MARION — The Galion girls placed second and the boys finished fifth in the Mid Ohio Athletic Conference cross country championships on Saturday at Marion Harding High School.

Head coach Cindy Conner said her teams turned in solid performances in preparation for the upcoming Division II district meet this Saturday at Amann Reservoir.

“We would have loved to have brought home the league title today but as a team, it wasn’t in the cards for us,” Conner said. “The runners knew what they wanted to do today and they performed well. They set themselves up for great success at the district meet next weekend.”

The girls team competed without Nora Harding and the boys team was missing Erik Hilario, Conner said.

“However, both teams finished the race with their best team average of the season. Other runners stepped up and tried to fill those spots,” Conner said.

Shelby collected both the girls and boys conference championships on Saturday. Kayla Gonzalez of Shelby was the girls individual champion, posting a winning time of 18:52. Mason Hendrickson of Shelby won the boys individual title, turning in a time of 16:13.5.

Zaynah Tate was the top performer for the Galion girls team, placing fourth with a time of 20:20.9. Raygann Campbell came in sixth place, crossing the finish line in 20:31.5. Tate and Campbell earned first-team All-MOAC honors with their performances.

Ava Smith finished in 12th place, turning in a time of 21:17.5. Emily McDonald placed 15th with a time of 21:41.1. Dezi Lester came in 25th place with time of 23:09.9.

Smith earned second-team All-MOAC recognition and McDonald received honorable mention.

Following are the rest of the individual results for the Galion girls team: Jasmine Clingman, 29th, 23:37; Natalee Perkins, 30th, 23:42.5; Grace Sparks, 41st, 24:27.1; Elisha Brown, 44th, 24:54.1; Ella Lehman, 50th, 25:13.5.

Conner said Tate, Smith, Lester, and Brown each set lifetime personal records at the MOAC championships. Clingman, Sparks, and Lehman set season personal records on Saturday.

Chad Taylor led the way for the Galion boys team, finishing in fourth place. His time of 16:48 is a new lifetime personal record. Taylor earned first-team All-MOAC honors for his performance on Saturday.

Kellen Kiser came in 26th place, crossing the finish line in 18:20.1. That time set a new lifetime personal record for Kiser.

Cannon Butler placed 33rd with a time of 18:46.9. Caleb Brutchey came in 36th place with a time of 19:06.4, which is a new season personal record. Anthony Ferini set a new season personal record with a time of 19:17, placing 38th.

Following are the rest of the Galion boys team individual results: Tyler Fraizer, 43rd, 19:35.2; Ryan Sutton, 46th, 20:12.7; Riley Gabriel, 54th, 22:40.6; Holden Gabriel, 58th, 24:00.5.

Fraizer, Riley Gabriel, and Sutton each set new season personal records at the MOAC meet.

Conner also provided the times for open runners whose times were recorded by coaches. Following is the list of Tigers open runners results: Hayla Cowdrey, 25:50; Zoee Brissell, 26:51; Avery Lutz, 27:19; Claudia Ferini, 28:17; Ryllie Preston, 30:35; Ashton Faulds, 25:08; Wyatt Estep, 27:49.

Faulds and Estep each recorded personal records.

Next up for Galion is the Division II District Cross Country Championships on Saturday at Amann Reservoir. The girls race begins at 11:30 a.m. followed by the boys race at 12:15 p.m.

In addition to Galion, the following teams will be competing in the district meet on Saturday: Bellevue, Clear Fork, Clyde, Edison, Huron, Lexington, Ontario, Perkins, Port Clinton, Shelby, Vermilion, and Willard.

The top four boys and girls teams and those individuals not on a qualifying team who finish in the top 16 positions will advance to the Division II Regional Championships on Saturday, Oct. 30 at Hedges Boyer Park in Tiffin.

MOAC Cross Country Championships 2021

Girls Team Results

1. Shelby 30

2. Galion 57

3. Ontario 70

4. River Valley 112

5. Highland 124

6. Clear Fork 128

7. Marion Harding 208

Boys Team Results

1. Shelby 24

2. Pleasant 70

3. Marion Harding 89

4. Highland 91

5. Galion 113

6. Ontario 158

7. Clear Fork 187