Tyrone senior Garin Hoy had a successful run at States on November 7, placing 47th out of a field of 133 runners. Hoy’s performance capped a very successful post-season for the Tyrone boys and girls cross country teams.

Head Coach Tammy Wills was thankful that the season was able to happen with all of the uncertainty caused by the pandemic.

“Back in August, we weren’t even sure there would be a season. We were thankful to just start practice. Week after week it was masks, daily temperature checks, and social distancing, a season like no other,” said Wills. “I am so proud of each and every one of [the runners]. This is a special group and I will miss our seniors all dearly. I know we have a long way to go, but I am already looking forward to spending next season with our returning runners.”

Hoy was the top runner for the team this year. He qualified for states by placing 12th overall at the District 6 championship with a time of 17:20.

“I had a lot of fun at districts. With a big push by the competition, I was able to break my personal record for states. I’m excited for my final race at Hershey” said Hoy on making it to the state championship race.

The rest of the team also had a very successful post-season at the District 6 championships, which for most runners is the biggest race of the season.

The boys team came ready to compete placing sixth in the AA category.

Second to Hoy was junior Adam Detwiler placing 25th overall with a time of 18:48. The third was senior Blaine Hoover placing 28th overall with a time of 18:59. Fourth was senior Ian Imler placing 36th overall with a time of 20:00. Fifth was senior Andrew Savino placing 46th overall with a time 20:55. Sixth was junior heRory Quigley placing 54th overall with a time of 22:43. Coming in seventh for the team was senior Colin Yaudes placing 56th overall with a time of 22:56.

Sophomore Beth Pearson led the girls squad placing 17th overall with a time of 21:44. Next was junior Marissa Lewis placing 30th overall with a time of 23:16, and not far behind was junior Stephanie Ramsey placing 33rd overall with a time of 24:02.

Before districts, the boys and girls teams took a trip to Penns Valley to try and fulfill their goal of winning the Mountain League Championship. The team placed 3rd overall, losing only to the Penns Valley Rams and the Bellefonte Red Raiders.

Leading the boys team at Mountain League Championships was Hoy, placing 3rd place with a time of 17:42. Coming in second was junior Adam Detwiler placing 11th with a time of 19:03. Third was senior Ian Imler placing 14th with a time of 19:31. Not far behind was senior Blaine Hoover placing 15th with a time of 19:33. Coming in fifth was Rory Quigley placing 25th with a time of 21:39. Finishing sixth was senior Andrew Savino placing 30th with a time of 22:24. Coming in seventh was senior Colin Yaudes placing 33rd with a time of 23:38.

Leading for the girls team was sophomore Beth Pearson placing 7th with a time of 22:38. Second was junior Marissa Lewis placing 14th with a time of 24:14. Not far behind was junior Stephanie Ramsey placing 17th with a time of 25:26. Coming in fourth was senior Paige Webster placing 30th with a time of 31:17. Coming in fifth was senior Laura Kohler placing 31st with a time of 31:34. Then right behind was freshman Ayliah Riling placing 32nd with a time of 33:01.

Then the team also traveled to Logan Elementary School in Altoona to compete in the Blair/Huntingdon county race. All the teams in those counties all showed up to compete individually for a personal record. Senior Garin Hoy placed 1st winning the entire race.

Assistant Coach Randy Wilson noted that through all the adversity, the team really came together this year and made it a special season.

“Everyone had a positive attitude during the season. We improved so much. We seemed to have some injuries this year which is unexpected, but we had runners step up to the challenge,” said Tyrone Assistant Coach Randy Wilson. “We will be losing a lot of great seniors who have taken the underclassmen under their wing. This year the team bonded exceptionally well. Our goal is to rebuild for next year since we’re losing eight seniors. There will be some big shoes to fill next year, but we’re confident we have athletes coming up to do that.”