The St. Louis High School Cross Country team ran Saturday Sept. 29, at Shepherd High School’s annual BLUEJAY Invite. The Sharks ran fast times and did very well against the tough competition from all around the state, such as Charlevoix, Roscommon, and Traverse City. Even though there were 28 great programs competing from all over Michigan, St. Louis still performed fantastic, with the varsity girls taking third place on the day.

Three freshman led the sharks at this meet: Libby Munderloh ran 18:55.10 to finish in third place, Mikenna Borie ran 19:32.30 to finish in eighth place, and Sela Delgado ran 20:29.20 to finish in 19th place. Next up was Brooklyn Filipiak (21:08.20) in 30th place, and Mikaila Borie (21:31.10) in 35th.

The varsity boys took seventh place at the meet, with Aaron Bowerman leading the pack in 19th pace with a time of 17:29.40. Right behind was was Joe Erickson in 21st place with a time of 17:32.90, Austyn Rhines in 36th place with a time of 17:55.10, Austin Aldrich in 42nd with a time of 18:27.40, and Nate March in 44th place with a time of 18:35.30.

Brooklyn Filipiak stated, “The weather really helped us out on racing. Everyone took advantage of that and the flat course. Season PR’s were passed out that day!” Brooklyn was right about the PR’s because 20 St. Louis runners ran their best times ever for a 5,000 meter course this meet, and 27 ran their fastest for the season. This meet was a great opportunity to run fast times and compete with some of the best in the state, and St. Louis really held its own.

The JV boys took 12th place, with Craig Bebow out in front for the Sharks. Bebow ran 19:30.90 to finish in 39th place. Next up were Keegan Honig and Will Erickson, who both ran the exact same time: 20:54.50. They finished in 76th and 77th place respectively. The JV girls took 11th place with Gracie Shattuck (24:39.60) leading the Sharks in 49th place. Next up was Mackenzie Allbee (26:01.70) in 73rd place and Carly Daniels (26:14.40) in 74th place.

Joe Erickson said, “We all ran strong and raced our hearts out. Now we just have a week to get healthy.” The Sharks will be competing again Tuesday Oct. 9 at the third and last TVC, which is going to be hosted by St. Louis. This meet will determine the overall winners of the TVC West.