Despite competing with a roster that included four middle schoolers, University Heights Academy qualified for its sixth state meet in seven seasons following Saturday’s Class 1A Region 1 run at Marshall County High School.
The youngsters teamed with veterans Cole Glover and Jude Finch to finish in third place, just three points out of a runner-up finish.
Seventh grader Ronan Croney-Sallie, running in just his second varsity race, finished ninth with a time of 18:32 over the 3.1-mile course. He finished 14th at McCracken County two weeks ago.
Eighth-grader Graham Conrad ran with the lead pack for over a mile and came in 10th place in 18:37. He finished in 31st at last year’s region meet and knocked nearly two and a half minutes off that time. His time Saturday was a personal best.
Eighth-grader Garrett Bowling was 26th with a time of 20:04, a personal best in just his fifth varsity race.
Seventh grader Scar Venable came in 37th place with a time of 21:28 in his first varsity race.
The middle schoolers provided a nice boost for the team’s veterans.
Senior Cole Glover came in third place in 17:29, running in the lead pack for the entire race and finishing nine seconds behind the race winner, Easton Bourland of Dawson Springs.
Jude Finch, who ran his personal best time last week at Graves County, ran his third straight sub-19:00 race with a 13th-place finish in 18:54.
Zech Davis, who also had a PR last week, ran his second-fastest time of the season on Saturday and came in 29th place in 20:24.
University Heights Academy will run in the Class A State Meet next Saturday at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
(Photos by Ashlyn Brown)
