It was an opportunity to step up. With the Malcolm boys’ top two runners unable to compete in the Sept. 14 Fillmore Central Invite, the rest of the Clippers’ varsity squad — and a couple of junior varsity runners — had to pick up the slack. While the the team score took a hit due to the absent runners, there were some positive moments.
While Alex Paider was the first Malcolm harrier to cross the finish line, in 27th place, the bigger story is that his time of 19:03 was 1:07 faster than his finish on the same course a year ago. Nathan Swenson and an under-the-weather Thomas Lewis both finished in 19:48. Last year, Lewis ran the course in 22:29.
“When I see those kinds of improvements, I can’t help but be proud of how far these boys have come as runners,” Malcolm coach Brie Walklin said. “They’re tapping into endurance that maybe they never knew they had. I hope we continue to get faster as we head into one of the toughest districts we’ve ever been in.”
Malcolm finished ninth out of 16 teams with 167 points. Gothenburg and Lincoln Christian dominated the field with team scores of 22 and 25, respectively. Milford was third with 63 points.
With the Clippers’ fastest girl out due to injury and another top runner unable to finish the race, Malcolm struggled in the team competition. With 155 points, the Clippers were last out of nine teams. Lincoln Christian was first with 24 points while Milford was second with 49.
Sarah Rogers and Isabella Burbach finished within two seconds of each other, placing 49th and 50th. Karter Kinkaid and Maya Semerad — the only other Clippers to finish — were 54th and 59th.
“I think our girls’ struggles are a mix of a lot of things,” Walklin said. “Heat, bad luck, some injuries, and I think some self-doubt mixed in.
“Our girls get into a race and they let their doubt get the best of them. When you have all of these things occurring on one team, it impacts the group in a negative way. I look forward to getting to a point where we have all the girls up and racing.”
Malcolm will host 22 schools Sept. 19 for the annual Bob Hoyer Invitational at Branched Oak Lake.
“We’re definitely excited to race on our home course,” Walklin said. “It gives our family and friends who haven’t been able to make it to the away meets a chance to cheer our runners on. That extra support is always appreciated.”
