Columbus CXC gets first gold medal

SCHULENBURG – The Cardinals’ cross-country team got their first gold medal of the season after a strong performance by the Lady Cards in their most recent meet. Their gold medal came as part of three Lady Cards who finished in the top 15 places of the competition. The boys also contributed with some strong placements as Columbus secured six top-50 placements between both teams.

The Lady Cards had a strong outing led by gold medalist Kaylea Foster. She took the meet’s top spot after finishing her race in 13 minutes and 48 seconds. After missing state by just a single placement last season, Foster is hoping to get into late-season form after her performance. Chloe Ross, last year’s state-qualifier, is also hoping to find her late-season pace as she claimed a top five spot with fifth place after finishing in 14 minutes and 20 seconds. Scarlett McClelland finished her race in 14 minutes and 56 seconds to take 15th place. Samantha Gonzales rounded out the Lady Cards’ performance after taking 49th place.

The boys’ top performer was Elijah Owen, finishing the race in just under 23 minutes. Armondo Hernandez was the next finisher for the Cards. He took 47th place after finishing the race in 24 minutes and 13 seconds. Keegan Escamilla and Ethan Pope were the next-highest finishers for the Cards as they took 53rd and 58th place respectively. Ivan Hernandez claimed the final placement for Columbus, taking 64th place to end the day for the Cards.

Columbus will compete next on Sept. 9 at Moulton City Park. The girls begin their race at 8:50 a.m. with the boys and junior high team following immediately after. Following the Moulton meet, Columbus travels to Navasota on Sept. 13 to compete at August Horst Park.