For the second consecutive season, Grundy Center senior Emerson Vokes is the Class 2A boys cross country champion. He led the field in 15:42, 36 seconds ahead of the next best finisher.
“It’s just really cool to be able to do this again,” Vokes says. “Obviously the first time is a little bit more special, but God is just so good to me. I just feel so undeserving of this. I mean, it’s so cool to come down that chute one last time and just see everyone just smiling and cheering me on. It’s just so special.”
He got out to a hot start with a 4:52 opening mile, and never looked back, holding the lead throughout.
“From the gun it kind of felt like that. I wasn’t worried at all. I trusted my training. Really confident in the work that I put in. Me and my coach really understand my strengths and weaknesses about these type of races, and I really felt if I ran that first mile to the middle I feel like I could have kept pushing the whole time, and that’s exactly what happened. I was just feeling really strong the whole time and I just wanted to keep going.”
Vokes also says he plans to continue his running career at the college level, though is undecided on a school.
Teammate Jayce Fryslie placed 33rd and Leo Block was 79th. Dike-New Hartford’s Sully O’Neill was 83rd, and South Hardin’s Jonah VanderWilt was 110th, rounding out local competitors.
In the 2A girls race, Dike-New Hartford placed 10th as a team with 210 points and Grundy Center was 14th with 285 points. Grace Storjohann led the Spartans with a sixth place finish in 19:19, Evelyn Geerdes was 59th, Maddy Hendershot was 88th, Kerlee Lynch was 115th, Makenna Steinmeyer was 130th, Anabeth Hawk was 133rd and Ava Heeren was 134th.
Olivia Petullo led Dike-New Hartford in 47th place, Lucy Epley was 67th, Sedona Oldenburger was 68th, Chloe Paulsen was 73rd, Lily Moore was 75th, Izzy Stumbo was 84th and Josey Syhlman was 101st.
