The Tippecanoe high school boys cross country team took care of business at the Central Buckeye Conference Championships on Saturday, October 11th, scoring only 36 points and beating 2nd place Bellefontaine by 48 points. After not racing the previous weekend and treating the Miami County Championships as a hard workout two weeks prior, the boys' team entered the meet hungry for success against the always competitive CBC field. The CBC routinely qualifies many individuals and teams to the state tournament in Columbus year after year. Within the conference there are many individual rivalries, and the top runners from each team all compete with the burning desire to finish in the top 7 to earn First-Team All-CBC honors. The great competition and weather lead to many personal best times despite the challenging course which included one large hill and many short, but steep, inclinations.
Overall, the boys' team performed better than they have all year which is a true testament to their great work ethic and great coaches Ron Rohrer and Nick Culver. 11 of Tipp's 12 runners ran personal best times. Tipp also had their best top 5 average team time of 16:29. The pack of Jason Salyer, Kevin Fink, Jason Bruns, and Tyler Fietshans ran relatively close to each other during the first mile, trailing only to Bellefontaine's top two runners. After the mile mark both Jason Salyer and Kevin Fink took control of the lead and never looked back, eventually finishing 1st and 2nd. Salyer won with a time of 15:57 and Fink 2nd finished with a time of 16:05. Jason Bruns also earned 1st Team All-CBC honors by finishing 6th with a time of 16:25. Tyler Fietshans just missed that honor, placing 8th with a time 16:32 and earning 2nd Team All-CBC honors. The tandem of Luke Zerkle and Matt Zuzolo rounded out the top 20. Luke finished 19th and Matt finished 20th, both finishing in a time of 17:25. Zach Wertz finished 25th overall with a time of 17:43. A total of 107 runners competed in the race.
The title is Tipp's second straight CBC Championship and third straight Kenton Trail Division Championship. The win also finishes off Tipp's undefeated regular season against D2 competition. The boys' team now heads into the post-season schedule. They run next week at the Career Technology Center for their District race. The Regional meet in Troy follows that race, and the season comes to a close at the State Championships in Columbus. The team definitely has the right pieces for a state championship. If they continue to work hard and stay injury-free, anything is possible.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Tipp Cross Country DOMIN8s at Miami County Championships
Year after year Tippecanoe’s cross country program continues to grow in numbers and improve on their success from the year before. Just ten years before Tipp struggled to even field a varsity team. Now the high school girls’ team has 24 runners and the boys 14 with similar numbers in the junior high. Not only is Tipp now able to field a varsity team, but they are now able to proclaim themselves as Miami County’s top cross country program. Both the high school and junior high boys won their races on Saturday, September 27th; the high school girls placed second, and the junior high girls placed third out of the nine county teams. By adding up their four places Tipp scored only seven points, four fewer than Troy (11) and six fewer than Covington (13). A majority of the runners ran much faster than when they ran the course earlier in the year at the Bob Schul Invitaitonal.
The high school boys’ goal heading into their race was to score fewer points than their junior high counterparts, but came up just short, winning with 25 points and beating second place Troy by 65 points. Jason Salyer and Kevin fink, arguably the best 1-2 punch in the state of Ohio for D2, finished 1st and 2nd respectively with times of 16:33 and 16:36. Jason Bruns finished in 5th with a time of 16:48, 23 seconds faster than Schul. Tyler Fietshans finished in 6th with a time of 17:18. Luke Zerkle finished as the team’s fifth man for the second time this season, finishing 13th overall with a time of 17:39, a minute and 15 seconds faster than Schul. Matt Zuzolo finished 13th with a time of 17:48, 54 seconds faster than Schul, and Zach Wertz finished 21st with a time of 18:24, 32 seconds faster than Schul. 89 runners competed in the race.
The high school boys’ goal heading into their race was to score fewer points than their junior high counterparts, but came up just short, winning with 25 points and beating second place Troy by 65 points. Jason Salyer and Kevin fink, arguably the best 1-2 punch in the state of Ohio for D2, finished 1st and 2nd respectively with times of 16:33 and 16:36. Jason Bruns finished in 5th with a time of 16:48, 23 seconds faster than Schul. Tyler Fietshans finished in 6th with a time of 17:18. Luke Zerkle finished as the team’s fifth man for the second time this season, finishing 13th overall with a time of 17:39, a minute and 15 seconds faster than Schul. Matt Zuzolo finished 13th with a time of 17:48, 54 seconds faster than Schul, and Zach Wertz finished 21st with a time of 18:24, 32 seconds faster than Schul. 89 runners competed in the race.
