JC rolls past pair

Running on their home course for the first time turned out quite well for Eme Miller and Abigail Johnson.
Miller, a first-year cross country runner as a junior, led the Jay County High School girls cross country team Thursday as it hosted a three-team meet against the Monroe Central Golden Bears and Union City Indians. Johnson, a freshman, finished as the runner-up as the Patriots scored 18 points for the victory.
Monroe Central was second with 39, and Union City did not have enough runners for a team score.
“It was a good meet,” said JCHS coach Brian McEvoy. “We’re just trying to get girls … who are new to high school cross country used to the longer distance. … We’re learning pace and strategy and things like that. It was a good meet for us in that regard.”
The Golden Bears won the boys meet, in which Jay County also does not have enough runners for a full team.
Monroe Central’s Hailey Norris, who placed third in the 2009 sectional meet, cruised out to the early lead and in the first mile of the race looked as if she would run away for an easy victory. But as the race went on, Jay County’s top two runners reeled her in.
As the pack headed toward the soccer fields for their second trip around the JCHS grounds, Miller calmly cruised past Norris to take the lead. And by the time they neared the finish line, Johnson had pulled ahead of the Golden Bear junior as well.
Miller won easily in 22 minutes, 36 seconds. Johnson was 12 seconds behind her as the runner-up, and Norris placed third.
“Eme toughed out a really good race and Abigail hung with her,” McEvoy said. “They were pretty determined to stay together and run a strong race.
“(Eme) is just a real smooth runner. … The first race she went way too fast … and then at Celina she kind of figured it out. Today she was really conservative during her first mile, and that really just allowed her to attack deeper in the race.”
The coach said his newcomers — the group also includes freshmen Miranda Gerber (11th - 24:09) and Kaitlin Hemmelgarn (12th - 24:22) — are just starting to scratch the surface of their ability.
“We’re just on the very very tip of it,” he added. “We told them, ‘You’re not going to hit your peak (right away),’ …  I think really by next Saturday (at the Blackford Invitational) they’re going to see the times probably drop quite a bit and then it’ll carry out through the rest of the year.”
Senior Logan Laux started the race amongst a large pack of Patriot runners.
Midway through she had moved up to sixth, and she continued to climb to a fourth-place finish in 23:07.
“Logan has just been an absolute rock this year, just solid as can be,” said McEvoy. “She runs smart races. She’s improved every year. …
“Logan’s a girl that ran 27s and 28s in her freshman year, and now she’s looking at hopefully running 21s this year. … She’s a prime example of if you put the work in and you put the mileage down and you’ve got the toughness, you can really get a lot out of this sport. You get out of it what you put into it, and she has put everything she has into it.
“She’s going to be a real difference maker for us.”
Liz Lennartz placed sixth for the Patriots in 23:24, and Leah Wellman completed the team score in seventh place at 23:30. Katie Simmons, who was the 2009 sectional runner-up, continued to work back from an injury with a time of 23:30 for eighth place.
In the boys race, Chaz Carroll improved on his time from the Celina Invitational by nearly 50 seconds as he finished 13th in 22:20. Tyler Osbourne was 14th in 22:25, and Zach Johnson took 18th in 25:36.
“Chaz and Tyler both had really good times today,” said McEvoy. “They’re improving, they’re getting better, and that’s what we’re asking of them. They’re putting effort in, they’re dropping time. They’re not anywhere near where they need to be or want to be, but we’re seeing improvement.”
Also running for the JCHS girls were Julie Valentine (13th - 24:34), Megan Price (14th - 24:49) and Madison Clott (19th - 29:36).[[In-content Ad]]