FP, WI cross country off and running

Pictured are, Forest Park Coach DJ Rasner, with Lilly Post, Tatum Clark and Reuben Rasner. Submitted photo

By Patrick Browne
ATHLETIC MINE/MANISTIQUE — Both West Iron and Forest Park Cross Country teams have started their running seasons. 
Cross country is a sport which requires participants to run five kilometers, or 3.1 miles, at the varsity level and two miles at the middle school level. Runners must traverse a variety of natural surfaces and run up and down hills. 
To condition for races, runners must run distances on a daily basis that are longer than the race distance, run half-mile “repeats’ and run the steepest hills in the community multiple times. 
On Thursday, Aug. 30 the West Iron cross country team, under the leadership of Coach Sullianna Parker, had their first meet of the season when they lined up to run at the Jeffers Athletics Kilpela Farm Invite in Athletic Mine. 
Freshman Zachary Tape led the Wykon runners with a time of 20:48 for the 5K race. His 6:42 per mile pace placed him 18th overall. Fellow freshman Noah Perlongo finished in 22:50 and junior Charlie James finished in 24:26, Freshman Lacey Mattson led the Lady Wykons with a time of 24:41 with Cheyenne Ritchie, Laycee Parson, Peyton Hill and Rosalina Cordova finishing in 19th through 22nd place, respectively.
At Forest Park, the cross country team consists of two high school girls, one senior and one junior, and a seventh grade boy. The restart of the team took place last year and Coach DJ Rasner is in his second year at the helm.  
Competing in their second meet of the year on Wednesday, Sept. 6, the Trojans all medaled at the Emerald Invitational in Manistique. The team was led by team captain and senior Tatum Clark who came in 9th overall with a time of 24:45. Junior Lilly Post came in 35th overall with a time of 27:35 and Reuben Rasner finished 7th overall in the middle school division with a time of 13:43 for two miles.