Tippecanoe Boys win Sidney Invitational
The Tippecanoe boys cross country team had their best collective team effort of the season at the Sidney Invitational on Saturday, September 20th. Tipp placed their top 5 runners in the top 12 in a field consisting of 172 runners. They scored 31 team points, beating 2nd place Kettering Fairmont by 27 points and 3rd place Wapokoneta by 77 points. The excellent weather and flat course resulted in many solid performances and fast times.
The re-emergence of Andrew Wharton as the team’s fifth man added even more depth to an already deep and talented roster. Tippecanoe had their fastest top 5 average time of the year with a 16:38 and had their shortest gap between their first and fifth runners for the season. Wharton’s ankle injury looks to be fully healed and his race certainly showed that. Andrew finished 12th overall with a time of 17:12, a minute and 22 seconds better than his race last weekend.
Tyler Fietshans broke the 17 minute mark for the first time this season after not even knowing whether he would race. He punctured his foot in practice on Wednesday when a stick somehow penetrated through his shoe and into his foot. Despite the pain, Tyler finished 7th overall with a time of 16:47.
Luke Zerkle finished sixth for the team with a time of 17:42. Matt Zuzolo finished seventh for the team with a time of 18:04, and Zach Wertz finished eighth for the team with a time of 19:19. All three runners provide Tipp with solid insurance should any of their top five have a sub-par race.
The always reliable Jason Bruns and Kevin Fink also had tremendous races. They finished 5th and 6th overall with Jason edging out Kevin in the last twenty meters to finish with a time of 16:37 to Kevin’s 16:38. Jason Salyer ended up winning the race with a time of 15:53, beating Sidney’s Aaron Dinzeo by five seconds. Both Jason’s and Kevin ran a fast 4:54 first mile, but still trailed Dinzeo by about twenty meters. Salyer gradually caught up to Sidney’s top runner and ran right behind him until the second mile marker. Jason took over the lead from there and slowly built up a lead he never relinquished.
The win for Tipp was definitely a huge confidence booster. Wharton’s return takes pressure off of their top four runners and Tyler’s sub 17 performance was the race he needed to assure himself of his great talent. The team’s hard work and dedication is definitely paying off and their future continues to look bright. Their bid for the state title is going to come down to them staying healthy along with the performance of their fifth runner at the state meet.
The cross country teams will be in action next weekend at the Miami County Championships in West Milton.
The re-emergence of Andrew Wharton as the team’s fifth man added even more depth to an already deep and talented roster. Tippecanoe had their fastest top 5 average time of the year with a 16:38 and had their shortest gap between their first and fifth runners for the season. Wharton’s ankle injury looks to be fully healed and his race certainly showed that. Andrew finished 12th overall with a time of 17:12, a minute and 22 seconds better than his race last weekend.
Tyler Fietshans broke the 17 minute mark for the first time this season after not even knowing whether he would race. He punctured his foot in practice on Wednesday when a stick somehow penetrated through his shoe and into his foot. Despite the pain, Tyler finished 7th overall with a time of 16:47.
Luke Zerkle finished sixth for the team with a time of 17:42. Matt Zuzolo finished seventh for the team with a time of 18:04, and Zach Wertz finished eighth for the team with a time of 19:19. All three runners provide Tipp with solid insurance should any of their top five have a sub-par race.
The always reliable Jason Bruns and Kevin Fink also had tremendous races. They finished 5th and 6th overall with Jason edging out Kevin in the last twenty meters to finish with a time of 16:37 to Kevin’s 16:38. Jason Salyer ended up winning the race with a time of 15:53, beating Sidney’s Aaron Dinzeo by five seconds. Both Jason’s and Kevin ran a fast 4:54 first mile, but still trailed Dinzeo by about twenty meters. Salyer gradually caught up to Sidney’s top runner and ran right behind him until the second mile marker. Jason took over the lead from there and slowly built up a lead he never relinquished.
