Lady Raider Cross Country Goes To States

KEARNEY--Sidney's Lady Raider Cross Country team qualified six runners for the State Meet in Kearney on Friday afternoon. Running in perfect conditions, the girls were able to place 7th as a team, with standout senior Talissa Tanquary leading the way with a third place finish at 20:25.1 in the Class C race. The winner was Ogallala senior Lindee Henning with a time of 19:33.9, followed by Milford junior Lilly Kenning at 20:01.5. It was Tanquary's best finish in the State Meet, with two previous fourth place finishes and a 12th place finish in her freshman year.

Prior to the race, Tanquary said, "I'm hoping the weather stays good, as I like running in relatively warm weather. Hopefully I won't have any problems with blisters like last year, and can finish at the top."

It turned out that Tanquary did have to battle with some blisters during the race, but she pushed through and earned her third place medal. After the race, she said that she was so happy to get to run her last race with this team. Kylee Kampf, a standout freshman who qualified in her first year, also had a great race, placing 20th with a time of 22:02.7. Kampf said prior to the race that she really enjoys running and likes the physical and mental challenge of Cross Country. Following Kampf for Sidney was freshman Emily Bashtovoi, who placed 60th with a time of 23:47.2. She is from a family of runners, with her brothers being standouts on the cross country and track teams in previous years. Senior Daisy Gardner placed 85th with a time of 24:40.2, and said prior to the race how happy she was to be able to make the trip with her teammates. Sophomore Kyah Hicks and freshman Laurel Dadgostar placed 93rd and 94th respectively, with Hicks turning in a time of 25:20.7 and Dadgostar finishing at 25:23.0. There were a total of 120 runners in the race, with the Kearney Catholic team coming out on top, followed by Auburn and Lincoln Christian in Class C.