The Logan County Cross Country Teams made their first appearance under new coach Joe Dan Laster in the Raider Twilight Invitational sponsored by Warren East on Aug. 29.
“I was very excited about the team effort that I saw from ALL of the kids. These kids have been working extremely hard and it’s starting to pay off. These men and women make me proud day in and day out. I have the best job in the world thanks to these kids,” Laster says.
“Coach K and I have a very young team. Our very first meet and our boys finished in the middle of the pack. Not to mention that three of them have never run competitively before. The first day of practice when I had maybe 10 runners, I knew this season would be special. Now we have 25 runners on the team and make some great strides. Coach K and I are excited about this season and can’t wait to see what this team is capable of in the future!”
The “Coach K” reference is to Scott Kenney, who graduated from Logan County in 2009 with Later. They led the Cougar team that went to state for the first time in school history. Kenney ran four years for Berea College.
“He’s one of the best and most hard working individuals I know. He's been a crucial asset to this team,” Laster says of Kenney.
The Lady Cougars are without one of their top runners, Bre Baptiste, who suffered a torn ACL during summer camp and underwent surgery a few weeks ago. Former coach and now athletic director Greg Howard says she is recovering well.
Results follow. The first number is the athlete’s finish. The second is his or her grade level, and the third the time it took to complete the race.
Elementary girls 2k
137 Nichols, Savannah 06 Logan County 14:07.92
Elementary boys 2k
127 Trent, Joseph 06 Logan County 11:09.26
Middle School girls 3k
97 Trent, Emma 07 Logan County 22:19.82
98 Hines, Laren 06 Logan County 22:37.51
Middle school boys 3k
152 Wheeler, James 07 Logan County 20:53.16
Girls Varsity 5k
29 Johnson, Meredith 10 Logan County 23:16.00
56 Hankins, Jessie 10 Logan County 24:50.00
64 Haggens, Eliza 07 Logan County 25:21.00
87 Duncan, Haleigh 10 Logan County 28:26.00
99 Heltsley, Kela 10 Logan County 31:12.00
11th place Logan County team point total 255
Average: 26:37.00
Boys Varsity 5k
18 Cousineau, Gage 10 Logan County 18:19.70
39 Barbee, Damanuel 11 Logan County 19:09.47
43 Marrow, Tanner 09 Logan County 19:11.52
60 Roche, Devin 11 Logan County 19:42.40
66 Heltsley, Dean 11 Logan County 19:50.93
68 Dill, Conner 10 Logan County 19:55.77
106 Lyne, Thomas 11 Logan County 21:36.04
107 Abney, Wesley 08 Logan County 21:45.44
9th place Logan County team point total 214
Average: 19:14.81