The win for Tipp was definitely a huge confidence booster. Wharton’s return takes pressure off of their top four runners and Tyler’s sub 17 performance was the race he needed to assure himself of his great talent. The team’s hard work and dedication is definitely paying off and their future continues to look bright. Their bid for the state title is going to come down to them staying healthy along with the performance of their fifth runner at the state meet.
The cross country teams will be in action next weekend at the Miami County Championships in West Milton.
Tipp’s Cross Country Teams Compete at Alliance Invite
With the varsity boys cross country team taking the weekend off to rest, the attention was focused on Tipp’s other talented cross country teams. The girls varsity, boys junior varsity, boys junior high, and girls junior high teams all ran exceptionally well in the very muddy and humid conditions at the Alliance Invitational on Saturday, September 13th. With the sloppy course conditions, times were probably around 30 seconds slower than usual in the high school races and about 15 seconds slower in the junior high races.
The boys junior varsity team placed 3rd out of 9 teams in the DII Varsity race, showing they can compete with other area varsity teams. They scored a total of 75 points, trailing only Brookville (59) and Oakwood (57) and were a 33 points ahead of 4th place Greenon. After suffering an ankle sprain just before the season, Tipp’s Andrew Wharton won the race individually in his first race of the season after only having been running for two weeks. He finished with a time of 18:34, 11 seconds faster than his nearest competitor. Kyle Osborn finished 11th overall with a time of 19:27, Xiang Cheng finished 13th overall with a time of 19:33, Joey O’brien finished 24th overall with a time of 20:26, Brant Fowle finished 26th overall with a time of 20:24, Thomas Wilcher finished 33rd with a time of 21:14, and Henry Scott finished in 57th with a time of 26:45. 90 runners competed in the race.
The boys junior varsity team placed 3rd out of 9 teams in the DII Varsity race, showing they can compete with other area varsity teams. They scored a total of 75 points, trailing only Brookville (59) and Oakwood (57) and were a 33 points ahead of 4th place Greenon. After suffering an ankle sprain just before the season, Tipp’s Andrew Wharton won the race individually in his first race of the season after only having been running for two weeks. He finished with a time of 18:34, 11 seconds faster than his nearest competitor. Kyle Osborn finished 11th overall with a time of 19:27, Xiang Cheng finished 13th overall with a time of 19:33, Joey O’brien finished 24th overall with a time of 20:26, Brant Fowle finished 26th overall with a time of 20:24, Thomas Wilcher finished 33rd with a time of 21:14, and Henry Scott finished in 57th with a time of 26:45. 90 runners competed in the race.
Tippecanoe Boys win the Tiffin Carnival
The target on the Tippecanoe boys cross country team’s back became even larger after their impressive win on Saturday, September 6th at the Tiffin Carnival, the largest meet in the state of Ohio. The team felt like they had something to prove after their runner-up finish at Greenville the week before, and prove they did. They beat out a field of 50 teams consisting of 352 runners in a race where 9 of the top 18 state ranked teams competed. Tipp scored a total of 151 points, 34 ahead of runner-up CVCA, and 96 points ahead of Defiance who finished third.
In a meet of this magnitude, depth was the most essential ingredient to success. Tipp’s whole team stepped it up today 1-7, but it was their 4-7 guys that really made the difference. Tyler Fietshans improved his time from last week by 45 seconds as Tipp’s #4 runner. He finished in 46th place with a time of 17:05. Matt Zuzolo scored as the team’s #5 runner after placing 6th for the team at Greenville. He went way under his goal of cracking the 18 minute barrier by running a 17:26, placing 70th, and was the fastest 5th runner in the entire field. Luke Zerkle also accomplished his goal of breaking 18 by running a 17:40, and Zach Werts finished with a solid time of 18:23.
With 352 runners at the starting line, going out fast was a must unless you wanted to be completely surrounded by a pack of runners going elbow to elbow and constantly clipping at your heels. Tipp’s Jason Salyer, Kevin Fink, and Jason Bruns all ran their first mile faster than they have before. They came across the mile marker in 4:55, five seconds off the leaders, but only in 10th-15th place. Then the large pack gradually turned into three groups. Jarrod Eick of Alliance Marlington, the eventual winner of the race, and Kyle Sullinger of CVCA, the eventual runner-up, separated themselves from the second pack of around 8-10 runners in which Salyer and Fink were in.
