For the first time in 27 years, the bus to the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division III state cross country meet will be filled with both Berkshire Badgers’ cross country teams. The Badger boys finished as the runners-up by scoring 224 points with a 21-31-46-49-67 finish and the girls took third place by scoring 137.0 points with a 3-14-16-46-58 finish at the OHSAA Division III regional meet last Saturday at Boardman High School.
“Last year did not quite end the way we wanted it too and the kids worked tirelessly throughout the year. Hard ork pays off so we are taking a full bus to the state meet with both teams, and we could not be happier,” noted Coach Bryan Wadsworth.
Last Saturday, the Badger boys earned their first state team berth to the OHSAA state meet since 2010, and once again demonstrated a pack-running strategy to earn the right to compete at the OHSAA Division III state meet at Fortress Obetz on Saturday afternoon at 2:20 p.m.
“We will put it together this week and talk about it,” said the fourth-year coach. “We will get down there early and see the course. We are going to give it our all. The stress part of this is done, you made it, so now you just go out there and empty the tank.”
Senior Danny Auth led the Badgers by coming in 22nd place at 16:43.90, followed by junior Aiden Hollingsworth who clinched 32nd place with a time of 16:53.50, sophomore Evan Tromba took 49th place by logging 17:20.90, sophomore Tripp Wadsworth earned 63rd place with a time of 17:38.90 and freshman Ben Townsend captured 71st place by coming in at 17:42.60.
Although Berkshire did not have a runner finish in the top 20, its top five runners were separated by only 58.70 seconds.
According to Coach Wadsworth, he had confidence that once the first Badger runner crossed the finish line, the rest would quickly follow suit, as the Badgers had stayed tight as a pack throughout the season, paving the way for them to earn a spot at the regional meet.
He acknowledged that Berkshire’s pack was spread too far out at the beginning of the race but once they reached the first mile, the Badgers’ pack regrouped and propelled the team to a state berth.
Coach Wadsworth lauded Auth for once again leading Berkshire in another important race.
“He wanted this bad,” he added. “He was motivating the guys and has been a good leader throughout the last month or two. I could not be happier, what a great way to go out as a senior.”
On the girls’ side, Berkshire was fueled by a youth movement as four of the Badgers’ top five runners were freshmen, sending it to the state meet for the first time since 2016.
“You would have a hard time convincing me that four freshmen would be able to have the mental toughness to go ahead and do that,” said Coach Wadsworth. “We are blessed with a group of girls that have experienced success in the last couple of years in junior high and carried that over to varsity.”
Last Saturday, the Badger girls finished only 10 points behind the regional champion Marlington, and will attempt to make up ground one last time when they race at the OHSAA Division III state meet at Fortress Obetz on Saturday afternoon at 1:40 p.m.
“These are tough kids,” Coach Wadsworth added. “We have a heck of a team and to be 10 points away from winning the regional title is exciting.”
Freshman Claire Passow netted third place with a time of 18:45.00, followed by freshman June Dunlap who captured 14th place at 19:42.90, junior Addison Passow finished in 16th place with a time of 19:44.90, freshman Ashlyn Brzozowski earned 47th place at 20:41.80 and freshman Hailey Mitchell wrapped up 63rd place with a time of 21:12.10.
Coach Wadsworth said that Claire ran with the top flight throughout the race but accelerated in the final 250 meters to move up, including picking off Crestwood freshman Luci Maschek to take third place.
“She was fantastic,” he said of Claire. “She was excited about it. She and I have talked about it for a while, what her goals are, and she got it done on Saturday with a tremendous kick to get to third.”
He added that what stood out most about the Badger girls’ historic day was how each of the four freshmen in the top five handled their first varsity regional race.
“They are a tough bunch of kids mentally and they know what they want,” he noted. “They set a goal and worked hard for it.”
As far as Coach Wadsworth was concerned, Berkshire sent a message that the cross country program’s return to prominence will not be a one-year occurrence but a sign of things to come.
“I would say that we are back and these kids are proud to be ones that turned this thing back around and we think it is nothing but up from here,” he said. “They have gotten a taste of what it is like and they want more
