By RYAN RICHTER

Staff writer

Marion High School cross-country team enjoyed a successful outing Thursday, during the Herington Invitational at the golf course. 

A challenging course and 90-degree weather didn’t slow down Warrior progress, with four runners making giant strides setting personal bests. 

“We had a much better day at Herington this week at a meet where the course was more challenging and the weather was more of a factor,” coach Grant Thierolf said. “I was really pleased with our three freshmen boy runners. 

“They all cut significant amounts of time off their best time of the year and ran a hard, tough race.”

The future continues to look bright for sophomore Heidi Grimmett. 

Grimmett got her first victory of the season after a pair of third-place finishes in as many weeks, but a rivalry may be brewing between the Warrior sophomore and Hillsboro sophomore Emersyn Funk. 

Grimmett comfortably paced the 35 competitors with a new record of 22:07 with only Remington’s runner-up Lucy Brown and 38 seconds separating Grimmett from Funk. 

Bethany Grimmett finished 27th in 31:05 and Alfwenna Meyer just missed a top-30 finish with a 31st place time of 31:36 to round out the Warriors’ varsity girl runners. 

Tristen Dye’s future looks bright, also. 

The freshman was the first Warrior boy this season to break the 20-minute barrier, securing a medal with a 19:59 for 20th place. 

Dye’s fellow freshman Christopher Beery was close to a medal and breaking 20 minutes, finishing 23rd out of 49 in 20:17, a minute better than Beery’s previous best. 

Colton Boudreaux and Nathan Shields ran hard races until the end, finishing in 26th and 30th with times of 20:48 and 21:57. 

Hayden Mendoza was 38th in 23:49, but the fact the freshman took three minutes off his personal record sets the table for bigger things later in the year. 

  “We appreciate how hard they ran and look forward to better times as we move on,” Thierolf said.   

Marion will compete Thursday at the Marion Invitational to be held at the McLinden pasture east of the practice fields at the stadium. 

Races begin with the middle school starting at 3:30 p.m.