Fink and Salyer gradually moved their way up and started picking some runners off. It wasn’t an easy task considering 9 of the top 13 fastest returning individuals from the state meet competed in the race. Salyer eventually separated himself from the pack and ran stride-for-stride with Bay Village Bay’s Michael Bradjdic for the last mile of the race, outkicking him by only a second and finishing with a personal best time of 15:42, 7 seconds off the winning time. Fink finished strong and ran a 16:13 for 11th place, as did Bruns who ran 16:34 for 21st place.
Anything less than victory would not have settled well for Tippecanoe who departed from their bus at 5 in the morning for a slightly less than 3 hour trip. No matter how long the ride, the chance to compete against great competition along with the excellent atmosphere will keep Tipp a regular participant in the meet year after year. The atmosphere of the meet is rivaled by very few, if any, other meets in Ohio. There were a total of 22 races, and 6,585 athletes officially competed. Many devoted volunteers helped direct traffic and aid athletes in the finishing area. Team tents were lined around the whole park giving it a carnival like atmosphere, thus the meet name. The great weather, flat course, and tremendous competition led to many personal best times, and a plethora of trophies, plaques, medals, and ribbons were handed out, giving many runners the feeling of success.
Tipp will be in action next Saturday at the Alliance Invitational on Saturday, September 13th.
In a meet of this magnitude, depth was the most essential ingredient to success. Tipp’s whole team stepped it up today 1-7, but it was their 4-7 guys that really made the difference. Tyler Fietshans improved his time from last week by 45 seconds as Tipp’s #4 runner. He finished in 46th place with a time of 17:05. Matt Zuzolo scored as the team’s #5 runner after placing 6th for the team at Greenville. He went way under his goal of cracking the 18 minute barrier by running a 17:26, placing 70th, and was the fastest 5th runner in the entire field. Luke Zerkle also accomplished his goal of breaking 18 by running a 17:40, and Zach Werts finished with a solid time of 18:23.
With 352 runners at the starting line, going out fast was a must unless you wanted to be completely surrounded by a pack of runners going elbow to elbow and constantly clipping at your heels. Tipp’s Jason Salyer, Kevin Fink, and Jason Bruns all ran their first mile faster than they have before. They came across the mile marker in 4:55, five seconds off the leaders, but only in 10th-15th place. Then the large pack gradually turned into three groups. Jarrod Eick of Alliance Marlington, the eventual winner of the race, and Kyle Sullinger of CVCA, the eventual runner-up, separated themselves from the second pack of around 8-10 runners in which Salyer and Fink were in.
Fink and Salyer gradually moved their way up and started picking some runners off. It wasn’t an easy task considering 9 of the top 13 fastest returning individuals from the state meet competed in the race. Salyer eventually separated himself from the pack and ran stride-for-stride with Bay Village Bay’s Michael Bradjdic for the last mile of the race, outkicking him by only a second and finishing with a personal best time of 15:42, 7 seconds off the winning time. Fink finished strong and ran a 16:13 for 11th place, as did Bruns who ran 16:34 for 21st place.
Anything less than victory would not have settled well for Tippecanoe who departed from their bus at 5 in the morning for a slightly less than 3 hour trip. No matter how long the ride, the chance to compete against great competition along with the excellent atmosphere will keep Tipp a regular participant in the meet year after year. The atmosphere of the meet is rivaled by very few, if any, other meets in Ohio. There were a total of 22 races, and 6,585 athletes officially competed. Many devoted volunteers helped direct traffic and aid athletes in the finishing area. Team tents were lined around the whole park giving it a carnival like atmosphere, thus the meet name. The great weather, flat course, and tremendous competition led to many personal best times, and a plethora of trophies, plaques, medals, and ribbons were handed out, giving many runners the feeling of success.
Tipp will be in action next Saturday at the Alliance Invitational on Saturday, September 13th.
