FA/MARION BOYS WIN REGION 3B TITLE

Freeman Academy/Marion junior Tavin Schroeder and sophomore Finley McConniel finished second and third at Wednesday afternoon’s Region 3B Cross-Country Meet in Burke to lead the Bearcats to a narrow win in the team standings. Sophomore Hayden Schmidt and junior Jayson Allison also turned in top-20 finishes for FA/Marion, which edged Mitchell Christian 20 to 21. Gregory was third with 22 points.

Seth Balzer, who finished 25th in the field of 41, will also represent the Bearcats at state.

The Region 3B meet was a good one for other local runners.

FA/Marion senior Jada Koerner won the girls division and freshman Estelle Waltner placed third to qualify for state in Huron on Saturday, Oct. 22.

Freeman Public eighth grader finished 12th and sophomore Peyton McCune was 18th in the girls division while seventh grader Brayden Mangel placed 15th for the boys; all will compete in Huron.

And Menno junior Ashton Massey and eighth grader Zoe Schaeffer finished sixth and 16th, respectively, in the girls division and will be joined by freshman Erick Buechler, who finished 10th, at state.

Here are the full results in order of finish.

For FA/Marion:

Jada Koerner 1st, 20:53
Tavin Schroeder 2nd, 17:29
Finley McConniel 3rd, 18:04
Estelle Waltner 3rd, 21:30
Hayden Schmidt 18th, 20:27
Jayson Allison 19th, 20:28
Seth Balzer 25th, 21:37
Sieta Wiersema 30th, 27:11
For Freeman:

Rylee Peters 12th, 23:31
Brayden Mangel 15th, 20:10
Peyton McCune 18th, 24:00
Lane McCune 21st, 21:06
For Menno:

Ashton Massey 6th, 22:23
Erick Buechler 10th, 19:44
Zoe Schaeffer 16th, 23:54
Ashlynn Fergen 28th, 26:17
Hannah Masterson 31st, 27:44