Platte County’s Andrew Early ran a time of 16:18, earning 27th place overall in the Class 4 State Race on Nov. 5.
The Platte County cross-country teams ended the 2021 season on a high note as the Pirates finished in ninth place and the Lady Pirates finished in 13th place at the Class 4 State Meet on Nov. 5.
The Platte County boys’ cross-country team scored 206 points in the state race when the Pirates’ total time was 1:24:45.60 with an average time of 16:57.12. For the girls, the Pirates had 279 points as they finished with a total time of 1:45:00.6 when Platte County’s average runner finished in 21:00.12.
For the boys, every runner ran a personal best time, and the first three finishers completed the Class 4 State Meet in less than 17:00, led by Andrew Early. The senior ran a time of 16:18, earning 27th place overall.
Andrew Johnson wasn’t too far behind Early as the sophomore ended in 32nd place with a time of 16:23. Jace Trimble crossed the finish line in 16:53, earning 50th place out of 158 total runners.
Junior Kage Audas and sophomore Kade Meinke ran back-to-back in 96th and 97th places with a time of 17:34 as the junior finished .2 seconds faster than the sophomore. Tanner Johnson was the next Pirate to cross the finish line at the state meet when the junior finished in 17:54 and Ben Letcher was the seventh finisher when the freshman crossed the finish line in 18.25.
Platte County sophomore Sisely Mitchell had never run in a cross-country race prior to this fall, but that didn’t stop her from medaling at state. The Pirate finished in 11th place overall with a personal best time of 19:12, which is the third fastest girls’ time in school history.
Carmen Gentilia was the next Pirate to cross the finish line when the sophomore finished in 56th place with a time of 20:23. Alex Beeman ended the 5K in 21:25 and Sloan Kassen ended her junior season with a time of 21:37.
Marissa Orellana crossed the finish line in 22:21 and Julia Greco ended the state race with a time of 22:35. Madison Palmer was the last Pirate to finish as the freshman finished with a 22:47 time to help Platte County clinch 13th place as a team.