Last Thursday, the West Branch Cross Country team suffered a loss against Philipsburg-Osceola High School in a race that tested the durability of each competitor. The meet on Thursday was more difficult than previous ones, with weather conditions threatening their ability to compete. Rain fell, thunder boomed, and lightning cracked from the sky as the runners pushed up a series of steep hills and muddy trails.
Sage Carr, Noah Ryder, And Bradley Wood all competed in this meet, pulling the team forward as a whole. Carr placed third, Ryder fourth, and Wood ninth. Junior-high runners Alexa Prestash and Emma Petriskey did wonderfully in their first year on the cross country team so far, with Prestash placing first, Petriskey placing second, and veteran runner Erika Alexander placing fifth. Even with the loss, the team performed well, and improvement has been proven with the young talent that has been added to the team.
