BRONZE BOMBSHELLS
West Marshall girls achieve program’s best state cross country finish yet
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE The West Marshall girls cross country team poses with its third-place trophy after Friday’s Class 2A race at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge. Pictured are (from left) front row: Kennedy Jackson, Harper Blackburn, Dalaney Eldridge, Kielly Kasal, Ella Randall, Summer Kurth and Zoey Wignall; back row: assistant coach Andrea Tollefson and head coach Cynthia Hilleman.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE West Marshall runners Harper Blackburn (435) and Dalaney Eldridge (436) run alongside Treynor’s Madalyn Kermann (414) during Friday’s Class 2A race at the Iowa High School State Cross Country Championships at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE The West Marshall girls cross country team sprints off the starting line to begin Friday’s Class 2A race at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge. The Trojans combined to place third, marking the best finish in school history.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE West Marshall sophomores Ella Randall (440) and Zoey Wignall (441) ascend a hill on the way to the homestretch of Friday’s Class 2A state cross country race in Fort Dodge.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE The West Marshall girls cross country team waves to the crowd moments before receiving the Class 2A third-place trophy Friday at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge. Pictured, from left, are Harper Blackburn, Dalaney Eldridge, Kielly Kasal, Ella Randall, Zoey Wignall, Kennedy Jackson, Summer Kurth, head coach Cynthia Hilleman and assistant coach Andrea Tollefson.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE The West Marshall girls cross country team poses with its third-place trophy after Friday’s Class 2A race at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge. Pictured are (from left) front row: Kennedy Jackson, Harper Blackburn, Dalaney Eldridge, Kielly Kasal, Ella Randall, Summer Kurth and Zoey Wignall; back row: assistant coach Andrea Tollefson and head coach Cynthia Hilleman.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE West Marshall runners Harper Blackburn (435) and Dalaney Eldridge (436) run alongside Treynor’s Madalyn Kermann (414) during Friday’s Class 2A race at the Iowa High School State Cross Country Championships at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE The West Marshall girls cross country team sprints off the starting line to begin Friday’s Class 2A race at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge. The Trojans combined to place third, marking the best finish in school history.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE West Marshall sophomores Ella Randall (440) and Zoey Wignall (441) ascend a hill on the way to the homestretch of Friday’s Class 2A state cross country race in Fort Dodge.
T-R PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE The West Marshall girls cross country team waves to the crowd moments before receiving the Class 2A third-place trophy Friday at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course near Fort Dodge. Pictured, from left, are Harper Blackburn, Dalaney Eldridge, Kielly Kasal, Ella Randall, Zoey Wignall, Kennedy Jackson, Summer Kurth, head coach Cynthia Hilleman and assistant coach Andrea Tollefson.
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FORT DODGE -- The West Marshall girls' cross country team set out to accomplish something never before achieved by the Trojans.
Making school history is cool and all, but West Marshall still wanted more.
The second-ranked Trojans claimed third place in Class 2A in the Iowa High School State Cross Country Championships on Friday at Lakeside Municipal Golf Course, recording the program's best finish ever in the season finale.
Last year's contingent matched West Marshall's previous best, taking fourth place, and yet another pilgrimage to Fort Dodge yielded another spot higher in the final standings.
This one included a team trophy.
The Trojans totaled 143 points to finish behind only top-ranked Mid-Prairie (85) and fourth-rated Treynor (120) to claim third place out of 15 teams on a cold and windy day at Kennedy Park.
While the number didn't match the team's ranking or its ultimate goal, it'll do.
For now.
"We were really confident that we could get first, but today just wasn't our day," said Trojan junior Dalaney Eldridge, a three-time state qualifier to took 29th place in 20 minutes, 0.7 seconds. "We still ran great overall, but I think next year, I think next year we've got it."
Mid-Prairie was just too fast for West Marshall to catch on this day, putting four runners inside the top 21 with three of them collecting all-state medals (top 15).
The Trojans gave it their all, with four runners recording season- or personal-best times, but the margin was too much to atone for.
"Super proud of these girls, they ran great," said head coach Cynthia Hilleman. "They really had excellent times and it's tough competition, and that's what we expect at state.
"This is a wonderful group, and we're only losing one senior. They're all coming back next year and it's going to be a really nice year and the years to follow."
Eighth-grader Harper Blackburn helped set the tone for the Trojans this season, making the leap from middle school to join a lineup that returned five of the seven runners from last year's fourth-place finisher.
On Friday, Blackburn led West Marshall with a 25th-place finish and a personal-best time of 19:56.5.
"I was in middle school (cross country) for like a week and a half, but I wanted to have a chance at making it to state so it was a really good opportunity," Blackburn said. "I'm really glad I chose to go up (to varsity).
"It was really exciting to see how many people were out there just supporting and cheering us on."
The Trojans' next three finishers were all sophomores. Kielly Kasal came in 43rd in a season-best time of 20:24.9, Ella Randall rocked a personal-best 20:38.3, and Zoey Wignall rounded out the team scoring in 59th (20:46.2).
The Trojans' lone senior, Summer Kurth, finished in 137th place (23:42.5) to complete the team's lineup, while freshman Kennedy Jackson came in 101st in 21:55.2.
"We've definitely been trying to run in a pack more," Hilleman said. "We thought the closer we are together, the more that helps, and we've been kind of doing that all year. Just having that one year experience of a big meet like this will definitely help them, and I think that also helped with the nerves a little."
It's easy to see why, even with the school's first state cross country trophy in hand, West Marshall wanted more.
"I'm super grateful for being able to be here three years in a row, it means a lot," Eldridge said, "and I'm hoping we get another trophy for the trophy case -- and maybe something better."
Monticello sophomore Mary Grace Lyons captured the individual title with a winning time of 18:06.6, and Unity Christian's Kambrie Dekkers took second in 18:14.4.
Monticello took fourth place behind West Marshall with 160 points, while Van Meter was fifth at 179.
"We just said you have to get everybody you can," Hilleman added. "We were working on passing people and trying not to get passed. Every place counts, so you've gotta do what you can."
Friday marked the fifth year in a row the Trojans were represented in Fort Dodge, and the second year in a row the team made it that far. West Marshall's only other trip to state as a squad was in 2014, and that contingent took fourth place.
The potential remains for the Trojans to achieve the more they were looking for on Friday afternoon.