Arkansas men’s and women’s cross-country teams dominated their respective races following the high school division.
The boys finished 26th out of 87 teams, improving their season record to 121- 37. They were the top finishers from Shelby County, besting Houston High School and St. George’s. Jacob Pringle followed an aggressive start with an impressive finish, shattering the sub 17 barrier with a personal best of 16:37. Pringle came through the mile in 5:21 and passed 40 runners from that point on! He is in good company as Michael Linder and Adam Vanderen both ran 16:34 on the course in 2016.
Garret Meier also ran well, improving his time on the Agri Park course by 32 seconds and joining the sub 17 club for the first time this season. In another precocious performance, Caleb Skinner held down the 3rd position, posting a season best of 17:27. In a field that included 652 competitors, Skinner was the 5th fastest freshmen. Undaunted by the stage, senior Jacob McVay in just his 3rd varsity contest, dropped his PR to 17:33. He earns the tough and bad award for this race, taking out 46 runners after the mile.
Senior Stephen Steinbach attacked the course after being hampered by a hamstring overuse injury during the week. He broke 18, but, unfortunately, was not included in the results due to a lost chip. Junior Brandon Joyner came in with a chip on his shoulder after sliding to the 14th spot on the team at the Tennessee Classic. In fact, he was 0.2 seconds from not making the Chile Pepper roster. His time of 17:54 in the Open 5k race was not only a PR, but marks the first time he has cracked the Top 7 varsity roster. He was the 5th fastest runner for the boys. Nice work, Brandon!...
For the ladies, freshmen phenom Jessica “Franchise” Francis led the team to a 39th place finish out of 79 teams, with a PR of 20:45. Despite injuries to key contributors, the girls also have a winning record, 74-63. Francis was followed by a pack of five seniors. Finishing second for the Dragons was senior Lindsay Michaud, registering a 21:31. Ann Pakkala raced to a PR and earned the toughness award for this race, passing 21 runners after the mile. Gabby Seitz finished after Ann, posting a 23:07 on the muddy course. Gabbie Sawyer competed hard and ran her fastest time of the season, 24:10. Sixteen months after the removal of bone from her hip (Yes, you read that correctly), Rachel “Relentless” Chestnut achieved a new post-surgery PR of 24:25.
On to the Frank Horton Invitational on Saturday evening where both teams will battle Region 8 rivals, just 4 weeks from the championship meet.
To Recap:
(PR= Personal Record)
Jacob Pringle
Jacob McVay
Andreis Campo
Richie Sawyer
Myles Jessop
Brandon Joyner
Aidan Archer
Rocco Marchionda
Jessica Francis
Ann Pakkala
Lorraine Abinteh
Erin McTigue
Tania Binu
Mary Katherine Arthur
The boys finished 26th out of 87 teams, improving their season record to 121- 37. They were the top finishers from Shelby County, besting Houston High School and St. George’s. Jacob Pringle followed an aggressive start with an impressive finish, shattering the sub 17 barrier with a personal best of 16:37. Pringle came through the mile in 5:21 and passed 40 runners from that point on! He is in good company as Michael Linder and Adam Vanderen both ran 16:34 on the course in 2016.
Garret Meier also ran well, improving his time on the Agri Park course by 32 seconds and joining the sub 17 club for the first time this season. In another precocious performance, Caleb Skinner held down the 3rd position, posting a season best of 17:27. In a field that included 652 competitors, Skinner was the 5th fastest freshmen. Undaunted by the stage, senior Jacob McVay in just his 3rd varsity contest, dropped his PR to 17:33. He earns the tough and bad award for this race, taking out 46 runners after the mile.
Senior Stephen Steinbach attacked the course after being hampered by a hamstring overuse injury during the week. He broke 18, but, unfortunately, was not included in the results due to a lost chip. Junior Brandon Joyner came in with a chip on his shoulder after sliding to the 14th spot on the team at the Tennessee Classic. In fact, he was 0.2 seconds from not making the Chile Pepper roster. His time of 17:54 in the Open 5k race was not only a PR, but marks the first time he has cracked the Top 7 varsity roster. He was the 5th fastest runner for the boys. Nice work, Brandon!...
For the ladies, freshmen phenom Jessica “Franchise” Francis led the team to a 39th place finish out of 79 teams, with a PR of 20:45. Despite injuries to key contributors, the girls also have a winning record, 74-63. Francis was followed by a pack of five seniors. Finishing second for the Dragons was senior Lindsay Michaud, registering a 21:31. Ann Pakkala raced to a PR and earned the toughness award for this race, passing 21 runners after the mile. Gabby Seitz finished after Ann, posting a 23:07 on the muddy course. Gabbie Sawyer competed hard and ran her fastest time of the season, 24:10. Sixteen months after the removal of bone from her hip (Yes, you read that correctly), Rachel “Relentless” Chestnut achieved a new post-surgery PR of 24:25.
On to the Frank Horton Invitational on Saturday evening where both teams will battle Region 8 rivals, just 4 weeks from the championship meet.
To Recap:
(PR= Personal Record)
Jacob Pringle
Jacob McVay
Andreis Campo
Richie Sawyer
Myles Jessop
Brandon Joyner
Aidan Archer
Rocco Marchionda
Jessica Francis
Ann Pakkala
Lorraine Abinteh
Erin McTigue
Tania Binu
Mary Katherine Arthur
https://www.chilepepperfestival.org
Source: Chile Pepper Festival