Newton boys harriers finish seventh at Steve Johnson Invitational
Oct. 2—WAVERLY — Senior Leo Friedman led Newton's boys' cross country team for the first time this season.
And his personal-best performance came on the course his mother, Robyn Friedman, competed on so many times during her years at Wartburg College.
The best 5K of Leo Friedman's prep career guided the Cardinals to a seventh-place finish at the Steve Johnson Invitational on Saturday.
Newton scored 226 points in seventh. There were 27 teams competing in the boys' orange 5K race at Wartburg College.
"Overall, a fantastic day at the races," Newton boys cross country coach Steve Weeks said. "The course is pretty flat, has amazing competition that you must rise to and the weather finally becoming cool makes for the perfect storm of amazing racing. It's great to see the guys' faces as they post amazing times and see all of their hard work pay off."
Six of the seven varsity runners posted personal-best times and four others who competed in the JV race also had career-best performances.
Friedman's career-best time of 17 minutes, 42.23 seconds scored him a 30th-place finish. Javin Doland finished 33rd in a career-best 17:53.17.
"Both Leo and Javin Doland joined the '17 Club' today," Weeks said. "It was most especially exciting to see Leo become the first Cardinal to finish at the home course where his mother, prolific runner Robyn Friedman, went to school."
Landon Menninga (18:11.44), Presley Arnold (18:15.95) and Collin Buchli (18:21.7) were the final scoring runners in 52nd, 56th and 64th, respectively.
Christian Buchli (18:32.62), Jesus Murillo (18:40.08) and Asher Wood (20:20.61) all were non-scoring varsity runners and they placed 75th, 87th and 152nd, respectively.
Joining Leo Friedman and Doland with personal-best times were Arnold, Murillo and the Buchli brothers. Lance Zaabel, Kenny Skinner-Havens, Gentry Swarts and Ethan Comer turned in personal-best times in the JV race.
Cole Walter was the top JV finisher and he was clocked in 20:13.61.
"Overall, it was a fantastic day with amazing results for such a great group of boys," Weeks said.
Bettendorf won the boys' orange 5K team title with 111 points. Indianola also scored 111, but the Bulldogs were first because of a better sixth runner.
Class 3A No. 20 Center Point-Urbana (149) edged 3A No. 16 South Tama County (150) for third.
Class 3A No. 5 Tommy Tyynismaa of South Tama won the boys' orange 5K race in 15:59.6.
