Teri Tune
Sports Scene
The Chesaning boys cross country team is off to a fast start this season, and one of their top efforts came on their own course.
The Indians held their own cross country invitational at Showboat Park where the boys team finished second with a team score of 51.
“Our boys are looking great. We just had our first state rankings come out and we are number 10,” head coach Jon Malcolm said.
Something that the Indians have going for them is senior leadership and experience.
“We have four seniors in the top five and five seniors on the team,” Malcolm said. “Our top three runners are Rob Kovach, John Forsyth, and Brandon Beckman. They have been on the team since they were freshmen and sophomores and are looking great again this year.”
Kovach is not only Chesaning’s top runner, but he also took first place at their invitational with a time of 16:47.2. Forsyth was next for the Indians with a time of 16:58.6, followed by Beckman 17:10.3, Tyler Corbin 18:09.9, Jacob Collins 18:30.0, and Ian Turnwald 19:01.0.
Coach Malcolm has set some high goals for his team this season.
“I would like to place fifth in the state; that’s my ultimate goal,” Malcolm said. “We are a team that usually peaks late, and I think we can reach that goal. I would like to win our conference. We came in second behind Hemlock at one of our Jamborees but only missed beating them by a couple of points, so I think we will be able to take them in the meets to come.”
Coach Malcolm doesn’t like the term rebuilding, but he admits that’s what his girls team is facing this season.
“We lost four of our top seven runners on our girls team last year, including our number one runner, who holds the school record and is running at Saginaw Valley now,” Malcolm said. “When you lose talent like that, it is going to affect you as a team. By the end of the season, after these girls have a chance to get some experience, we should be able to be more competitive.”
The girls finished eleventh at their Invitational with a team score of 254. Kaitlyn Eurich finished first for Indians with a time of 22:26.7. Amber Howlett came in second with a time of 22:58.9, followed by Kayla Richmond 24:17.0, Kelsey Luha 26:26.1, Stephanie Tripp 27:21.8, and Mary Stasa 28:23.4.
“I’d love to see them end up at least the middle of our conference this year, but if they continue to improve as the season goes on, I would be happy with how we end up,” said coach Malcolm.