The MVL boys cross country team hit off the start of the week winning a meet at the rivalry school of Mount Vernon, the Solon Spartans. Finishing first in the meet was sophomore Grady Olberding with a time of 16:44.3. Trailing behind him was Tipton Tigers Clay Bohlman with a time of 17:08.5. Finishing in 6th place was MVL Senior Junior Krob with a time of 17:49.3. 

When the runners arrived at the meet, they warmed up as a team. After they warmed up, MVL Boys Coach Cory Swart broke the runners down into groups and told them who they should be running with. The day before the meet, it rained all day, but surprisingly the course wasn’t too muddy, but it was warm. “Many of us had to really hydrate ourselves throughout the day to make sure we were in good condition for the meet,” senior Zach Fall said. 

During the meet it was around 80 degrees out, so it was pretty hot. It helped that half of the course was covered under trees. This gave the runners plenty of shade and helped them finish the race. “The hardest part of the course was definitely the final mile because everyone tends to get tired,” senior Ryne Moeller said.

The Mount Vernon – Lisbon boys team finished in first with a total of 46 points. Coming in second was then the Tipton Tigers, with a total of 48 points. Following them were the Solon Spartans with 62 points. Fourth at the meet was Central Dewitt with 78 points.

“Grady is a super hard worker and will be an amazing runner for the future of MVL Cross Country,” said Fall.

Other than the boys winning, the Girls MVL Cross Country finished in first, as well as the JV boys.