THOM HANRAHAN
Special to the Citizen
KEARNEY, Mo. — While he was running against the best in the district, Quentin Worley wasn’t really thinking about his time.
Maybe he should have and in the days to come, he most likely will.
The Park Hill South senior posted a sub-16 minute time en route to the Class 4 District 8 boys individual cross country championship on Saturday, Oct. 26, at Jesse James Park in Kearney.
“I don’t really think about times too much,” Worley said. “I just think about trying to win.
“I just try to stay with the top two during the race and pass them at the end and that’s what I did.”
Worley navigated the tract in 15 minutes, 55 seconds and shattered his personal best set earlier in the month at the Kansas City Classic Meet.
THOM HANRAHAN/Special to the Citizen
Park Hill South’s Quentin Worley crosses the finish line in first place at the Class 4 District 8 cross country meet at Jesse James Park in Kearney.
Panthers coach A.J. Roth said little that Worley does surprises him.
“Breaking 16 (minutes) is a very high accomplishment for a high school runner,” Roth said. “With that kid, the results are endless for him.
“He is still tapping into some untapped potential, so I think he can get faster.”
Worley said he was glad to get the win, but only recently thought it might happen.
“I have worked for this all season,” he said. “I never really thought it was an opportunity until I won conference, and then I thought I might be able to do it.”
The district championship time bested runner-up Jack Warner of Staley by nearly 30 seconds and punched Worley’s ticket to sectionals along with the rest of the South runners, who finished fourth and edged Liberty North for the final team slot.
“He came in with high expectations and he had a plan and he executed it,” Roth said. “I’m pleased with him, his team is happy for him and he just did a great job.”
Ethan Mick, Max Goertzen and Tyler Clippard all had top-30 finishes as well for Park Hill South.
Platte County finished in sixth place, while Park Hill checked in eighth.
The top Pirates performer was senior Matthew Sullivan who ran a 16:34.3 to place 11th in the field.
The Trojans were led by a 16:47.2 from senior Isaiah Phillips, who took 15th. Ryan Fette took 27th and also advanced to sectionals.
On the girls side of the ledger, South again led the way among area teams.
The Panthers posted four individual performances in the top 30 on the way to a third-place team finish that moves them on to the Class 4 Sectional 4 meet on Saturday, Nov. 2, at Warriors Best Friend in Liberty, near Liberty North.
South freshman Ella Conklin led the way with a 20:32.7 that earned her 12th place. Skyelar Nelson, Olivia Roth and Marisa Garcia also had top-30 finishes for the Panthers.
In the team standings, Platte County finished sixth, while Park Hill placed eighth.
Platte County had a trio of sectional qualifiers in Taylor Giger (fifth), Ryanne Rhude (23rd) and Mara Gullett (29th).
Avery Blakley is the lone sectional qualifier for Park Hill.