Published: November 18, 2008 01:22 pm            

McFarland competes at state cross country meet

Monticello — Wayne County cross country runner Katie McFarland competed in the Class

AA State Cross Country Championship at the Kentucky Horse Park on Saturday,

November 15.

There were a total of 200 runners in McFarland's class at the state meet

and she finished 111th, with a personal best time of 22:59.

"To run a personal best time in those conditions was pretty remarkable,"

said Wayne County cross country coach Kevin Jones. "It was a nasty day to

run. She ran a gutsy race, and I am really proud of her."

McFarland qualified for the state meet with a 15th place finish at the

Region 5 Championships, held at Mercer County on Saturday, November 8. She

had a time of 24:09 at the regional event and became the youngest runner in

school history to qualify for the state championships.

"I am really happy for Katie. To get a chance to run for a state

championship as a seventh grader is a great accomplishment," said Jones.

"Katie has a bright future in the sport of cross country if she continues to

work at it."

Wayne County's girls team consisted of: Katie McFarland, Samantha

Sexton, Maya Roselius, Kinly Bertram, and Emily Eicher.

Wayne County finished fifth in the regional meet, just missing the

fourth spot by 17 points. The top four teams and the next five individuals

in the region advance to the state meet.

On the boys side, there were 11 teams and the top five teams and the

next five individuals from the region advanced to the state. The boys team

consisted of: Michael Roberts, Trevor Shearer, Alvik Ibisate, Travis

Upchurch, Logan Davis, and Brandon Roysdon.

The boys team finished eighth in the region, with Shearer being the top

finisher for Wayne County. He missed qualifying for the state championships

by nine seconds.

"I was pleased with both teams. I know our girls were really

disappointed as a team. They were very close to advancing as a team," said

Jones.

The program has good things to look forward to in the future.

"I am really excited about the future of our cross country program,"

said Jones. "We return a lot of experience on both the girls and boys side.

We are looking forward to bigger and better things next year."

        

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