The SLUH Jr. Billikens went up against the toughest teams in the state last Friday at the Gans Creek State course in Columbia, and the fastest times that the course has ever seen to bring home a fourth-place trophy, adding to their four-year podium streak. Finishing just five points behind third-place Liberty North, the Bills finished the season with a strong closing race to cap off a great year. By putting three racers in the top 25, each earning All-State designations, SLUH tied its record for most All-State runners at a State meet, proving the immense competition Missouri running has produced this year. 

On the morning of race day, the team arrived at the Gans Creek Course to prepare for the race, warming up around the course and keeping up with the races before their own. Despite a couple of muddy turns from the SEC Championships that had been held at the course a week before, the course was in good condition and ready to help the team produce some fast times. 

“Watching the Class 4 race before us we knew that the times were going to be very fast,” said Porter. “The winner had run 15:15 and after him, there were a total of 15 runners who were able to break the 16-minute mark.”

As the varsity squad warmed up, a plethora of SLUH runners and classmates who had made the trip out to Columbia showed up at the course and helped to give some encouragement to their classmates as they prepared to go to the starting line, even singing the famed “Oh when the Bills” chant just prior to the starting gun. 

As the race kicked off, the leaders flew from the very beginning. Even with the aggressive pace up front, the SLUH contingent didn’t get discombobulated and they steadily moved up. Through the first kilometer, there were 14 athletes running a sub-15 minute pace. SLUH found themselves with 153 points and in third place after the first kilometer. 

From then on, SLUH and three other teams had distinguished themselves as the four podium teams on the day—it was just a matter of in what order they would finish. For the next three kilometers, almost every SLUH runner was able to move up and by the time they reached the fourth kilometer they had lowered their score all the way down to 109, fourth place in the team scores. After fading a little bit in the last kilometer, SLUH ended with 116 points and a fourth-place team finish.

Although SLUH did not win the race, the Jr. Bills achieved an average top five time of 16:00, which is faster than many previous state-winning teams. Leading the top five SLUH runners was Grant Brawley with an unexpected breakout race, placing 11th overall and setting a huge 33-second PR, running a time of 15:41, which was the third-fastest time ever recorded in SLUH’s program history. Sean Kellogg followed with a very impressive 16th place finish and a time of 15:47, the fifth-fastest SLUH time ever. Baker Pashea was the final All-State runner, placing 23rd with a time of 15:53, beating his old personal record by 18 seconds. Seniors Justin Glass (48th; 16:18) and Joe LaBarge (50th, 16:19) finished together, rounding out the scoring for the Jr. Bills. Tim Greiner ran a superb race, becoming the fastest six-man in SLUH state history, running 16:19 (a 19-second PR) and placing 54th. Charlie Murray rounded out the day for the Jr. Bills with a time of 17:13 and placing 131st. This very impressive day led to SLUH scoring 116 points, an improvement from the previous two years at the state meet. 

“We talked all week about focusing on the things we can control which is our own race and we did an excellent job of that by staying confident through the whole race and not letting other teams dictate how we run,” said Porter. “In most years, three All-State athletes and a 38-second one to five gap would put you right up top in state title contention, but it just so happened that three other teams had outstanding days, but that doesn’t take away at all from what we were able to accomplish.”

Even though they didn’t come away with a state title there was still very much to celebrate. A 38-second one to five gap is the lowest of the whole season this year. Three All-State athletes tied the record number SLUH has ever had in any one state meet and on top of that they all ran in the top 12 times ever recorded for SLUH. LaBarge and Greiner became the fastest fifth and sixth runners in the state, and the fastest ever fifth and sixth runners for SLUH at the state meet. Finally, a scoring average of 16:00 is the fastest ever recorded by a SLUH team in a five-kilometer race. 

“It was a great race to watch and I was very excited to be able to go,” said former SLUH varsity cross country racer Ryan Kramer. “It was rough to see such a talented team finish in fourth place because of the elite competition, but I think that the guys know they had a great day and are proud of themselves. Most years we would win with times and a score like that and I think that is what we need to remember at the end of the day.”

After a strong state performance to wrap up the XC season for the Billies, a few of the top runners are looking to improve on their times this Sunday at the Nike Cross Regionals in Terre Haute, Ind.. Although associated with the independent running club Flopack and not SLUH, the racers will be looking to finish off their seasons with strong performances against some of the top competition in the region.