LADY TIGERS RIDE FAST LANE TO DISTRICT TITLE

JACKSON -- What a difference a year -- and a whole lot of hard work -- makes.

A year ago, Cape Central senior Lane Thomasson didn't even compete in the district varsity cross country meet.

She simply wasn't good enough.

This year she was not only the best female runner in the eight-team Class 4A, District 1 race, she blew away the competition, finishing the 3.1-mile course 33 seconds faster than the second-place runner.

And what added to Thomasson's delight Saturday was that her team won its first district championship in school history, edging second-place Lindbergh by just two points.

Thomasson finished with a personal best time of 19:41. But it could've been even better.

"I probably could've had a better time without the wind," said Thomasson. "It hindered my time, especially on the second loop when I was running against it."

But after a year of training, what's a little wind?

"I worked a lot over the summer," she said. "I ran about five miles every day. Then right before the season, I went on this survival camp and carried a 70-pound backpack for about a week. That really helped me."

"Ever since last year, she has been great," said Central coach Mark Hahn. "She has been outstanding all season long. And it was all because of her preseason training."

With the top 10 runners earning all-district honors, Central boasted three all-district girls in all.

Kim Pancoast took eighth with a time of 20:48 and Rachel Sprigg finished ninth in 22:29. Magin Patrick and Whitney Pingel rounded out the district championship team. Patrick took 28th in 22:29 and Pingel took 29th in 22:40.

Jackson, which took fifth as a team with 86 points, had two all-district runners.

Julie Wunderlich took fourth in 20:26 and Laura Unverferth finished sixth in 20:35.

Though the Lady Indians didn't qualify as a team for the state meet, Wunderlich, Unverferth and Carol Koenig will advance as individuals.

Koenig just missed the all-district cut, taking 11th in 20:57.

Jessica Craft took 37th for Jackson in 24:00 and Jennifer Steigmeyer took 40th in 24:44.

The top 30 individuals advance to the sectional meet.

Central boys place second

Usually, a group of individuals pull together for the sake of the team.

But on Saturday, a team pulled together for the sake of an individual.

Without its best runner, Mark Stone, Cape Central's cross country team had to finish in the top four to assure that its No. 1 runner would have a shot at state.

And the team came through.

Stone, one of the best runners in the region, injured his Achilles heel and could not participate in the race.

But the Tigers, led by Justin Hawkins' eighth-place finish in 17:09, took second place with 77 points, 50 points behind champion Northwest.

"I'm very proud of our boys," Hahn said. "They had come here and take care of business for their teammate and they got the job done."

Hawkins was the only all-district runner for Central, but all five members of the team Saturday finished in the top 30.

Gabe Austin finished 12th in 17:27, Ross Tilghman took 13th in 17:36, Jon Lowrance finished 20th in 18:07 and Morgan Maki took 26th in 18:18.

Jackson ended up in seventh place. Josh Minson made all-district, finishing 10th in 17:12. Doug Dixon (24th, 18:12) and Zach Friedrich (30th, 18:20) both qualified for sectionals. Jody Ressel took 43rd in 19:36 and Michael Birk rounded out Jackson's five in 48th place in 19:59.