Bulldog Sports Round-Up | Sept. 8, 2023
- Published: September 28, 2023
CROSS-COUNTRY
Runners shine in Fairborn tourney
With near perfect running weather, the Yellow Springs High School and McKinney Middle School cross-country teams performed admirably at the annual Fairborn Skyhawk Invitational on Wednesday, Aug. 30. The large contingent of Yellow Springs fans was an added incentive and motivation for the significant number of personal bests that our athletes accomplished. This year we have full teams at each level of competition, which contributes to the strong sense of team spirit that was on full display.
With no seniors on the team, the YSHS girls squad finished in 10th place in this heavy laden meet of Division I competition. Ninth-grader Abebu Barnett finished in 46th place out of 108 runners and was closely followed by sophomore Rebecca DeWine (51st). Adding to the scoring with fine efforts were the sophomore quartet of Sasi Drees, Hannah Finney, Lauren Finney and Llnyah Grant along with junior Cynthia Burke.
The YSHS boys finished in 11th place, out of 15 teams, with sophomore Kyle Johnston (69th) and ninth-grader Wills Oberg (71st) leading the charge. Senior Jack Horvath ran a hard race (92nd). The depth of the boys squad was strongly evident as Kael Cooney, Arthur DeVore, Oskar Dennis, Kyle Raymer and Charles Whitlock improved on their times from last year.
The McKinney girls squad was awe-inspiring to everyone, with each runner showing marked improvement from last year. Sierra Sundell-Turner (41st) and Violet Matteson (42nd) pushed each in a field of 144 runners. They were complemented by Elise Bongorno, newcomer Ella Reardon and Isabelle Thomas, who ran solid races.
The large squad of McKinney boys ran to a seventh-place finish in a field of 185 runners. Eighth-grader Alex Lewis ran a blistering race in finishing 37th, with fellow eighth-graders Matteo Chaiten (52nd) and Maddox Buster (56th) showing their experience. Newcomers Henry Babb, Henry Carr, Sam Garrard, Luke Levier and Sherrod Wheeler were not fazed by the high level competition, while veterans Graham Turnmire and Orion Sage-Frabotta ran with determination and vigor.
In her post-race comments, Coach Isabelle Dierauer shared how impressed she was with the effort along with positive attitudes exhibited by all of the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs will compete this Saturday, Sept. 9, at the prestigious Brookville Invitational.
—John Gudgel, coach
VOLLEYBALL
Win and loss for Bulldogs
The Bulldogs high school volleyball team racked up both a win and a loss last week, beating Princeton 3–0 at home Monday, Aug. 28, and falling 1–3 to Dayton Christian away Thursday, Aug. 31.
In the winning match against Princeton, juniors Adeline Zinger and Lacey Longshaw led the team in kills, racking up eight and seven, respectively; sophomore Malayna Buster was close behind with six. Senior Violet Babb kept the ball solidly in play, racking up 24 digs; Zinger was next closest with 14.
The Bulldogs put up a good fight against Dayton Christian, with Zinger and Longshaw netting 16 and 11 kills respectively. Babb again led the team with 34 digs, followed by Zinger with 25.
Stats for a Tuesday, Sept. 5, match against Tri-County North had not been reported at press time; a Thursday, Sept. 7 home match against Middletown Christian was also slated at press time.
The Bulldogs’ season record currently stands at 1–3, with a conference record of 0–1.
—YS News staff
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