By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Definitely very squishy. The Great Bend girls entered Saturday’s Class 5A regional cross country race at Lake Barton as the four-time defending regional champions. Despite a mostly new roster, and despite running in the rain, the young Panther team scored 51 points to win a fifth-straight title. Salina Central scored 56 points in second, and Valley Center also qualified its team to state with 75 points. Newton also scored 75 points but lost the tie-break to Valley Center.
Salina Central graduated its state champion from a year ago but junior Kaylie Shultz, the reigning third-place finisher in last year’s loaded 5A field, was back in action Saturday. She cruised to the win in 17:43.32. Great Bend freshman Sydney Stein earned the silver in 18:57.98, still 42 seconds ahead of the third-place runner from Newton.
“Coming into it as a freshman and knowing that what (Shultz) has been doing is amazing, I definitely just ran my own race behind her,” Stein said. “If I beat her, that’d be great, but I don’t focus too much on that.”
Stein, in those “definitely very squishy” conditions, nearly slipped into a tree at one point in the 5K race, but she and Shultz pulled away from the pack early. A battle for the remaining top five spots ensued. Newton’s Brooklyn Treaster won that race in 19:39.50. Panther freshman Decorah Schroeter ran fourth in 19:47.66, and junior Bella Long ran just behind her in 19:50.54 for fifth.
Sophomore Samantha Negaard placed 16th for Great Bend in 21:40.01, nine seconds away from the next point. Makenzie Gwin earned the final team points in 22:34.30, three seconds between the runners ahead of and behind her. Alyssa Prendergrast placed 30th in 23:05.27, and Sydney James ran 42nd in 24:46.99.
Great Bend returns to Rim Rock Farm outside Lawrence next Saturday for the Class 5A State Cross Country Championships. The 5A girls’ race will be the final of the 2025 season with a 12:55 p.m. start. The 3A boys begin at 10 a.m. that morning.