End of the (finish) line

Holman, Horn lead Herders at State cross country finals 

Rain, sun, wind, heat and mud made for a typical season of cross country for Glenrock High School. The heat was definitely on in terms of competition over the weekend when the Herders’ small program took on the biggest mountain of all – the best in 3A  Oct. 25 at the State Championships at Little America in Cheyenne.

The Herders were 11 runners strong this year, a journey in which everyone set a personal record. There will be many PRs in the future as just two of those graduate as the Herd will bring back a wealth of experience for head coach Chris Gray.

The GHS boys’ future is as bright as the sunshine beating down on the hundreds of runners competing for medals. All seven boys ran well and will all return next August.

Koi Horn has been fantastic since arriving at the varsity level a year ago. The sophomore led the team and was 22nd out of 101 racing with a time of 18 minutes, 43.16 seconds.

Ethan Rayo of Buffalo is this year’s king of the course when he posted a 16:44.00. Sam Cunningham of Newcastle was second overall in 17:05.37, just an eyelash in front of Colt Madsen from Mountain View at 17:05.51.

Owen Partridge wrapped up a season of many gains by finishing just five spots back of Horn. The junior beat his State time from last year and was second on the team in 18:52.14.

Michael Schowengerdt was third for GHS and had an incredible day. The junior broke the 19-minute mark for the first time and beat his State time from 2024 by nearly three minutes with a personal-record time of 19:43.66.

Fourth on squad and posting a quality time was Haiden Ward. The junior ran faster than last year as well and clocked a 19:58.74.

Colter Lewis was a welcomed addition and dialed a good season at State. The junior completed the three miles in 20:39.19.

Sophomore Nick Ticknor ran more than a minute faster than State last season when he stopped the watch at 22:19.18. Freshman Ethan Stanfield made his 3A debut a good one and delivered a time to chase next year at 22:30.77.

Mountain View captured the team State title with 52 points, 25 ahead of runner-up Buffalo at 77. Glenrock ran its way to near the middle of the pack in 10th with 229.

On the girls’ side, Gillian Holman led by example in bringing her two-year career to a solid close. The senior, who set two PRs this season, was the fastest Herder at 24:05.20.

Karee Cooley of Powell earned the individual State title with a 19:06.50. Dorothy Jensen of Lander second overall at 19:30.44, Hailie Schramm of Cody third best at 19:54.55.

Kennley Blackburn set three personal bests this year and proved her future is very bright. The sophomore was second on her team and clocked a 24:39.60.

Lucy Ticknor, the only four-year letterman in the program, had the best day of all Herders. The senior made her last one a great one by breaking her personal record for the third time and beat her State time from a year ago by almost two minutes at 25:02.0.

“Physically, I felt fine until half way into mile three when I realized I went out too fast on mile one. The first mile was no resistance so I went faster than planned. I’m pleased with how I finished,” Lucy Ticknor said. She said it was a good way to finish the day, the season and career after four years of putting in work away from wrestling.

“Physically, we lift weights, run two-a-days and put in work during the summer,” she said. “Mentally, I focus on perseverance when I get tired by remembering people are watching or using others as competition.”

Maggie Halvorsen thrived with a time cut as well by shaving more than a minute from last October. The sophomore crossed the finish line in 26:37.50, and will be the only veteran back for 2026 among the girls.

In the team standings, Cody won the championship once again with 35 points, 17 ahead of Powell at 52. GHS was one runner shy of a score.

It’s the end of the careers for two girls and just another chapter in the story for everyone else. Ticknor and Holman are thankful for lessons and support, and will pass the leadership role onto the future of the program.

“Coach Gray is helpful, he’s there during school and on top of our grades,”Ticknor said. “He’s flexible about injuries. He has helped in my recovery and helped me be a better overall athlete.”