Bridgeport’s string of dominance in the Harrison County Cross Country Championships continued last week as the girls and boys rolled to wins during what proved to be a rainy and muddy competition. The event was held at the Bridgeport Recreation Complex.

 

It was the 12^th-straight championship for the boys. For the girls, it was the 10^th-straight title.

 

The Indians’ girls finished with 20 points, well ahead of runner-up Liberty with 51. Only three schools fielded complete teams.

 

“The rain leading up to the race had the course in pretty bad shape.  The water just wouldn’t go away.  The drains at the fields were backing up, and the rain kept coming,” said Griffith. “This race was a real test of mental and physical toughness.  Most people wouldn’t understand it, but that is how cross county goes.  Sometimes you get a little muddy. 

 

“Still the girls had a pretty good day,” he continued. “We did lose a shoe and have a few scrapes and bumps, but considering the conditions out there that day, I would say we did fine.”

 

As has been the case all season, the Indians were led by senior Julia Muller. Muller finished the meet with a dominating showing that saw her post an overall winning time of 23 minutes, 43.87 seconds.

 

BHS had three more runners in the top five. Emma Campbell was in third (25:27.4), Allison Hess was fourth (25:34.93) and Brooke Wagner was fifth (25:38.08). Two additional athletes for Bridgeport finished in the top 10 as Samantha Gibson was eighth and Michaela Perri was ninth.

 

“Julia ran well and very cautiously.  In fact, we told them all to be careful.  The boys tore the course up pretty good, so by the time the girls ran it was a complete mess,” said Griffith. “This race was more about staying on your feet and moving forward than anything.  Emma Campbell, Allison Hess and Brooke Wagner ran together well once again.”

 

The boys won with a total of 15 points to easily outdistance runner up South Harrison with 65 points. Only four schools fielded complete teams.

 

“The boys ran pretty well also,” said Coach Jon Griffith. “Even though we warned them to be careful, not everyone listened and we had a few take some pretty hard falls.  Fortunately nothing serious arose from them.  Some fared a little better than others under these conditions, but overall we survived with only minor bumps and bruises.”

 

No one escaped Jackson Jacobs. Like Muller, he was the top individual winner with a time of 19 minutes, 1.24 seconds. That total was nearly a full minute faster than the runner-up.

 

Bridgeport actually had five of the top six finishers in the event. Logan Carr finished third with a time of 20 minutes, 8.46 seconds and was followed by Cade Robinson in fourth (20:12.81), Trey Martin in fifth (20:21.08) and Bailey DeMoss (21:05.4) in sixth. The Tribe’s Ashton Nardella (8^th) and Ty Gandy (10^th) rounded out the top 10 finishers for the Tribe.

 

“Jackson had a very good day.  He finished almost a minute ahead of second place.  Logan and Cade were just a few seconds behind Sam Starkey of Robert C. Byrd who finished second, which is a nice improvement for them,” said Griffith. “ … Landon Burns who normally is in our top five took a nasty fall, bruising himself up pretty good.”

 

Despite the less than ideal conditions, Griffith said everyone made the most of it.

 

“Both the girls and the boys seemed to have a good time.  They didn’t let the conditions affect them too much.  They had a little dance party going on in the pavilion before and after the meet,” said Griffith. “There were lots of big smiles and laughing as they finished their races and scraped the mud off of themselves.  This will be a story they tell their kids about some day.”

 

Bridgeport’s next meet isn’t until Oct. 11. The Indians will take part in the Big 10 Conference Championship at Davis & Elkins College. The boys will run at 10 a.m. and the girls will compete at 11 a.m. giving the Tribe a big break between meets.

 

“This is one of our last big training weeks.  We are transitioning to more speed work and this week will be very important for preparing us for the remainder of the season,” said Griffith.

 

Editor's Note: Top photo courtesy of Bridgeport High School Track and Cross Country Facebook page. Bottom three photos by Theo Frick of www.benqueenphotography.com.