McClellan wins at own cross country meet

Notre Dame senior Wynn McClellan didn't wait long to make his final home cross country meet memorable Saturday.

McClellan used a final burst of speed as he approached the final mile to finish strong, nearly 30 seconds ahead of Scott City's Brandon Shemonia, to win the Notre Dame Invitational title.

The Notre Dame senior credits his father, Dodd McClellan, for encouraging him at every turn. McClellan said his father gives him a time to beat as motivation before every race.

"He is the main reason for my success," McClellan said of his father.

McClellan got out to a good start, keeping pace with the lead group early in the race. After the first mile, he stayed near the lead as the leaders started to separate from the rest of the runners.

Going into the third mile of the race, McClellan started to pull away from Shemonia and Farmington's Colton Wooldridge. He finished in 15 minutes, 47.92 seconds.

"Everyone on our team ran really well today," McClellan said. "We did well as a team staying together and not spreading out like we have at times earlier this season. It really helped us out."

Central took second with 58 points, eight points behind the Bulldogs. Roy Leighton led the Tigers with a fifth-place finish. Kelly's Cody Kern crossed the line fourth.

Team results -- 1. Notre Dame 50; 2. Central 58; 3. Farmington 64; 4. Oakville 96; 5. Scott City 135; 6. Poplar Bluff 154; 7. Oak Ridge 160; 8. Delta 202; 9. Doniphan 249.

Local top fives

Notre Dame -- 1. Wynn McClellan, 15:47.92; 6. Ryan Johnson, 16:31.41; 13. Cody Moore, 17:09.02; 14. Josh Johnson, 17:20.52; 21. David Willems, 17:34.59.

Cape Central -- 5. Roy Leighton, 16:21.86; 7. Eric Schott, 16:54.31; 12. Alex Crawford, 17:07.67; 19. Collin Summers, 17:28.24; 23. Lars Monia, 17:41.22.

Scott City -- 2. Brandon Shemonia, 16:15.57; 17. Skylar Cobb, 17:24.68; 37. Robert Matheney, 18:34.30; 47. Chris Limbaugh, 19:30.40; 50. Landon Robert, 19:46.73.

Oak Ridge -- 26. Ethan Seyer, 17:58.32; 32. Caleb Elam, 18:16.61; 34. Stephen Bolen, 18:21.02; 42. Garret Light, 18:59.25; 44. Tyler Lappe, 19:11.48.

Delta -- 24. Zach Riegert, 17:54.15; 39. Austin Seabaugh, 18:45.35; 49. Brandon Harmon, 19:33.13; 60. Seth Blattel, 20:20.92; 63. Jeremiah Peikert, 21:10.86.

Advance -- 46. Brad Steil, 19:24.30; 62. Hunter Shoemaker, 20:37.63; 64. John Middleton, 21:31.57; 67. Kyndel Page, 22:17.10.

Kelly -- 4. Cody Kern, 16:21.38; 43. Juan Campos, 19:04.12.

Saxony Lutheran -- 41. Rhett Obermann, 18:49.29; 53. Kris Cook, 19:57.22.