Three… Two… One… Action! The gun goes off and the Ohio 2022 Division I Girls Cross Country State Championship has begun. Coming off a state championship the prior year, the bar was set high for another great end to the season.
The girls took off Friday after a school clap out to wish them best of luck on their endeavors at state. The seven runners who participated were sophomores Ava Beeks and Natalie Sanders, juniors Hannah Kersten, Sydney Daudelin, and Taylor Moody, and seniors Sage Colon and Anna Sophia Gower. The team alternate was Freshman Holly Dalton.
Coming off league, district, and regional wins, the spirit was high among the girls.
Senior Sage Colon said, “Our coach specifically tried his best to not bring up last year and spook our emotions.” Teammate Taylor Moody said, “As a team we wanted to place well again, but we focused on keeping the pressure off ourselves.”
The day of the competition, head coach Jon Monheim reminded himself of the team’s success so far: “I was very confident that we were a top five team, so in my mind I wanted the team to finish in that range. I also knew that with a great race we could compete with anybody.”
Moody said Monheim reminded the team of the season’s focus: “The focus of the week, and honestly the entire season, was to just be in the moment and focus on what was ahead of us and what was in our control.”
The Lady Jackets ended the season with a fourth place finish in the state championship. The teams to finish ahead of the Yellow Jackets were Mason, Hillard Davidson, and Westlake. Coach Monheim said, “I was very pleased with our 4th place finish. Perrysburg has been to the state meet ten times and this was the second best team finish.”
Colon, reminiscing on her final season, said, “I think some of my favorite memories came from the dynamic the team had. We would always bounce off of each other’s energy and personality.” Colon reminds us that the girls on the team will not remember a bad race, the feared mile repeats, or the dreaded long runs, but they will always remember the memories and work they put in as a team that made them arguably the best sports team in PHS history.
