PCM boys edge host Raiders, Newton at Williamsburg Invitational

WILLIAMSBURG — For the second straight meet, the PCM boys cross country team placed second and Newton was fourth.

The Mustangs lost to another Class 3A program and led a trio of schools separated by only six points, and the Cardinals were at the end of that group in the 14-team field at the Williamsburg Raider Invitational on Tuesday.

Class 3A No. 5 Grinnell won the meet after placing four runners in the top 10, and the top three finishers in the boys’ 5K race came in faster than 17 minutes at the Williamsburg Sports Complex.

Newton’s top two runners, Cooper Christy and Lance Zaabel, had the best area times, but PCM was six points better in the standings because its top four runners finished in the first 24 positions.

“Another fantastic outing by both (Christy) and (Zaabel), who continue to improve their times,” Newton head boys cross country coach Steve Weeks said. “After that we have a gap towards the rest of varsity, which we need to work on closing if we wish to have a successful postseason in late October.”

Grinnell won the meet title with 45 points. PCM took second with 108 points, and the rest of the top five included Williamsburg (109), Newton (114) and 2A No. 13 Mediapolis (131).

Christy placed fourth with a time of 17 minutes, 18.4 seconds and 3A No. 26 Zaabel was eighth in 17:36. The top 15 finishers in both varsity races earned medals.

The rest of the scoring runners for Newton were Levi Zaabel (19:22.2) in 25th, Drew Lamont (19:48.5) in 35th and Abel Aldama (20:24.3) in 42nd.

The Cardinals’ two non-scoring runners were Noah Tremel (20:29.8) in 43rd and David Wickett (21:37.9) in 57th.

“I’m not too worried yet,” Weeks said. “We’ve got some great guys on the team who are hard workers and who I have faith will put in the work to get there.

“First-year runner (Aldama) made some moves in the team ranks, and (Wickett) had a rare off night, of which I would completely attribute to trying to race while ill. I fully expect (Wickett) to make a recovery and be back in scoring position on varsity soon again.”

PCM’s depth and balance were key in its runner-up finish. Owen Osterhaus led the Mustangs in 15th with a time of 18:24.2.

But Kash Fischer (18:29.5) finished 17th, Coby DeRaad (18:37.9) was 19th and Brenden Lahart (19:08.6) took 24th.

The final scoring runner was Camden Lahart (19:45.8) in 33rd, and Cademon Burkett (20:02) and Rylan Edgington (21:49.6) were non-scoring runners in 38th and 59th, respectively.

The rest of the 14-team field included Benton Community (134), Oskaloosa (146), Mid-Prairie (231), Mount Pleasant (243), South Tama County (262), Danville (278), Montezuma (330), Cedar Ridge Christian (378) and Belle Plaine (389).

HLV/TC and Iowa Valley of the South Iowa Cedar League both had incomplete teams.

Class 3A No. 13 Barrett Jesina of South Tama won the boys’ varsity race in 16:27.8.

Grinnell’s Cadel Conner (16:42.1) was the runner-up and Mediapolis’ Simon Wendel (16:49) finished third.

Notes: Newton’s Ben Magana was 10th in the junior varsity race with a time of 20:44. PCM’s Charlie Ford (20:58.3) finished 12th. The top 10 finishers in the JV race earned medals … Grinnell won the meet after going 2-5-7-9 with its top four finishers. … Cedar Ridge Christian High School was formerly known as Waterloo Christian. Its named was changed on June 1 as it rebranded to reflect a desire to partner with families across the Cedar Valley and honor the roots of the ministry, according to a YouTube video.