It was a quarter century in the making, but the Berean Academy boys’ cross country team has another state title.
The Warriors won the Class 2A team title Saturday at the Wamego Country Club.
Berean downed Olpe 58-77 for the team title. Heart of America League rival Bennington took third. Peabody-Burns took seventh, while Goessel was 11th.
“Running is always a picture of life,” Berean Academy coach Mark Anderson said. “It can be very difficult. It takes great endurance and perseverance, but there are rewards to those who finish. It may not be winning at all. That is not the point. I think that God is more concerned with the process of training and racing than the result. That is why I love this sport and the life lessons that are waiting for athletes to learn if they just open their eyes to see them and accept, yes, even embrace them.”
The Warriors claimed three medals — senior Arlan Newby in third in 17:19.57, sophomore Daniel Claassen in fifth in 17:38.89 and senior Josiah Busenitz in 14th in 18:07.26.
Justin Claassen finished 28th in 18:31.32, Steven Busenitz finished in 29th in 18:31.78, Lane Holmes finished 38th in 18:46.64, and Michael Claassen finished 45th in 18:59.20.
“The boys team had eight returning letter winners from last year (five seniors, one junior and two sophomores),” Anderson said. “The new additions were one freshman and one sophomore to complete the team for this year. We knew that we would be good but could we be better than last year (second at league, first at regional, and second at state). This team finished up first at league, first at regional and first at state. I will miss the five seniors who have contributed so much to our program over the years (Josiah Busenitz, Justin Claassen, Michael Claassen, Lane Holmes, and Arlan Newby).”
The Berean girls finished eighth in the team standings. Bennington won the meet over Maranatha Academy 65-99. Wichita County took third at 121. Berean Academy scored 180 points.
A pair of freshmen led the Warrior girls. Emily Wiebe took 25th while Lydia Newby took 31st.
“The girls team had three returning letter winners from last year (two seniors and one sophomore),” Anderson said. “The new additions were two seniors, one sophomore, and four freshmen to complete the team. As the new runners gained experience and confidence, the team started to get better, ending the season with third place at league, first at regionals and eighth at state. I will miss the four seniors who have contributed so much to our program over the years — Emily Reed, Heather Thornburg, Amanda Whittemore, and Megan Wiebe.”
