by Taylor Burns

As the first cross country meet of the year, all the teams traveled to the Iowa State University cross country course on August 27, hoping to start the season off on the right foot.
The PCM girls, running a 5K now, did just that, and got third place out of 11 teams, which Coach Eric Karr said “wasn’t expected, but didn’t surprise me.” Five out of the eight girls who ran were in their first ever high school cross country race.
Junior Jayci Vos was one of those in her first race. She ran a 23:32, which got her into sixth place. Freshman Payton Schut, six places behind Vos, ran a 24:19. Senior Morgan Novak placed 23rd, running a 25:28, while senior Kiara Kappelmann ran a 26:32 and finished in 32nd place. Freshman Morgan Uhlenhopp finished one place behind Kappelmann with a time of 26:38. Freshman Sara Dudley ran a 28:01 and placed 45th. Junior Mallery Downey ran a 30:12, while senior Mallory Bell ran a 32:20. They placed 62nd and 76th, respectively.
“Before the meet, I wasn’t feeling anything. I wasn’t nervous or anxious. I was just relaxed and ready to run,” Vos said. “Standing on the platform afterwards felt good, but it felt even better getting third as a team.”
The PCM boys placed 10th out of 11 teams, but Karr said, “That doesn’t even come close to showing how well they performed.” Senior Trent Howard, juniors Chris Ellens and Mark Bruxvoort and freshman Bradley McClellan all ran a lifetime personal record.
“Just like the girls, I truly feel the boys are ahead of schedule, too,” Karr said.
The boys also ran a 5K. Ellens lead the team in 13th place with a time of 19:12. Howard ran a 21:03, which got him into 40th place. Sophomore Noah Henkenius ran a 21:33, while Bruxvoort ran a 21:52. They placed 51st and 58th, respectively McClellan placed 67th, running a 22:48. Sophomores Caleb Peter and Brady North placed 68th and 70th, running times of 22:50 and 23:02. Senior Andres Vargas ran a 23:45, with junior Braden Phifer right behind him with a time of 23:49. They placed 76th and 78th, respectively. Senior Max Van Gorp placed 102nd, running 26:01.
Come support the girls’ and boys’ team tonight, Thursday Sept. 10, in Johnston at 4:45 p.m.
“I could not be more proud of this team. They spent many hours bonding this summer at summer workouts, sporting events, get-togethers and movie nights,” Karr said. “To me, this is why I coach. I absolutely love the way things are going and can’t wait to keep showing the community what PCM XC is, should be and will be for a long time.”