Columbus East High School

NORTH VERNON, Ind. — The Columbus East cross-country teams turned in strong performances on Saturday morning at the Ray Gerkin Invitational, hosted by Jennings County High School. Highlighted by an individual victory from Norman Dickson, the Olympian boys earned a 3rd place team finish, while the girls squad packed up well to secure 4th place overall. Boys XC: Dickson Leads Olympians to 3rd Place Norman Dickson set the pace for the entire field, capturing 1st place with a dominant winning time of 16:31 to anchor the boys' 3rd place team finish. A tight scoring pack helped seal the podium spot for East: Norman Dickson: 1st place, 16:31 Henry Meredith: 16th place, 18:47 Liam Wiltsey: 20th place, 19:16 Daxton Wolf: 25th place, 19:25 Cullen Fullerton: 30th place, 19:40 Caleb Reid: 32nd place, 19:53 Zayden Weatherford: 43rd place, 20:42 The standout effort of the day came from Eoin Totten running as the team’s 8th runner. Totten delivered a huge performance, shaving nearly two minutes off his personal best to clock in at 22:07 (52nd place). Girls XC: Pack Running Drives 4th Place Finish The Olympian girls showcased impressive depth, relying on tight pack running to earn 4th place with 88 team points. The team recorded a top-five spread of just 1:17 and an average time of 23:26. Freshman Lily Pendleton led the way for East, earning a top-15 finish: Lily Pendleton (FR): 15th place, 22:43.49 Elizabeth Sztaba (SR): 16th place, 22:53.87 Abigail Morales (JR): 20th place, 23:36.99 Abby Collins (SR): 23rd place, 23:57.40 Trinity Burns (SR): 24th place, 24:00.77 Brooke Newell (SO): 30th place, 24:58.97 Daphne May (SR): 37th place, 26:07.51 Camilla DeVreese (JR): 52nd place, 30:06.19 Stella Streeval (SO): 59th place, 32:03.82 Looking Ahead: Both the Boys and Girls cross-country teams have an off week ahead with no competitions scheduled. The Olympians will use the training block to gear up for the Hoosier Hills Conference meet on Saturday, October 3rd, hosted by Jeffersonville High School.