Lady Tigers Jell In Cross Country

PRAIRIE GROVE GIRLS LOCK DOWN FIFTH

PRAIRIE GROVE -- Prairie Grove cross country head coach Daren Chandler isn't taking the Lady Tiger's fifth place team finish at the 4A cross country state meet for granted.

"The girls have been working hard since June, some longer than that. We finally managed to have a team," Chandler said.

Eight teams didn't post a score at the 4A cross country state meet because they didn't field a full squad. Prairie Grove once would have been in that category until recently when numbers of athletes coming out for cross country has increased.

Prairie Grove junior Bekah Bostian, who came in first across the finish line with a time of 20:03.9, began doing distance running as an eighth-grader. She started with track and field and eventually worked her way up to cross country.

"I wasn't really a fan of it," Beka said. "I watched my sister Abby run it. At first, I thought it wasn't very interesting. Dad got me to try track. After a little while I liked it."

Her father, Prairie Grove assistant cross country coach Keith Bostian remembers the frustration of watching runners place well, but not having a team score due to the lack of numbers.

"A few years there in junior high it would be her, Sarah (Myane) and Megan (Thompson) and another girl that moved off," Keith said. "They would come in 1-2-3, but you got to have five to have a (cross country) team. It's great to have a team now."

The addition of a pair of freshmen to the varsity boosted Tiger times and improved team scores. For the Lady Tigers: Sarah Myane placed 27th in 23:35.4. Megan Thompson was 33rd in 23:59.2. Olivia Stroud was 47th in 25:15.7. Adamaris Lopez was 71st in 26:29.7. Mary Storey was 77th in 26:47.7. Megan Wilkerson was 95th in 28:36.9.

"In late September we saw a lot of improvement," Chandler said. "By taking a couple of young ladies in there we were able to bump up our scores a little bit."

Of the 19 schools which fielded at least a 5-member team, Prairie Grove came in fifth with 179 team points. Heber Springs won the team title with a score of 127. West Fork was second with a 131. Pottsville placed third with 154. Pea Ridge was fourth with 166.

"Megan's been in it for several years," Keith Bostian said. "Sarah Myane (27th in 23:35.4) didn't run last year. She came back and helped us. Libby Stroud, we picked up a sophomore. She really helped us. She didn't run before. Our No. 5 runner was a freshman, Adamaris Lopez (71st in 26:29.7). Halfway through the season we moved her up to senior high."

"I like it when any of our girls improve on their times or any of our runners improve on their times," Keith said. "That's all you can ask for."

Prairie Grove athletic director Joey Sorters gave a nod to Beka Bostian's achievements as well as promise shown by the team.

"Beka has done an awesome job," Sorters said. "She has won it twice and taken second once. I'm very proud of both of our teams. The future should be bright for our cross country teams."

Sports on 11/15/2017