Hillsboro?s Nicholas Mueller approaches the home stretch of the Class 3A race. He finished 10th overall as the Trojans? sole entry.

Goessel?s Shanna Klassen leads her team to a fiafth-lace finish by placing 23rd overall in the Class 1A race. Her 4-kilometer time was 17:50.

Peabody-Burns? Kendall Wiebe finishes 25th in Class 2A.

Marion?s Ryan Jones strides toward 15th in the 3A race.

Goessel runners place fifth in 1A

Navigating the hills of the Wamego Country Club in near-ideal fall weather, Hillsboro?s Nicholas Mueller turned in the top performance among area runners competing at the state races for classes 1A through 4A.

The Trojan senior, the lone qualifier for Hillsboro, finished the 5-kilometer route in 17 minutes, 44 seconds, to place 10th among 102 finishers in the Class 3A boys? race.

After pressing the pace for the first three miles, Mueller had enough gas left to sprint the last 100 meters and pass one more runner.

?Nicholas ran an outstanding race,? coach Stuart Holmes said. ?He ran with great determination and confidence today. He worked so hard over the summer, running over 300 miles, so it was neat to see his dedication rewarded with a state medal.?

Marion?s two qualifiers in the same race, Ryan Jones and Louis Holt, each finished among the top 25. Jones was 15th in 17:54 and Holt 25th in 18:25.

Marion?s Camille Christen?sen placed 28th among 100 finishers in the 3A girls? race by covering the 4-kilometer route in 17:12.

In terms of team accomplishments, Goessel High had the biggest day, with the boys? and girls? teams each finishing fifth in their respective races in Class 1A. The boys accumulated 96 points to trail Ness City (14), Tribune (49), Pretty Prairie (83) and South Gray (91) in the 12-team field.

Running for the Bluebirds were Jared Reimer, who earned a medal by placing 13th among 89 runners in 18:17, Laird Goert?zen (27th, 18:50), Austin Unruh (45th, 19:32), Derek Kruger (55th, 19:57), Lars Osland (59th, 20:07), Chad Wedel (74th, 21:10) and Anthony Esau (84th, 22:47).

For the Bluebird girls, Shanna Klassen led the way by placing 23rd among 85 finishers. She was followed by Kristen Hoffman (35th, 18:34), Lindsey Wedel (42nd, 18:52), Mareika Joppien (53rd, 19:35) and Sara Bowman (76th, 21:08).

As a team, the GHS girls scored 105 points to place behind Tribune (32), Burrton (33), Lincoln (71) and Troy (100) in the 12-school field.

In Class 2A the Peabody-Burns boys matched Goessel?s accomplishment, placing fifth among 12 schools.

PBHS accumulated 145 points to finish behind KC Marantha (86), Berean Academy (89), Stanton County (93) and Minneapolis (140) in the 12-school field.

Leading the Warriors was Kendall Wiebe, who finished 25th among 104 runners in 18:41.

He was followed by Sheldon Wiebe (28th, 18:41), Aaron Topham (19th, 18:45), Josh Klarmann (66th, 19.42), Curtis Frederick (65th, 20:02), Chris Schafer (100th, 22:32) and Seth Methvin (102nd, 23:23).