ORWELL, Ont. - Parkside Stampeders Nash Okkerse and St. Joseph's Rams Kian Wardle were race winners at the Springwater Invitational cross country meet, the fourth and final invitational meet.
Okkerse stretches his high school cross country win streak to nine races, taking the junior boys five kilometre race in 17:02, 20 seconds ahead of Glendale's Ethan Brown, October 15 at Springwater Conservation Area.
Okkerse and Brown are teammates with St. Thomas Legion Club.
Wardle crossed the finish line 27 seconds ahead of second place, Strathroy District's Tate Van Bilsen, in the novice boys race with 122 runners.
Dorchester Beavers Curtis Willick was one spot out of the top 10, placing 11th in senior boys.
St. Joe's Della Berg and Elizabeth Simpson, just missed the top 10, finishing 11th and 12th, respectively.
Parkside's Jaden Mansley finished fourth in the para race, won by WCI's Kohltan Scott.
Interestingly, the Medway Cowboys junior girls placed second in the team standings, without Makayla Varallo, who won the first three races of the TVRA season. Varallo did not run at Springwater. Medway had 63 points, just behind winner Essex High, with 58 points.
Senior girls had 154 runners at the starting line, four more than senior boys.
The Tri-County championships, October 22 and WOSSAA, October 29, are both at Strathroy Distict school.
OFSAA returns to Sudbury, Monday, November 9.
Last time the high school provincials were in the Big Nickel in 2019, the names of Aiden Coles, Hallee Knelsen, Mason Basson and Hannah McIntyre leading the Dorchester novice girls team, were on the trails.
Complete meet results:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1yr7OQIKQTG85EkY8Etdb6AEArvMBZZcy