The Shark guys’ and girls’ cross country teams competed at Hidden Oaks Golf Course Tuesday, October 11, for their final conference matchup, which resulted in a TVC championship for the boys and runner-up for the girls. 

  Hidden Oaks Golf Course is the home course for the Sharks. The first mile of the race is hilly, but after that it is a decrease in elevation the last two miles. Going into the meet, the team tried to stay neutral. On the guys’ side, they knew a conference championship was at stake. The Sharks had 10 days off before this meet and used it as a time to get faster and put in the work. It definitely paid off. 

Overall, the team had many outstanding performances. Numerous athletes earned medals and honorable mentions. The first team all-conference medalists for the guys included Ben March, Landon Pestrue, and Dylan Marr. Second-team all-conference medalists included Alex Rodriguez, Colin Kuhn, and Hayden Shattuck. The guys ran well and earned themselves a team championship. Senior Dylan Luft had a personal best. 

Junior Ben March said, “It was a rough course so our boys had to dig really deep. We fought hard and came out with another conference championship victory. This was really big for the morale of the team and the overall spirit on the team.”

The ladies also had many amazing performances on the day. Medalists for first-team all-conference included Jaiden Dickman and Abby Dice. Natalie Lemert earned second-team all-conference. The girls had three honorable mentions Laney Pestrue, Payton Kuhn, and Aarelyn Leonard. The ladies put up a tough fight to earn themselves runners-up in the conference. Dice, Lemert, and Leonard had personal best on the day. Payton Kuhn had a season best on the day as well. 

Coach Jay PuffPaff commented, “The team did well staying positive, especially on a tough course. I was very happy with the outcomes we had. We performed well and I can’t wait to see what we can do here in a few weeks.” 

The Sharks will be back in action this Saturday, October 15, at Greater Lansing.