Red Demon Boys take 2nd at Bishop Carroll

By: John Zetmeir

The Dodge City High School boys cross country team had their best ever finish at the Bishop Carroll Invitational over the weekend in their first race of the season.

Senior Marcelo Cruz finished third as an individual to help lead the Red Demons to a second place team finish. The Red Demons tied with Blue Valley Southwest through five runners but Southwest’s Reed Holland just edged out Dodge City’s Brett Groth to give the Timberwolves the team title.

Fellow senior Jason Luft and sophomore Javier Marquez took 11th and 12th while senior Alex Ultreras came in just behind his two teammates with a 14th place finish. The Red Demons will travel to Hesston this Thursday.

The Dodge City girls took sixth place amongst the 10 team field with a score of 145. Sophomore Ayanna Hensley, who took 12th, and senior Coral Neave, 16th, led the Red Demons. Dodge City only had two runners finish in the top 30.

The Lady Demons will make the trip to Perryton, Texas this Saturday for their second meet of the season.

OTHER SCORES

Boys – Jose Rodriguez 24, Liam Scott 42 Girls -Cristal Chavira 36, Luz Lopez 39, Chia Okoro 42, Marissa Ramirez 43, Luzy Lozana 45.

Lady Demons eye third straight WAC championship

By John Zetmeir

Winning a third-straight Western Athletic Conference championship is this year’s goal for the Dodge City High School girls cross country team heading into the season.

In order to three-peat as WAC champions, Dodge Citywill have to figure out who six of their seven runners will be this season. Head coach Brian Lenz said that senior Coral Neave has earned her spot as the team’s leader but that he is still sorting out the rest of the bunch.

‘Our depth is there again,’ Lenz said. ‘There is no guarantee for the three returners on varsity, they have to earn their spot too. If I was to name our top-seven right now I wouldn’t have a clue who it would be.’

Neave was the top finisher for the Red Demons at last year’s 6A state cross country meet where Dodge City placed seventh as a team amongst the 12 team field. The Red Demons did lose Jasmine Duarte and Amelia Richter who finished 28th and 31st last year.

Sophomore Ayanna Hensley and senior Marissa Ramirez are the other two returners who competed at state last season. As far as the internal competition has gone amongst the Dodge City runners to fill the remaining spots, Lenz couldn’t be happier.

‘I love the attitude,’ Lenz said. ‘They are focused on what we’re doing and they are here to work. They are already coming together as a team.’

While Lenz is still unsure who his varsity lineup will be, the Red Demons are still entering the season with the goal to bring home the WAC title for a third consecutive season.

‘That’s the plan but we’re going to learn a lot about ourselves in the next few weeks when we start getting into some competition,’ Lenz said. ‘We have some new girls out that have really been looking good but you never really know until race day.’

The Red Demons will travel to Wichita on Sept. 3 for their first race of the season.

SCHEDULE

■ Sept. 3 at Wichita-Bishop Carroll. 9 a.m.

■ Sept. 10 at Perryton. 10 a.m.

■ Sept. 15 at Forth Hays State University. 4:30 p.m.

■ Sept. 24 at Stillwater. 8 a.m.

■ Oct. 1 at Newton. 9:30 a.m.

■ Oct. 8 at Salina Central. 10 a.m.

■ Oct. 13 at HOME. 3 p.m.

Demons return plethora of experience

By John Zetmeir

Last fall, the Dodge City High School boys cross country team won both the Western Athletic Conference and regional championship on their way to the 6A state meet.

However, the Red Demons did not run their best race at state. Dodge City placed 10th out of the 12 teams, falling behind both Garden City and Washburn Rural, teams that the Red Demons had beaten throughout the season.

With five of the seven runners returning from last season’s team, the Red Demons are looking to not only get back to state this season, but perform better than they did a year ago.

“I think they are all disappointed in how they finished up the season,” head coach Buc Bolmer said. “They are all focused and hopefully they stay that way throughout the season. We have good goals.”

Bolmer believes that this is the most experienced team that he has coached at Dodge City. Whether it is the most talented is yet to be seen.

The Red Demons return their top five runners from last year’s squad. Seniors Marcelo Cruz, Alex Ultreras, Brett Groth and Jason Luft all ran at state last year along with sophomore Javier Marquez.

Ultreras was the Red Demons top runner at state last fall as he finished in 22nd place. Cruz placed in the top 20 at state in 2014 and set a new school record with a time of 15:54 last year when the Red Demons traveled to Hays.

Cruz, Luft, Ulteras and Groth all finished in the top 15 at last year’s regional championship meet.

“Most of the kids stayed in good shape running this summer, staying healthy and getting fit,” Bolmer said. “When the season starts, we can hit the ground running.”

Dodge City will begin their season on Sept. 3 when they travel to Wichita.

SCHEDULE

Sept. 3 at Wichita-Bishop Carroll. 9 a.m.

Sept. 8 at Hesston

Sept. 15 at Forth Hays State University. 5:15 p.m.

Sept. 24 at Lawrence. 8 a.m.

Oct. 1 at Newton. 9:30 a.m.

Oct. 8 at Salina Central. 10 a.m.

Oct. 13 at HOME. 3 p.m.