By BUTCH HARMON
In the sport of cross country, it is rare when a high school has one of the top boy or girl runners in the entire state. It is even more rare is when a school has one of the top boy and one of the top girl runners in the state, but Cedar Springs High School is blessed with exactly that.
In senior Connor Mora, the Red Hawks have one of the premier boy runners in the state, while sophomore Kenzie Weiler is one of the top girl runners in all of Michigan.
Both Mora and Weiler enjoyed big seasons last year. Weiler helped the Cedar Springs girls finish second in the state in Division 2, as she placed second as an individual with a time of 17:35.1. Following close behind Kenzie was older sister Katie, who took fourth place with a time of 18:22.1.
In the boys’ race, Mora finished third, behind a pair of seniors, with a time of 15:33.2. Mora’s third-place finish helped the Red Hawk boys take fourth place as a team.
This season, the two runners are off to fast starts with their teams. In the first O-K Bronze jamboree of the season, Kenzie took first place with a time of 18:39.14, while Katie was second in 19:16.52. The two helped the Red Hawks capture the opening league jamboree.
“It was Kenzie’s best time of the season so far,” said her coach Jen Kahler. “She’s still not at her peak. All the kids are right on track from where they were last year.”
Weiler put in plenty of work in the off-season to get prepared for this season. “I worked real hard in the summer to get ready for this year,” she said. “I put in over 300 miles this summer, which was a little more than last summer.”
With a number of veteran runners back this year, including seniors Sommer VanDyke and Christina Dean and juniors Maddie Pekrul and Michaela Burnett, the Red Hawk girls have ambitious goals this season.
“I think we are looking awesome,” Weiler said. “Everybody is determined and working hard. I think we are going to have a very good season.”
The Cedar Springs boys are also looking to have a good season. Along with Mora, the Red Hawks return seniors Alex Bray, Justin Harthorn, and Ethan Menefee, along with junior Austin Sargent. Freshman Cameron Umphrey is also in the mix.
“We have a lofty goal of challenging at states,” head coach Ted Sabinas said. “We finished fourth last year, and we hope to exceed that this year.”
Also looking to improve on last year’s finish is Mora.
“Connor is considered to be one of the best, if not the best runner in the state,” Sabinas said. “He had an outstanding track season, and then he went to an all-star meet in Joliet, Illinois, and ran a 4:09 in the 1600-meters. If you look at his times lately, they put him one up there with the best in the state. He is very hungry and is on a mission.”