The Eagles hosted the O’Neill Cross Country Invitational and turned in several strong performances, including team championships by the high school boys and junior high girls teams. The Eagles also had numerous individual medalists across all four divisions.
The O’Neill high school girls team placed fifth overall, led by sophomore Kiarra Kennedy, who finished second overall to earn a medal. Emma Bowder finished 25th, Lynn Miner placed 32nd, and Emma French finished 42nd to round out the Eagles’ varsity scoring runners.
The O’Neill high school boys captured the team championship with a strong showing from the entire team. Senior Max Berg led the Eagles by placing fourth overall, followed closely by Alonso Hernandez in seventh, Kyler Wettlaufer in eighth, and Paul Fonseca in ninth. Jordan Ramirez Perez also earned a medal with a 13th-place finish, while Tyson Becker placed 29th. The Eagles’ balanced performance throughout the race helped secure the team championship.
In the junior varsity boys’ race, O’Neill runners dominated the top positions. David Garcia won the individual championship, while Lane Dougherty finished third, Jase Sanders fourth, and Angel Sanchez fifth. Brock Latzel placed seventh and Alex Otte finished ninth. No team score was kept in the JV division.
The O’Neill junior high girls won the team championship, led by an individual championship from Josie Troester. Kinsley Berg finished fourth and Erandi Pantoja Martinez placed ninth, with all three earning medals. The remainder of the Eagles included Elizabeth Trejo in 19th, Madison Wettlaufer 20th, Humaya Hernandez 29th, Madia Sanchez 34th, Aiyana Brown 45th, Remi Kurtz 52nd, Ruby Jackson 54th, Allysin Gomez 56th, Mya McCormick 60th, and Chez Sterns-Burival 66th.
The junior high boys team placed fifth overall. Nolan Jessen led the Eagles with a ninth-place medal, followed by Leonardo Calvo in 11th. Coltyn Romesser finished 34th, Octavio Garcia 40th, Alvaro Garcia 57th, Bennett Phillips 60th, Charlie Kaufman 62nd, Justin Luzania 63rd, Lars Miner 72nd, Hector Garcia 74th, Miguel Arciniega 79th, and Will Guzman 80th.
Overall, the O’Neill Invitational was a successful day for the Eagles, with two team championships, numerous individual medalists, and strong depth throughout the high school and junior high races. The performances demonstrated the continued effort and commitment of O’Neill’s cross country runners as the season moves toward the championship portion of the schedule.