Eagle Cross Country Races Well at Night

9/19/26
Sam Smith Park
Cartersville, GA
By Coach Andy Carr

This past weekend Milton’s cross country teams raced under the lights against some of the best programs in the state and southeastern US at the 12th running of the Wingfoot Cross Country Classic, presented by the Atlanta Track Club in Cartersville, GA.

Varsity Girls
Running against the defending 7A & 6A state champions, Milton (7th-231 pts) defeated 17 schools to run their fastest team average (20:22) time of the season. Bouncing back from last week’s home invitational, junior Sadie Katekovich (33rd-19:47) once again led the Lady Eagles with her fastest time of the season & the fastest she had ever run on this course. A big performance was turned in by fellow junior Lucie Blake (38th-19:59) breaking the 20-minute mark for the first time ever. Scorers for Milton also included freshman Maisie Wilderspin (57th-20:35), senior captain Ava Kane (59th-20:36) & junior Kenley Sirras (66th-20:47). Sophomore Sloane Robers (99th-21:27) & senior Cara Tenhundfeld (118th-21:48) also contributed to the team’s impressive finish. There were 172 finishers.

Varsity Boys
Back to running close to full strength, the Eagles faced their toughest test yet and came away with a strong team finish. Milton (16th-378 pts) turned back 12 schools in the Championship Division of the meet after they were not predicted to finish in the top-20. After missing last week’s home invitational, senior captain Will Chambers (27th-16:29) once again led the Eagles with his season’s best time by over 20-seconds. Sophomore Noah Jenkins (47th-16:45) showed his race from last week was not a surprise as he broke the 17-minute barrier for the first time ever. Excellent pack running came from freshman William Brown (82nd-17:18) & senior Jace Kasteler (85th-17:21) both recording personal best efforts. Milton’s final scorer was senior Logan Bradway (158th-18:17) & he was followed in by sophomore William Gilbert (167th-18:25) who just missed his personal best by under a second. 193 finishers were recorded.

JV Boys
In the best team finish of the meet for the Eagles, Milton (5th-186 pts) bested 19 scoring schools in the largest race of the meet. Seniors led the way with Boston VanBelle (13th-18:02) & captain Tyler Nix (21st-18:14) racing close to the top-10 most of the contest. Scorers for the Eagles also included sophomore Chase VanBelle (45th-18:54) running his personal best along with junior Ryder Fogel (54th-19:04) & sophomore Evan Scott (61st-19:09) also running a 49-second personal best time. 428 finishers were listed.

JV Girls
The Lady Eagles held their own against a really competitive and large field a took care of 14 schools. Milton (9th-230 pts) raced against the powerhouse programs of Marietta, Richmond Hill & Blessed Trinity to pull off a top-10 team finish. Junior Liv Becker (12th-22:17) just missed out on an individual top-10 overall award while running a personal best time. Fellow junior Ava Walker (37th-23:09) backed up Becker & was followed by senior Emily Chambliss (57th-23:40). Fellow senior Rachela Weitzel (61st-23:44) closely followed & also brought along junior Sienna Perl (23:53) who ran her 2nd-best time ever. 317 finishers completed the race.

The Milton cross country teams next see action on Saturday, October 3rd in Charlotte, NC at the 51st running of the Wendy’s XC Classic at the famed McAlpine Park course. The Eagles will race teams from all over the southeastern US.