Tipp XC Places 2nd at Greenville Treaty Invitational
The #1 state ranked Tippecanoe boys’ cross country team ran fairly well against a competitive field at the Greenville Treaty Invitational on Saturday, September 30th. They finished 2nd overall in a field consisting of 24 D1 and D2 schools, losing to Cincinnati Lasalle 69-104, but edging out local rival Vandalia Butler by 4 points. Tipp’s recent history suggested that they might not do very well at the meet. They finished 19th in 2005, and 9th in both 2006 and 2007. Their 2nd place finish is a little surprising considering that this is their 3rd meet in a 7 day span.
Tipp’s Jason Salyer and Kevin Fink ran with the lead pack of six runners for the first two and a quarter miles. Travis Hawes of Lasalle and Danny Neff of Butler then put in a serge and got out to a 20 meter lead. The pack of 6 broke into three separate groups, with Salyer chasing the front two. Jason put in a late surge in the final 300 meters to close the gap, but he ended up finishing 3rd with a time of 16:08, less than 2 seconds off the winning time. Kevin finished 5th with a time of 16:32, 2 minutes and 9 seconds faster than his race last year and only one second off of Butler’s Doug Norris. Tipp’s Jason Bruns broke the 17 minute mark by posting a 16:57 for 11th place.
Tipp’s top three runners scored only 19 points to Lasalle’s 24, but their #4 runner, Tyler Fietshans didn’t have his best race, and their #4 runner from last year, Andrew Wharton, has been sidelined the last two weeks due to an ankle injury. Tyler felt dehydrated during the race and finished with a time of 17:54, 43 seconds slower than his Bob Schul time from a week before. Knowing Tyler, he’ll learn from his preparation mistakes and bounce back next week at Tiffin.
Tipp’s Luke Zerkle stepped up to his coach’s challenge of breaking 18 minutes for the team and came extremely close, running an 18:05, 1 minute and 21 seconds faster than last year. Salyer agreed to Luke’s proposal that if he broke 18 minutes then Jason would shave his head. That opportunity will have to wait another week. With Luke being so close to the 18 minute mark, Salyer will now only agree on shaving his head if both Luke and Matt Zuzolo break 18 next week at Tiffin. Matt finished 6th for the team with a time of 18:15, 23 seconds faster than last year. Tipp’s #7 runner Zach Wertz also ran a strong race, finishing in a time of 18:32.
Tipp realizes that its quest for a state title this year greatly depends on the performance of their 5th runner. They are content, but not satisfied by their performances at Greenville and are very motivated to improve on their times at the Tiffin Carnival, the largest cross country meet in the state of Ohio. Tipp has finished 2nd there the last two years and are determined not only to win it, but to make a statement and obliterate the field.
Tipp’s Jason Salyer and Kevin Fink ran with the lead pack of six runners for the first two and a quarter miles. Travis Hawes of Lasalle and Danny Neff of Butler then put in a serge and got out to a 20 meter lead. The pack of 6 broke into three separate groups, with Salyer chasing the front two. Jason put in a late surge in the final 300 meters to close the gap, but he ended up finishing 3rd with a time of 16:08, less than 2 seconds off the winning time. Kevin finished 5th with a time of 16:32, 2 minutes and 9 seconds faster than his race last year and only one second off of Butler’s Doug Norris. Tipp’s Jason Bruns broke the 17 minute mark by posting a 16:57 for 11th place.
Tipp’s top three runners scored only 19 points to Lasalle’s 24, but their #4 runner, Tyler Fietshans didn’t have his best race, and their #4 runner from last year, Andrew Wharton, has been sidelined the last two weeks due to an ankle injury. Tyler felt dehydrated during the race and finished with a time of 17:54, 43 seconds slower than his Bob Schul time from a week before. Knowing Tyler, he’ll learn from his preparation mistakes and bounce back next week at Tiffin.
Tipp’s Luke Zerkle stepped up to his coach’s challenge of breaking 18 minutes for the team and came extremely close, running an 18:05, 1 minute and 21 seconds faster than last year. Salyer agreed to Luke’s proposal that if he broke 18 minutes then Jason would shave his head. That opportunity will have to wait another week. With Luke being so close to the 18 minute mark, Salyer will now only agree on shaving his head if both Luke and Matt Zuzolo break 18 next week at Tiffin. Matt finished 6th for the team with a time of 18:15, 23 seconds faster than last year. Tipp’s #7 runner Zach Wertz also ran a strong race, finishing in a time of 18:32.
