Saratoga sportsmanship

The distance runners of the Saratoga Middle/High School cross-country team were able to perform for the hometown crowd this weekend as they hosted the Shana Ward Memorial Invite, held at the Saratoga Hot Springs Resort golf course on Friday. Along with being able to run for family and friends, the Saratoga Panthers also showcased their good sportsmanship as exemplified by head coach Rex Hohnholt.

Kaitlyn Campbell and Shianne Baker ran in the junior varsity women's race and placed 34th, with a time of 26:30, and 36th, with a time of 29:49, respectively, out of 36 runners.

In the men's varsity, Encampment's own Jarom Herring placed 4th after finishing with a time of 18:17. Joey Gonzales followed in 13th place, finishing with a time of 19:32 and Logan Seahorn placed 21st with a time of 19:59. Seahorn, who opted to participate in cross-country this year rather than football, has been continuing to maintain a decent placing in all his races.

Following Herring, Gonzales and Seahorn were Gavin Bartlett, who placed 25th with a time of 20:04, Jeremiah Debar, who finished with a time of 20:45 and placed 34th, and Kelton Johnson who placed 36th with a time of 21:05.

A total of 40 runners participated in the men's varsity race. While most of the runners finished within 25 minutes, the final runner, an athlete from Wyoming Indian High School, didn't come in until midway through the award ceremony. Hohnholt stopped the awards and asked that all junior high and high school runners gather at the finish line to cheer the finishing runner on. The sound of cheers and claps greeted the young man as he finished his run and was enveloped in a hug by a family member.

Following their run at the Shana Ward Memorial Invite, the runners of SMHS will take off to Wheatland on Saturday, Sept. 28 to participate in the Wheatland Invitational.