SPRINGFIELD – The Greenville Cross Country teams started the 2026 season with a strong showing at the Northwestern Warrior Classic on Saturday August 29. In a race consisting of 146 runners from 17 schools the boys team placed 2nd just 10 points behind the team from Hilliard Darby and 24 points ahead of 3rd place Miami East. Sophomore CT McRill paced the Green Wave with a time of 17:54 placing 7th overall. Also placing were Jack Fitzgerald 17th, Oliver Weaver 19th, Connor Price 31st and Blaze Burton 34th.
Not to be outdone by the boys, the girl’s team also placed second overall with 117 points just one less than the 118 scored by the team from Bethel. Freshman Kinsey Fiora was the leading scorer for the Lady Wave placing 5th with a time of 21:28. Following Kinsey to the finish line were Sami Elam 16th, Lydia Force 30th, Meredith Hunt 43rd, Leah Force 44th and Jordyn Lopez 57th out of a field of 126 runners.
Coach Eckstein noted “it’s was great to get the season started this morning and get a feel for where we are with our race times. The team had a solid summer of training but workout times don’t always directly relate to race times when you get to go up against competition from other schools. From what I saw today we are improving on where we ended last season, I expect even greater improvements as we add race experience over the next two months.”
Next up for the Green Wave is their home meet, the Treaty City Invitation held in the Greenville City Park. The community is invited to come out Saturday, September 5 to cheer the team as Greenville host 30 schools and 1000 Middle School through High School athletes to the park. Races start at 8:30 AM and there is no admission charge to attend.
