Great Bend Post Sports
The Great Bend girls entered Saturday morning's Class 5A State Cross Country Championships at Rim Rock Farm near Lawrence on the outside looking in at a state trophy as the fourth-ranked team. Some of the usual 5A powers reared their heads, pushing the Lady Panthers to an eighth-place finish.
St. James Academy scored 77 points to win another title, followed by Kapaun Mt. Carmel with 93 points, and Blue Valley Southwest with 97 points. Bishop Carroll and St. Thomas completed the private school near sweep in fourth and fifth place. Great Bend scored 193 points for eighth.
There was plenty of intrigue in the individual race. Topeka Seaman junior Ryin Miller set the state record for a 5K earlier this year but Salina Central senior Katelyn Rupe entered as the two-time defending champion, and her sophomore teammate Kaylie Shultz also ran ahead of Miller at state last year.
The University of North Carolina-bound Rupe continued her streak, blazing a 17:09.77 to beat Miller by 17 seconds. Shultz finished third in 18:13.67.
Sophomore Bella Long led Great Bend in 25th place with a time of 19:54.62 to miss all-state honors by just nine seconds. Junior Sienna Smith ran 31st in 20:08.53, followed by senior Marissa Boone in 41st in 20:22.88. Sophomore Teah King finished 59th in 21:21.38, and senior Kate Welcher scored the final team points in 73rd with a time of 21:49.54. Freshman Samantha Negaard finished 81st in 22:02.06.