“You aren’t always going to be on top of the mountain”. Those are the words from Cross Country coach Alex Irwin after the McGowan Invitational. The Pioneers were unable to walk away from McGowan with a trophy Saturday despite the hype for Districts.

The high school boys team used this race as a preview for the District finals, which will be held at Watkins on October 22, where many of these teams will also be on that day. Despite the quick course, the Pioneers struggled against the gruesome heat. Freshmen Luke Malone and Gavin Frick managed to fight through the temperatures running strong races. Malone ran a 17:49 and Frick ran a 18:03 placing 24th and 29th respectively. The two Alder boys’ performances placed them 8th and 9th in the District for the week (without top ranked Buckeye Valley).

The Pioneers struggled with the heat once they passed their first and second spots. Freshman Zach Hicks finished next in 88th place, running a 19:29, Freshman Michael Gray finished 92nd running a 19:33, and Sophomore Jordan Herrick finished 126th running a 20:24. Sophomore Jacob Koenig, Senior Jack Berry, and Junior Cole Schrock had the greatest struggle with the temperatures but plan to bounce back at the Galion Cross Country Festival.

Entering McGowan, Senior Aziza Ayoub was on a tear. Running her career PR at Westerville and running on an undefeated streak of 3-0. Aziza continued her recent string of strong times, but this week Ayoub met her match. Junior Sydnee Mangette from Liberty Union and a frontrunner to win the State Championships managed to put a 1:12 minute gap between herself and Aziza. After the race, Aziza said, “I’m definitely not happy with my time, but it’s losses like these that make you better.” Aziza went on to say her training this week during practice will look a lot different than her previous weeks at practice.
The remaining of the high school girls’ team did not fair as they wished either. Sophomore Ashlyn McDaniels and Freshman Jordan Gall both raced for season PR’s. Freshman Jenna Kieffer finished 4th running a 27:20 and Sophomore  MarySara Albert followed running 28:51. Freshman Rachel Berry finished seconds after running a 28:53. Sophomore Lauryn Saxour finished next running a 30:15. The Pioneers hope to redeem themselves on Saturday at the Galion Cross Country Festival.