Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to reflect that runner Johnny Ryan is a sophomore.

After opening the season at two average-size meets, the Summit High School cross-country team was exposed to some of the best teams in the state of Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 14.

Widely known across the state of Colorado as a fast course that produces personal-best and state-classification-leading times, the Liberty Bell Cross-Country Invitational acted as the team’s first true test of the season. Summit took to the crowded starting line with hopes to notch finishes that would continue to shake up the 4A rankings.

Leading off the day full of racing in Littleton was the sweepstakes boys varsity race. Fresh off upsetting Eagle Valley at its home meet a week prior, the Tigers navigated the elbow-to-elbow opening section of the course and quickly established a strong position.

Familiar with the course and the competitive atmosphere, senior Josh Shriver and sophomore Jay McDonald put themselves near the front of the 168-man pack early on. Mountain Vista High School senior Benjamin Anderson drove the pace up front, willing himself to chase after a sub-15-minute performance in the 5-kilometer run.

With runners quick on his heels, Anderson broke down the final straight to the finish line to be crowned the champion in a time of 14 minutes, 48.40 seconds. Anderson was followed by Organ Mountain High School senior Jeron Wisner in second in 14:49.50 and Mountain Vista High School sophomore Benjamin Adams took third in 14:51.30.

Summit’s McDonald had his best race of the season, notching a top-25 finish and running a new personal-best time of 15:23.20 for 22nd. Shriver crossed the line in 38th place overall in 15:38.50. Summit further displayed its depth by putting all of Summit’s top five scoring runners within the top 100 and under the 16:30 mark. Senior Will Bentley took 58th in a new personal-best time of 15:56 and was followed by sophomore Johnny Ryan in 84th (16:16.10). Summit rounded out its scoring runners with a massive performance from junior Cain Steinweg. After working hard throughout the summer months and navigating sickness a few weeks ago, Steinweg powered himself to a 58-second personal best, clocking 16:29.30 to finish in 99th.

“It is a really cool feeling to see it all come together,” Steinweg said. “I still improved all last year, but I still felt like I was on some sort of a plateau. Coming into this year with high-mileage summer training weeks and a lot of training with the team, it is inspiring to see it all come together on race day.”

Similar to Steinweg, sophomore Owen Fallon shed over a minute off his previous best time, placing 106th overall in a time of 16:36.90. Junior Carter Niemkiewicz secured a seven-second personal best, taking 124 in 16:56.00.

With an average time of 15:56 for its top-five runners, Summit took eighth in the team rankings and was the first overall 4A team. Following the race, Summit jumped from 10th to second in the 4A state rankings, showcasing the team’s potential at the state meet in November.  

“Our team has some awesome depth with our senior Josh kind of leading the charge,” Steinweg said. “It means a lot to me that our fourth through eighth runners are all within 30 to 40 seconds of one another. Being able to keep up with Eagle Valley, who was ranked pretty high in the state, makes me excited for the state race.”

After placing second the past two years, Summit senior Ella Hagen sprinted from the start line of the girls varsity sweepstakes race, poised to become champion in her last go at the course. Coming off her first win of the season in Gypsum last week, Hagen ran confidently as Eaton High School sophomore Delaney Reuter and Cherry Creek High School junior Emily Cohen ran in her wake.

Eventually, Hagen proudly pulled away from the runners and crossed the finish line in 16:54.00 to be crowned the champion of the girls sweepstakes race. Hagen has now broken 17-minutes at the race three times, marking the first female athlete to ever do so. 

Reuter followed Hagen in second (16:59.20) and Cohen took third (17:04.80). Senior Avery Eytel was the placed 95th in 19:35.30 for a personal-best time. Eytel was followed by sophomore Lily Benbow and freshman Sophie Dinse. Dropping 35-seconds from last year’s Liberty Bell Invitational, Benbow placed 103rd in 19:47.10.

“It is really rewarding to see all my work pay off,” Benbow said. “All the miles that I put in this summer, I am starting to see results from.”

Dinse placed 104th with a personal-best time of 19:48.40 while freshman Paige Ratliff rounded out the top five scoring runners for the Tigers, placing 109th in a new personal-best mark of 19:55.50. Sophomore Ashley Adkins finished in 110th in a new personal-best time (19:57.90) and sophomore Milla Phaf took 136th (21:07.30).

The Summit girls cross-country team took 16th out of 22 teams with 400 points. Summit was the third 4A team in the race, trailing Conifer High School (13th) and Timnath High School (14th).

“We have such a strong team of girls this year, and I am so excited to see what we can all do,” Benbow said.

Benbow and several other members of the Summit High School cross-country team will now travel to Minneapolis for the Roy Griak Invitational on Friday, Sept. 20. The 120-team meet will be Summit’s first travel trip of the season.

“I am excited to spend more time with the team and getting to know them more,” Benbow said. Racing against new teams and having a different course and different environment, I think it will be super cool learning experience.”