This past Saturday, three EBC cross country teams plus some individual qualifiers competed at the Division II State Cross Country Meet. Once again, our conference was up to the challenge!

Minerva Girls WON their THIRD state title in the last four years! (In 2022, they finished 4th.)
Salem Girls finished 11th, after finishing 8th in 2023, 5th in 2022, and 4th in 2021!
Minerva Boys finished 17th, after finishing 18th in 2023, 17th in 2022, and 16th in 2021.

Congratulations to all these EBC teams; we are so proud to be a part of such an outstanding conference!

Competing for West Branch as an individual for the second year in a row was senior Clarice Martin. She is only the third female runner in WBXC history to compete at the State Meet, and last year she was the first runner to do so since 2002! 

Martin ran a great race in a super-competitive field, placing 74th out of 178 girls (top 41%). She ran a 19:53, which is her 8th-fastest career time. One of only three WB girls to ever run the 5k in the 19:00's, Martin accomplished this 10 times during her high school years!

Also, like last year, due to her dedication in the classroom AND qualifying for State, Martin again earned the honor of "Academic All-Ohio" from the Ohio Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches!

Congratulations to Clarice on a fantastic season AND career, both on and off the course! All of us--the Little Warriors Distance Squad members, the middle school runners, the high school runners, and the coaches--will miss Clarice's leadership and passion for running. She will leave a legacy that will be honored by WBXC runners for years to come!

Last but not least--thank you to all who made the trip to Columbus to support Clarice! Thank you also to all of the teammates, parents, and fans who cheered her on from back home!

Pictured below:
1.) Clarice and her awesome sheet sign designed by her mom, featuring WBXC's theme!
2.) State Meet Fans: Luke Williams, Coach Ostheimer, Becky Hinchliffe, Maxine Hinchliffe, Summer Fritz, Kristi Williams, Logan Williams, Clarice Martin, Carter Fritz, Annie Williams, Darleen Martin, Coach Cederbloom, Wesley Martin, Coach Teague, and Jim Martin. Missing from the photo is Mr. Coffee who also made the trip down to Columbus!