Tipp realizes that its quest for a state title this year greatly depends on the performance of their 5th runner. They are content, but not satisfied by their performances at Greenville and are very motivated to improve on their times at the Tiffin Carnival, the largest cross country meet in the state of Ohio. Tipp has finished 2nd there the last two years and are determined not only to win it, but to make a statement and obliterate the field.
Boys Cross Country D0MIN8 at Bob Schul Invite
The Tippecanoe boys cross country team proved that their #1 pre-season state ranking was not any kind of typo by D0MIN8ing (the team’s t-shirt motto with 08 standing for the year) the field at the Bob Schul Invitational on Saturday, August 23rd. They beat both Van Wert and Alter, who tied for 2nd place, by 60 points. Tipp’s “B” team finished 4th overall at the meet which included 17 teams. Tipp’s vigorous summer training was apparent as Tipp’s top 12 runners all ran personal course records at a course they run twice a year.
Tipp finished 8th at the state meet in 2006 and 5th at the state meet in 2007. They return their top 6 runners from last season, and the consensus goal of the team is to win the team title this year and knock off pre-season #2 ranked Peninsula Woodridge, the two time reigning champs. The boys’ team met 5 days a week in the summer and ran many more miles than the summer before.
Jason Salyer and Kevin Fink finished 1-2 in the race. Salyer ran 16:14 and Fink wasn’t too far behind in 16:22. Fink’s time was 1 minute and 50 seconds faster than his race last season, a true testament as to what a summers worth of hard work can do. He and Salyer ran almost every single mile this summer together, running 50-60 miles a week. Jason and Kevin separated themselves from the front pack after the first mile and gradually increased their lead. The Troy Regional 1600 meter champion Peter Hix of Oakwood finished 3rd in 16:39, and Jake Kasperski of Valley View finished 4th in 16:45. The tandem of Tyler Feitshans and Jason Bruns worked together and finished with the same time of 17:11 to finish 5th and 6th respectively for Tipp. Tipp’s #5 runner, Matt Zuzolo, crossed the line in 14th with a time of 18:42.
Tipp scored a total of 26 points and had a top 5 average time of 17:08, which would have beaten all the teams in both the D1 and D3 fields. The Bob Schul Invite was a great start to their season, but the team realizes they still have a lot of room to improve. Their 4th runner from last year, Andrew Wharton, is currently out for another two weeks due to an ankle injury which he suffered two weeks ago. The team will have to continue to perform at a high level to make up for his absence. Tipp’s next meet is at the Greenville Invite on August 30th.
Tipp finished 8th at the state meet in 2006 and 5th at the state meet in 2007. They return their top 6 runners from last season, and the consensus goal of the team is to win the team title this year and knock off pre-season #2 ranked Peninsula Woodridge, the two time reigning champs. The boys’ team met 5 days a week in the summer and ran many more miles than the summer before.
Jason Salyer and Kevin Fink finished 1-2 in the race. Salyer ran 16:14 and Fink wasn’t too far behind in 16:22. Fink’s time was 1 minute and 50 seconds faster than his race last season, a true testament as to what a summers worth of hard work can do. He and Salyer ran almost every single mile this summer together, running 50-60 miles a week. Jason and Kevin separated themselves from the front pack after the first mile and gradually increased their lead. The Troy Regional 1600 meter champion Peter Hix of Oakwood finished 3rd in 16:39, and Jake Kasperski of Valley View finished 4th in 16:45. The tandem of Tyler Feitshans and Jason Bruns worked together and finished with the same time of 17:11 to finish 5th and 6th respectively for Tipp. Tipp’s #5 runner, Matt Zuzolo, crossed the line in 14th with a time of 18:42.
Tipp scored a total of 26 points and had a top 5 average time of 17:08, which would have beaten all the teams in both the D1 and D3 fields. The Bob Schul Invite was a great start to their season, but the team realizes they still have a lot of room to improve. Their 4th runner from last year, Andrew Wharton, is currently out for another two weeks due to an ankle injury which he suffered two weeks ago. The team will have to continue to perform at a high level to make up for his absence. Tipp’s next meet is at the Greenville Invite on August 30th.
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