Bay County cross country meet set for Saturday

A letdown of technology and fading memories can sometimes provide for a bad mix.

The Bay County cross country championship takes place on Saturday, and many coaches believe both the boys and girls champions will be fast. So fast in fact, that they may set records. Only trouble is, no one can pinpoint exact times due to sporadic News Herald archives and lack of historical documentation among coaches.

What’s known is Rutherford’s Tyler Williams set the mark in 2004, the first time the county meet was contested at five kilometers, according to Bay coach Tim Wanamaker. Williams’ time was believed to be around 16 minutes, 20 seconds, said former Rams coach Fred Wester.

The top time on the girls side also isn’t known, but coaches said they would dig into filing cabinets in hopes of finding the answers. In any case, what should transpire at the Lynn Haven Recreation Center Saturday morning should be exciting, to say the least.

One certainty is there will be new county champions for both the boys and girls. Former back-to-back champions Tommy Heikkinen of Rutherford and Lauren Vonderharr of Arnold have graduated.

The boys race should come down to a battle between Bay’s Gabe Holguin and Mosley’s Frankie Menna and Phil Cochran. The group has been tightly bunched, although Holguin has yet to lose to the Dolphin duo. Holguin’s best time this season was 16:06.

The girls champion could be decided between Mosley’s Sydney Newsom and Arnold’s Mikayla Hodges. The runners have flip-flopped higher finishes over the past four weeks.

Arnold and Mosley figure to battle each other for the team title on both sides.

Arnold’s boys have the edge, due to a strong team and also the loss of Mosley’s No. 3 runner Michael Kiefer to plantar fasciitis. Mosley’s girls have the inside track to repeat as county champions barring a major stumble.

This is the first time the meet will be held at the Lynn Haven Rec Center. Past events have been held in Callaway and at Harder’s Park.

Coaches and runners preferred holding the county championship in Lynn Haven. The course features two loops, and is more spectator- and coach-friendly.

The girls start at 9 a.m., followed by the boys at 9:45. All junior varsity competitors will face off in an open competition at 10:30.