By Malcolm Butler
Cedar Creek coach Craig Moss knew with the new division realignment that the state cross country meet was going to be even more challenging then normal.
He was right.
In a highly talented, highly competitive field on both sides, the Lady Cougars and Cougars both finished in seventh place in the Select School Division IV state championships held on the Northwestern State campus Monday.
In less than stellar weather conditions for all the teams competing, the Lady Cougars were led by defending state champion Taylor Ramsey and teammate Madison Morris while the Cougars were led by Myles Head Carpenter and Ethan McCarthy.
“I am proud of the effort our runners gave today,” said Moss. “Both teams finished 7th in the new divisions. We had an uphill battle we were climbing with a couple of our runners battling illness. And honesty the other teams were better than we were today.
“However, the heart, grit, perseverance, and fortitude they put forth all year, as well as today, is highly commendable and I applaud our runners.”
St. Thomas Aquinas won the state title on the girls side with 93 points, followed by Country Day (99), ARCA (105), St. Martin’s (153), Ascension Episcopal (177), Hathaway (186), Cedar Creek (205), Louise McGehee (206), Episcopal of Acadiana (237) and Houma Christian (248) rounding out the top 10. Choudrant (364) finished 15th out of the 21-team field.
Ramsey (18th/20:41.70), Morris (25th/21:14.60), Caroline James (48th/21:50.30), Anna Grace Lee (67th/22:39.20), Catherine Mcadams (73rd/23:02.20), Leah Sutherland (87th/24:00.50) and Julianne Ensminger (92nd/24:15.80) paced the way for the Lady Cougars.
Choudrant’s girls were paced by Kamryn Rhodes (55th/22:05.40), Heather Murphy (80th/23:25.10), Tanya Mina (85th/23:49.80), Kadence Nugent (90th/24:13.00), Abigail Frazier (107th/25:14.70), Emily Snyder (116th/26:00.10) and Kaylin Bryan (150th/32:17.20).
Episcopal of Acadiana (77) captured the boys title followed by D’Arbonne Woods Charter (111), Country Day (122), St. Martin’s (124), Houma Christian (169), Dunham (173), Cedar Creek (184), Lafayette Christian (214), ARCA (217) and Holy Savior Menard (217). Choudrant’s boys finished 15th out of the 23-team field.
Carpenter Head (13th/17:25.20), Ethan McCarthy (30th/18:14.20), Anderson Maxwell (49th/18:51.00), Connor Johnson (53rd/19:00.40), John Abrahm Earle (58th/19:07.80), Hayes Bridges (87th/20:24.80), and Tate Farrar (110th/21:19.20) led the Cougars in the meet.
Choudrant’s boys were led by Jack Groce (54th/19:02.20), Garrett Spearman (70th/19:42.50), Owen Watson (82nd/20:14.60), Ren Stephens (103rd/21:04.60), Hagen Davis (107th/21:13.00), Declan Smith (128th/22:02.30) and Wade Watson (144th/23:09.40).
“As my motto goes, ‘God gives us a big windshield and a small review mirror,'” said Moss. “We will catch our breathe, relax, and take some necessary time off for a while and focus on coming back next year better than ever. We love our seniors and appreciate everything they have poured into this team and know they will find success in college.
“We have some tremendously talented runners and the future is bright for Cedar Creek cross country.”
