County cross country runners finish seasons in strong fashion at state

The Bloomington North boys cross country team put two in the top 75 and finished in 17th place with a 411 to lead the area’s competitors in the IHSAA state championships at the LaVern Gibson Course in Terre Haute on Saturday, Oct. 31.

Jackson Walker ran a 15:50.8 with take 52nd with Shep Jackson next in 73rd at 16:01.2. Tucker Inman was 121st and Alex Stosberg was back closer to form in 170th at 16:39.0. Lucas Sinn Trulock rounded out at the top five, getting in under 17:00.

“We were solid all around,” North coach Justin Helmer said. “You get to state and you want to be close to your best on that day, and I think as we look through the results, Jackson was right off his season best, Shep was right off of his and so was Tucker. And it was good to have Alex back. He ran much better, so that gave us a strong four.

“The 5 spot has been tough for us. It’s been Simon Kane most of the time, but Lucas is slowly coming along. I wish he had another month left. He ran strong. And 17th, overall, I’m pretty pleased.”

More: Bloomington South volleyball shows it belongs in semi-state loss

South was one of 12 schools with both its boys and girls teams to the finals.

The boys were 21st (481) and had career days from its pack.

Junior Chase Norris struggled a bit to 69th (15:59.0) to lead the way. Luke Reinhart (114th in 16:16.4), Oliver Moore (180th in 16:41.8), Wes Matthews (16:42.8) and Garrett Pitkin (16:46.6), a late add after Jake Xiao took a fall on his bike, rounded out the top five, with Ricky Eakin in at 16:51.3.

“Chase has been battling a breathing issue all season,” South coach Larry Williams said. “So, he hasn’t gone all out, though he did more last week.

“The next five guys either PR’d or were close to PR’s. They really ran well and all under 17. Garrett hadn’t gone under 17:14 and he went 16:46. Wes had a PR, Oliver PR’d by 2-3 seconds and Ricky was just 5-6 seconds off. James had a minor injury last week and he struggled. They were competitive, but two teams we got at regional got us, North and Evansville Reitz.”

Edgewood’s Monte Kester was 235th in 17;20.4.

The boys race went in record-setting fashion to Springs Valley’s Calvin Seitz, who torched the field with a 4:17 first mile, and finished in an incredible 14:34.7, winning by 26 seconds — the third widest margin ever a year after taking the title by .02 — as the 2-3-4 runners all came in just 1.3 seconds apart. Seitz is the first repeat winner since Carmel’s Ben Veatch in 2014-15.

Ft. Wayne Carroll won the team title with 66 points followed by Carmel (105) and Columbus North (124).

South girls 24th

The South girls were 24th (673) as senior Lexi Kollbaum, coming off her regional title, fell back to 101st in 19:09.1 and Brooklyn Vogel was 119th in 20:05.8.

“Lexi never got engaged with the front group as hot as they were running,” Williams said. “It was a stacked field and Lexi at the mile was not in strong position and it was hard to keep battling. She’s had a great cross country career. There’s a lot more ahead for her.”

The rest of the Panthers were state rookies and that showed. Annie Bruggeman, Sophia Trcka and Reese Jones filled out the top five.

“It was a fast race,” Williams said. “I think the majority of the girls, with only two at the state meet before, I think it was more of the deer in the headlight thing. We get them ready but without that experience, it’s tough to stay calm. I think that overtook most of the girls, so it was a great learning experience.

“It was great to make the state meet, but our goal was to be a competitive team. I’m proud of them, with all that took place, the coaching change, losing athletes to injuries. They should walk away proud of themselves.”

Ditto for North senior Penny Eads, who was 156th in 19:39.5.

“I thought she had a solid race,” Helmer said. “You go to meet like that, you hope to be close to your best if not at your best and she was right in that ballpark.

“It probably felt different being an individual at the starting line, but she got out well and gave herself a chance to run fast. Overall, she had a very good day and should be proud of it.”

Bedford North Lawrence’s Voigtschild sisters made the top 75 as Claire took 43rd (18:33.4) and Paige Voigtschild (18:47.5) was 70th.

Daphne Weller of Fort Wayne Concordia took over the race in the later half and won in 16:52.2 ahead of Terre Haute North’s Addyson Bautista (17:06.8).

Lake Central won its first ever girls title with 136 points to 151 for Homestead and 176 for Carmel.

IHSAA 2026 BOYS CROSS COUNTRY STATE FINALS

TOP 10 TEAMS: Ft. Wayne Carroll 66, Carmel 105, Columbus North 124, Brownsburg 207, Homestead 230, Avon 265, Westfield 270*, Noblesville 270, Penn 297, 10. Franklin Central 306. 17. Bloomington North 411, 21. Bloomington South 481. *Won sixth runner tiebreaker.

TOP INDIVIDUALS: 1. Calvin Seitz, Springs Vly 14:34.7 (state record); 2. Jack Wilbourne, Signature, 15:00.4; 3. Samuel Sweet, FWCarr 15:00.9; 4. Kai Feasel, FWCarr 15:01.7; 5. Lucas Bartlett, Carm 15:06.9.

Bloomington North: 52. Jackson Walker 15:50.8; 73. Shep Jackson 16:01.2; 121. Tucker Inman 16:18.8; 170. Alex Stosberg 16:39.0; 214. Lucas Sinn Trulock 16:59.4; 236. Simon Kane 17:21.5; 240. Chase Heins 17:26.6. Bloomington South: 69. Chase Norris 15:59.0; 114. Luke Reinhart 16:16.4; 180. Oliver Moore 16:41.8; 181. Wes Matthews 16:42.8; 191. Garrett Pitkin 16:46.6; 228. James Rice 17:12.2. Edgewood: 235. Monte Kester 17:20.4.

IHSAA 2026 GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY STATE FINALS

TOP 10 TEAMS: Lake Central 136, Homestead 151, Carmel 176, Floyd Central 207*, Guerin Catholic 207; Zionsville 221, Avon 227, Whiteland 238, Westfield 279. 24. Bloomington South 673. *Won sixth runner tiebreaker.

TOP INDIVIDUALS: 1. Daphne Weller, FW Concordia 16:52.2; 2. Addyson Bautista, THNorth 17:06.8; 3. Anya Zoeller, HamiltonSE 17:08.8; 4. Annabel Pollert, Carm 17:21.8; 5. Kenya Leitch, Columbia City 17:26.0.

Bedford North Lawrence: 43. Claire Voigtschild 18:33.4; 70. Paige Voigtschild 18:47.5. Bloomington South: 101. Lexi Kollbaum 19:09.1; 199. Brooklyn Vogel 20:05.8; Annie Bruggeman 21:05.1; 238. Sophia Trcka 21:27.5; 240. Reese Jones 21:46.4; 244. Maddie Merkley 21:55.6; 248. Ella Sturdevant 22:28.9. Bloomington North: 156. Penny Eads 19:39.5.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: County cross country runners finish seasons in strong fashion at state