JC closes season at regional

HUNTINGTON — Still trying to fight his way back into form after missing three weeks because of an injury, Caleb Garringer was frustrated with his sectional performance.

While his season came to an end Saturday, his spirits were much higher as he kept himself in contention for a state berth.

The Jay County High School junior improved his time by more than 35 seconds over the previous week and was the top Patriot finisher in Saturday’s regional meet hosted by New Haven at Huntington University.

“It was a good bounce back from the injury,” said Garringer, who finished 49th overall in a field of 247 athletes. “I’m happy with it.”

Ava May’s 68th-place finish topped the list for the JCHS girls, who were 15th out of 25 teams with 444 points.

Concordia took the girls title with 49 points ahead of Homestead (62), Carroll (133), Warsaw (137) and Columbia City (147). The top five teams and top 15 individuals from non-qualifying teams advanced to Saturday’s IHSAA Cross Country State Finals at LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute.

Though running on the same regional course as a year ago at Huntington University, the path around the property was changed. Garringer felt the layout suited him better.

In the tightly packed field, the difference became clear by the end of the race. He beat eight of the 14 runners who had finished ahead of him at the sectional meet just a week earlier as he finished 49th in 17 minutes, 0.8 seconds.

“This new course at Huntington, I like it a lot better,” he said. “I could really see people and I could see my goals, where I needed to be …

“There were a lot more straightaways. Last year there were a lot of sharp turns and the finish was like a U-turn … so it really slowed you down.”

Despite missing three weeks this season because of hip and knee issues, he finished less than 30 seconds away from a state berth as Central Noble’s Kyle Knafel claimed the final spot in 16:32.9.

“He ran really well,” said JCHS assistant coach Jared Owens, again standing in for coach Gabby Williams during her maternity leave. “He's continuing to work hard and keep his head up and continues to strive to get better. He really has a passion to be great …

“It’s awesome to see him continue to fight and grow. … I thought he ran a really good race. It’s cool to see his improvement just over the last three weeks from ACAC to sectional.”

Sophomores Ava May and Brooklyn Byrum led the way for the Patriot girls. May was hanging around the 70th position at the mile mark before slipping back a few places at the two-thirds point of the race. But she climbed back up, passing several runners down the final stretch and nearly catching Leo’s Audri Bultemeier at the finish as she placed 68th in 20:37.4 seconds.

Her time was eight seconds faster than she ran at the 2024 regional. (West Noble freshman Karla Dominguez earned the last individual state-qualifying position with her 37th-place finish in 19:39.5.)

Saturday proved much better for Byrum than at the sectional meet, where she was the No. 5 runner for JCHS. In the regional race, she was trailing just a bit behind May at the mile but at a career-best pace. 

She crossed the finish line more than two minutes faster than the previous weekend, coming in 87th in 21:04.4.

Byrum, who was 45 seconds faster than in her freshman season, said she preferred the colder weather with a race time temperature of 41 degrees as compared to the 70s at the sectional meet.

“The one thing I never question about Brooklynn is her effort,” said Owens. “Her effort, no matter what the day is, is always going to be top-notch. She’s super competitive. …

“She bounced back great and ran really well and finished with the PR to end the season. … It’s great to see her success.”

Jessie Homan, a sophomore, turned in a time of 21:30.2 for 111th place. The Patriots’ final scoring runners — sophomore Abby Fifer and senior Paityn Wendel — finished side-by-side in 22:17.6 and 22:17.7 for 148th and 149th, respectively. Senior Alexis Sibray (161st – 22:28) and Alyvia Muhlenkamp (241st – 30:25) also competed for the Patriot girls.

Freshman Grant Glentzer got some valuable experience in a regional race as he came in 165th in 18:19.7, while senior Max Klopfenstein closed his career with a time of 19:19.3 for 220th place.

The race marked the end of the high school careers for Wendel, Sibray and Klopfenstein.

“It’s gonna be definitely difficult to lose them. A lot of it is their mindset, their attitude. Paityn and Alexis, they’ve really taken on a leadership role. I’ve seen them grow in that capacity … They really focused on growing the team atmosphere and really care about not just them doing well but the entire team doing well. …

“Max, he’s somebody we can always look at as a good role model for the younger boys. … He’s showed them, ‘Hey, this is what you need to do to continue to improve.”