Warsaw standout finishes third at state cross country meet
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Dale Hubler-dhubler@timesuniononline.com
TERRE HAUTE – Ellis Coon, in the words of veteran Warsaw coach Jim Mills, wasn't the greatest cross country runner coming out of middle school. Hard work and dedication, however, allowed Coon to become one of the best runners in the state. Running the final race of his prep career, the Tigers' talented senior finished third Saturday in the 68th annual IHSAA boys cross country state meet, which was held at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course in Terre Haute. Coon, who will run collegiately for NCAA Division I Temple University, finished eighth in the state meet as a junior. On Saturday, he covered the reknowned 5K course in 15:41, finishing behind Terre Haute South senior Jackson Bertoli (15:32) and Greenwood senior David Dalton (15:37). “He's a fierce competitor,” said Mills, whose ninth-ranked Tigers finished 12th out of 24 teams with 337 points. “He got this far through hard work and dedication. When he was a freshman, coming out of middle school, he wasn't one of our best runners. He's really come a long way.” Other runners that figured into Warsaw's five-man score included sophomore Owen Glogovsky (94th, 16:48), junior Daniel Messenger (110th, 16:54), senior Tyler Houvener (129th, 17:09) and junior Nick Bergen (134th, 17:11). Sophomore Jonathan Beres (134th, 17:12) and senior Ryan Goon (206th, 20:22) rounded out Warsaw's seven-man lineup in the 206-person race. Manchester junior Matthew Fahs-Brown competed in the state meet as an individual and finished 60th in a time of 16:27. Top-ranked Carmel won the team title with 64 points, claiming its second-straight state championship. Columbus North finished second with 78 points, followed in the top 10 by Carroll (192), Brebeuf Jesuit (198), Terre Haute South (228), Bloomington South (230), North Central (230), Northridge (234), West Lafayette (244) and Lawrence North (265). While Coon said he was happy with his third-place finish, he also felt horrible for friend and future college teammate Zachery Panning. Panning, a senior at Fort Wayne Concordia, finished second in last year’s state meet. He was favored to win Saturday, and it looked as if he was going to do so. He led the majority of the race, and was in the lead with about 200 meters to go. With a large crowd watching the runners come down the final straightaway to the finish line, Panning slowed and then fell to his knees. After getting up, he fell again. Panning went on to finish the race, drawing loud cheers from the crowd. In a matter of about 30 seconds he went from winning a state championship to finishing 22nd in a time of 15:59. “I’m happy with how my race went,” said Coon, who won the Northern Lakes Conference Meet, as well as individual championships in both the sectional and regional at Culver Academies and the New Prairie Semistate. “I can’t complain about being third, I just wish it would have happened under different circumstances. I feel horrible for Zach. We’ve become really good friends, and to see him go down like that was horrible. I wanted to stop and help him.” Saturday’s race marked Warsaw’s third-straight appearance at state as a team. A season after finishing fourth in the state and graduating all-state runners Jake Poyner (Wake Forest) and Robert Murphy (Vincennes), Warsaw silenced some critics, even after other runners chose not to come out for the team. The Tigers still won the Northern Lakes Conference champions, as well as sectional and regional titles at Culver Academies before finishing second in the New Prairie Semistate. “Every time you can come down here to the state meet it helps build your team for next year,” said Mills. “Our program is on a roll right now. We’re planning on makin it four in a row next year. We want to be here every year.”
BOYS CROSS COUNTRY STATE FINALS LaVern Gibson Championship Course (Terre Haute, 5K)
Team Standings – Carmel 64, Columbus North 78, Carroll 192, Brebeuf Jesuit 198, Terre Haute South 228, Bloomington South 230, North Central 230, Northidge 234, West Lafayette 244, Lawrence North 265, Wesfield 269, Warsaw 337, Munster 347, Bloomington North 359, F.W. Dwenger 369, Zionsville 382, South Adams 390, Valparaiso 416, Crown Point 422, Homestead 452, S.B. Riley 503, South Knox 581, Lake Central 587, Evansville North 606
Top 15 Individuals – 1. Jackson Bertoli (T.H. South) 15:32, 2. David Dalton (Greenwood Comm.) 15:37, 3. Ellis Coon (Warsaw) 15:41, 4. Anthony Didion (LaPorte) 15:43, 5. Bean Veatch (Carmel) 15:44, 6. Cooper Williams (W. Lafayette) 15:44, 7. Bobby Browning (Carmel) 15:47, 8. Clayton Bowie (Southport) 15:48, 9. Mark Beckmann (DeKalb) 15:48, 10. Zack Snider (Brebeuf Jesuit) 15:50, 11. Brian Blaylock (Lowell) 15:50, 12. Andy Carr (Col. North) 15:50, 13. Ben Anderson (Carmel) 15:51, 14. Cameron Clements (Carroll) 15:52, 15. Blake O'Dell (Northride) 15:53
Warsaw – 3. Ellis Coon 15:41, 94. Owen Glogovsky 16:48, 110. Daniel Messenger 16:54, 129. Tyler Houvener 17:09, 134. Nick Bergen 17:11, 138. Jonathan Beres 17:12, 206. Ryan Goon 20:22
Local Individual – 60. Matthew Fahs-Brown (Manchester) 16:27
