By DANTON MCDIFFETT
Assistant Cross Country Coach
On a cool, foggy Saturday morning, Salina Central’s Mustang cross country squad enjoyed running a familiar course. The Salina Invitational Cross Country Meet was held at Bill Burke and Indian Rock Parks on Saturday.
William Griffith continued his streak of top-five finishes, winning a thrilling sprint to the finish line by :14 second to place fifth in 16:53. Isaac French also took home a medal with a 15th place finish in 17:23. Other Mustang varsity boys were Zack Tibbits, who finished 42nd in 18:47; Cooper Affholder, whose 19:45 time placed 57th, and Ryan Sheahon, who ran 21:26 for 67th position.
For the Mustang varsity girls team, Cora White again paced the team, finishing 36th in 22:32. Araceli Davila ran 23:14 to place 46th. Elizabeth Young finished in 52nd place at 23:49. Elle Denning finished in 57th with a time of 24:23.
Two boys ran for Central in the junior varsity meet. Nick Carano’s time of 25:53 was good for 76th place and Alex Riley placed 81st in 33:58. In the junior varsity girls race, Taylor Helton’s time of 28:13 placed 48th. Angel Mendenhall finished in 29:30 for 52nd place. Sisters Amelia and Alison Coykendall completed the race in 33:27 and 34:18, respectively. They finished in 58th and 59th places.
The Mustangs will compete next at the AVCTL meet in Newton on Oct. 17.