Girls third, boys fourth at state cross country meet

Both of Custer High School’s cross country teams competed well at the Class A State Meet in Huron last Saturday.
Custer’s girls varsity took third place (84 points) out of 15 teams. Ramsey Karim (19:12) led the Wildcat squad in the 5K with a fourth place individual finish.  Custer’s Brit Wheeler’s also placed in the top 10 with a new personal best time of 19:28.
Two other Wildcats ran personal records at state: Mattea Marshall raced in at 20:55 and Hailey Woodward finished at 21:25.
Head coach Karen Karim said she was proud of how Wheeler, Marshall and Woodward crushed their previous best times.
“Brit beat people she hadn’t before and timed her race well. Mattea ran her fastest time of the year and Hailey solidified our team to result in third place,” Karim said.
“We always say we want to peak at state and these girls did just that and ran their best at state. Two team points from the runner up team is close, and I’m proud of where we were,” Karim said.
Custer’s boys varsity also performed well at state, recording fourth place (86 points). Custer’s Gage Grohs (16:40) finished in fifth and Drew Lehman (16:55) took 10th place.
Two other Wildcats finished with personal bests in the boys race, too: Kian Rusch’s (17:57) and Sean Shipp (18:12).
Karim said freshman Rusch and sophomore Shipp are good proof that the “younger ones on the team are right where they need to be to get accolades in next year’s season,” she said.
Reflecting on the whole season, Karim noted each cross country athlete’s “dedication to run six days a week in practice and then run in meets every week.”
“We’re losing our top runners to graduation but Drew and Brit will lead us to the next stage and I’m happy with the younger students’ leadership to put in effort and time,” Karim said.
Up next for Custer’s cross country 2023 season, Karim said, “We have successful runners to watch who will continue the tradition and culture fostered in the program.”
Karim also expressed gratitude to her “right hand man,” assistant coach Mindy Dooley.
“Mindy is consistently there,” Karim said. “Also, Beth Hollick and Gordon Drew coach junior varsity, drive us all over the state, and just go above and beyond.”