Terre Haute, Indiana - Thunderstorms held off for a big day of racing at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course, as teams from around the state competed in the Terre Haute Savings Bank State Preview meet.
Races for the day included boys and girls 1A-3A high school, varsity, open, and middle school sections.
The excitement peaked in the boys varsity race as the event proved to be a battle from start to finish. Dylan Zeck from Terre Haute North took the race out quick and held a commanding lead for 3k of the 5k race. The chase pack of Jimmy Dillabaugh, Mason Nobles from Valparaiso and Matthew Helton from Zionsville reeled Zeck in and made it a kick to the finish with 400 meters to go. Dillabaugh came away with the individual title, clocking in at 15:59.1. Nobles (15:59.2) and Helton (15.59.5) finished in second and third places, both less than a second off from first place.
In the team standings, Helton's third place finish helped lead Zionsville to first place with 45 points. Dillabaugh and Nobles' low scores helped the Vikings finish second with 68 points, only one point ahead of the team from Fishers placing third with 69 points.
Boys Varsity Team Standings:
1. Zionsville - 45
2. Valparaiso - 68
3. Fishers - 69
4. Center Grove - 108
5. Crown Point - 214
6. Guerin Catholic - 243
7. Castle - 247
8. Pike - 259
9. Wabash - 274
10. Mooresville - 283
11. Cathedral - 320
12. Terre Haute South - 336
13. Danville - 351
14. Terre Haute North - 353
15. Highland - 378
16. Horizon Christian - 394
17. Mater Dei - 447
18. Tecumseh - 546
19. Clay City - 636
In Varsity Girls action, Bridget Gallagher from Guerin Catholic led the field from the gun, running solo on the tough LaVern Gibson course. Gallagher clocked in at 19:30.1, outpacing second place Grace Thomas (19:53.3) from Valparaiso by 23 seconds and third place Grace Bragg (20:13.2) from Cathedral.
In the team scores, the Valparaiso squad scored 40 points to win the team title. The Center Grove Trojans placed second with 67 points, and the girls from Cathedral placed third with 78 points.
Girls Varsity Team Standings:
1. Valparaiso - 40
2. Center Grove - 67
3. Cathedral - 78
4. Crown Point - 130
5. Guerin Catholic - 140
6. Highland - 184
7. Western Boone - 190
8. Castle - 214
9. Pike - 281
10. Terre Haute North - 295
11. Terre Haute South - 296
12. Mooresville - 332
13. Mater Dei - 348
14. Evansville Memorial - 381
In the 1A-3A sections, Heritage Christian won both the boys and girls team titles, scoring 46 points in the girls race and 66 points in the boys race. The Barr-Reeve girls placed second with 76 points and Seeger placed third with 83 points, while the Evensville Memorial boys placed second with 89 points and Barr-Reeve third with 109 points. Individual winners for the 1A-3A races included girls champion Peyton Smith (19:45.7) from Linton Stockton and from the boys race, Alex Raber (17:19.9) of Heritage Christian.
Full results from the Hometown Savings Bank State Preview can be found at the results page on the MileSplit Indiana website.