The West Prairie Press

On your marks, get set, run! The junior high cross country team is having a strong season. Many of their runners have set personal records this season, and two of the runners on the team even competed at the state cross country meet.

At a meet in Macomb on Oct. 8, the boys placed 1st overall. For this event, West Prairie scorers included: Ayden Lacey (1st), Ezra Bithos (2nd), Kasen Rogers (6th), Milo Rodeffer (9th), and Ian Fentem (14th). West Prairie ended with a total of 32 points to win the meet.

Milo Rodeffer, an eighth grader on the cross country team, is very proud of how he placed at the Macomb meet on Oct. 8. Rodeffer started running track in sixth grade, and he mentions that he wasn’t the best at it when he first started, but he has been seeing improvements in his speed and endurance. “I wasn’t very fast in sixth grade. I got a lot faster in seventh grade with long distance,” he adds. “I hope it just keeps improving.”

For eighth grader Kasen Rogers, running has always been a favorite pastime. He says that he has been involved with track since sixth grade. Originally, Rogers joined track because he wanted to improve his speed on the basketball court.

Rogers added that, “The experience [at the Oct. 8 Macomb meet] was great. I had a PR of 12:28. There was a lot of competition for sure. There was a kid at the meet that won state for track from South Fulton. Our goal for the boys team is to go to state. We all just need to show up with the drive to win.”

Rogers’ goal came to be when two of their runners qualified for state after their sectionals meet. Eighth graders Ayden Lacey and Ezra Bithos placed 3rd and 8th at sectionals, making them eligible for state. In cross country, the top three teams qualify for state and the next 7 individual runners that are not already on a qualifying team. The state meet was located in Normal, Illinois on Oct. 19.

While Lacey is proud to have made it to the state level, he wishes things would have gone a little smoother for him. “I can’t always control my nerves,” he added. Lacey mentioned that his nerves got the best of him during his two-mile run at state, but nevertheless, he ended in 42nd place, out of a little over 200 runners total. Teammate Ezra Bithos finished directly behind Lacey in 43rd place at the state meet.

Bithos also expressed that he was nervous the day of the state meet. “It isn’t just another race,” he added. Bithos’ history with running began with track in fifth grade because cross country was not offered until Bithos’ sixth grade year. This is Bithos’ second year qualifying for state in cross country, and he hopes that the cross country team continues to grow and that it is offered for high school students.

Jennifer Percy is the current Cross Country coach. When asked to comment on how the state meet went, Percy had this to say: “I had no doubt these kids could do it. Each athlete has worked hard, pushed themselves to be stronger, and showed up to run their best at every meet. I am so proud of them, and I look forward to seeing what the future holds for our cross country team.”

Percy’s oldest son, Aiden Percy, is the assistant coach. This is the third school year that West Prairie has had a junior high cross country team, and currently, there is no high school cross country team, but there is talk of adding one.