The Pekin cross country teams tested themselves against some of the state’s strongest competition on Thursday, October 2, at the Bud & Bonnie Williams Invitational, hosted by Iowa City High at the Kickers Soccer Complex. The meet featured multiple top-15 programs from across Iowa, including several from Class 4A, giving Pekin an opportunity to measure up against larger schools.
On the girls’ side, the team finished fifth overall with 150 points, ahead of Ottumwa with 154 and Cedar Rapids Jefferson with 195. Iowa City High, ranked sixth in Class 4A, won the meet with 35 points, followed closely by Dubuque Senior, ranked seventh in 4A, with 37. Cedar Rapids Prairie, ranked ninth in 4A, finished third with 74, while Dubuque Hempstead claimed fourth with 115.
Leading Pekin was Chloe Glosser, who continued her standout season by placing third overall with a time of 18:17.4. She was bested only by Izzy Hardin of Maquoketa, the second-ranked runner in Class 3A, who won the race in 18:07.9, and Emma Chesterman of Dubuque Senior, ranked eighth in Class 4A, who ran 18:13.2. Glosser finished 18 seconds ahead of Abigail Burns of Iowa City High, ranked seventh in 4A, adding another highlight to her already impressive season. Also competing for the Panthers were Abby Guise in 46th, Harper Guise in 48th, Cambree Earnest in 50th, Zoe Heisdorffer in 60th, Haven Hensley in 63rd, and Reagan Wise in 66th.
In the boys’ race, Pekin placed seventh overall with 253 points, just ahead of WACO, ranked 11th in Class 1A, which finished with 260 points. The team standings were dominated by large-school powers, with Cedar Rapids Prairie, ranked fourth in 4A, taking the win with 52 points. Dubuque Senior, ranked 11th in 4A, followed with 59, Pleasant Valley, ranked 10th in 4A, was third with 61, Iowa City High, ranked seventh in 4A, placed fourth with 89, Dubuque Hempstead, ranked 14th in 4A, finished fifth with 107, and West Des Moines Valley took sixth with 129. Pekin, ranked 15th in Class 1A, stood in front of WACO, Cedar Rapids Jefferson, Ottumwa, Durant, Maquoketa, Hillcrest Academy, and Wilton to round out the field.
Cole Millikin paced the Panther boys with a 26th-place finish, followed by Lane Fariss in 52nd and Mason Dahlstrom in 60th. Behind them were Landon Fariss in 91st, Brody Sobaski in 95th, Hayden Miller in 106th, Conor Cloyd in 108th, Clayton Harvey in 110th, Colton Harvey in 114th, Wyatt Brown in 115th, and Liam Guise in 119th.
Against a field stacked with some of the top-ranked Class 4A teams in the state, Pekin’s runners held their own and gained valuable experience as the postseason approaches.
