Saratoga earns tops spots at home

The men's and women's varsity Saratoga Cross Country teams had a good showing for the hometown crowd on Friday as they hosted their annual Shana Ward Memorial Invite at Saratoga Hot Springs Resort.

On the men's varsity side, the Bartlett twins continued to showcase their winning ways by placing in top spots for some individual victories. On the women's varsity side, however, Saratoga's long-distance runners were able to secure a team victory as they placed in the top spot. With only two meets left until the 2A State Cross Country Championship, both groups of runners seem well poised to achieve some success in Ethete.

Men's Varsity

Grant Bartlett, the defending back-to-back state champion, took 1st place while running at the Shana Ward Memorial Invite as he finished with a time of 17 minutes even. Twin brother Grady Bartlett wasn't far behind, coming in 3rd place as he finished with a time of 17 minutes, 24 seconds.

Calvin Condict secured a spot in the top half of the runners, placing 15th out of 50 runners with a finishing time of 19 minutes, 39 seconds. Kelton Johnson finished with a time of 21 minutes even, coming in 33rd place and Zane Butler finished in 46th place with a time of 23 minutes, 33 seconds.

The Men's Varsity team placed 2nd overall with a total time of 1 hour, 15 minutes and 6 seconds.

In the junior varsity race, Douglas Anderson placed 21st with a finishing time of 25 minutes, 24 seconds and Colin Greenberg came in 24th place with a time of 29 minutes, 46 seconds.

Women's Varsity

In the women's varsity race, Head Coach Rex Hohnholt's five runners continued to show improvement as the season begins to come to a close. Rhiwan Williams led the team as she placed 5th with a finishing time of 21 minutes, 42 seconds. R. Williams was followed by Marilee Williams, who finished in 6th place with a time of 21 minutes, 45 seconds.

Maddie Teichman followed in 9th place with a finishing time of 22 minutes, 29 seconds. Milan Scott followed in 16th place with a time of 24 minutes, 8 seconds and Jaden Campbell came in 34th place as she finished with a time of 26 minutes, 51 seconds.

The combined finishes of the women's varsity team earned them a 1st place team finish with 30 points and a total time of 1 hour, 30 minutes and 7 seconds.

With two more meets left before the state championship, both the men's and women's varsity teams have some time to stretch their legs before the season comes to an end.

Saratoga Cross Country will compete in the Wheatland Invite in Wheatland on October 1.