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DUNLAP - The team that arguably stood out the most in Saturday's Elkhart Central Boys Cross Country Sectional was Wawasee, because of the bright, gaudy yellow T-shirts they wore.
Think back to the Pittsburgh Pirate banana uniforms of the late 1970s and you'll get the picture.
But style of dress was only one of two reasons Wawasee stood out.
Wawasee also stood out in the race. The Warriors, who went 15-1 in the regular season, finished as the 1998 sectional champions by edging Goshen 82-83 in the 11-team race at Ox Bow Park.
The cross country sectional title is the first in Wawasee school history.
"Maybe I'm always a pessimist, but you always think, Did we peak out last week?" Wawasee coach Dave Stookey said. "You think that, but you hope that isn't the case.
"This was like last week's conference meet. You think you have a shot at it, but it's not like you come in here knowing you're going to win it. The guys are more confident than I am."
Stookey has refrained from calling this Wawasee's best cross-country team in history. Instead, he brings up the teams from 1987 and 1988. For now he calls those the best teams. He considers this team second-best.
But as each week goes on, the 1998 team is trying to make Stookey's decision harder.
"Even when we had those good teams in the late 1980s," Stookey said, "I think we always lost to an outstanding Westview team in the sectional."
Last week Wawasee's cross country team won its first NLC title since 1995.
Now the Warriors win what is believed to be their first sectional title.
Both times Goshen hounded the Warriors, only to fall short. At the NLC Tournament, Wawasee beat Goshen 61-65.
When asked about the sectional earlier in the week, the one team Stookey fretted about was Goshen. Not only is Goshen talented, the Redskins now had incentive to beat Wawasee.
Out of 77 runners, Wawasee placed four in the top 17, while its fifth runner took 37th. Goshen placed three in the top 20, while its fourth runner took 27th and fifth runner 33rd.
Goshen's Andrew McKalips and Jon McKalips took first and second respectively with times of 16:48 and 17:03. Wawasee sophomore Rob Chalfant place third with a time of 17:12.
Also for Wawasee, Jeff Moerchen finished 10th with a time of 17:26 and Jerid Stoffel 15th with a time of 17:52. Warrior teammate Pete Melendez took 17th with a time of 17:59, while Curtis Farrell was 37th with a time of 18:36.
"We didn't beat Goshen's 1-2 punch, but our fifth man came up strong," Stookey said. "It seems like we always get something out of somebody we weren't expecting it from.
"We knew Goshen would be up to take this thing. You can't get any closer than what the outcome was."
Chalfant has been an enigma - a most pleasant enigma - for the Warriors. Chalfant is a 5-foot-10, 140-pound dark-complected, articulate kid with blond streaks running through his hair. Only last year as a freshman did he join Wawasee's cross country team.
Most cross country coaches preach the only way to get better is by running during summer vacation. Stookey says Chalfant probably ran less than any Warrior last summer, and Chalfant admits this.
"Uh, yeah, that's true," Chalfant said. "That's true. I started out at the beginning running road races. I live on a lake, so I swam a lot. I didn't really run at all. I didn't feel like it. I didn't care, really. I just decided to try hard when I came back to school."
But here Chalfant is, taking third at the sectional in only his second year in the sport. His times are getting better as the season goes on. Out of Wawasee's three star runners, Chalfant, Moerchen and Stoffel, Chalfant typically finishes first.
"I was really nervous, but I forced myself to stay up at the front," Chalfant said. "I wanted to finish in the top five. I was confident I could stay up there.
"Usually Jerid or Jeff lead. I'll run with them. We try to stick together, but we lose each other in the pack because there's so many people up front. Lately I've been in the front of the pack."
At the front of the pack is where Stookey hopes to find his team at next week's regional, held at Ox Bow Park at 10:45 a.m. Saturday. The top five teams - Wawasee, Goshen, Northridge (108), Elkhart Central (114) and Fairfield (120) - and top 15 individuals move on to the regional.
The regional level is the level where Stookey believes Wawasee has something to prove.
"In the past, it seems like we've had girls and guys teams that falter and don't get out of the regional," he said. "I'm not making any predictions. If we run well, we should be able to get out of the regional. I just hope we get prepared both mentally and physically. Part of it is my responsibility, and part of it is theirs."
Stookey paused, then repeated his thought, as if saying it enough would make it so: "If we run the way we are capable of running, we should get out of the regional."
If the Warriors do that, they will be the first Wawasee team go beyond the regional since the ones from the late 1980s. That team didn't win sectional, but it kept placing high enough to advance to the state finals.
Until that happens, Stookey will continue to measure this 1998 team against those late 1980s teams.
1998 ELKHART CENTRAL CROSS COUNTRY SECTIONAL
Saturday at Ox Bow Park in Dunlap
Course record -ÊSam Frose (Elkhart Central) 15:50, 1986
Boys
Team results - 1. WAWASEE 82, 2. Goshen 83, 3. Northridge 108, 4. Elkhart Central 114, 5. Fairfield 120, 6. Elkhart Memorial 133, 7. NORTHWOOD 142, 8. Concord 153, 9. WARSAW 165, 10. Bethany Christian 311, 11. Jimtown 329
Top 15 times - 1. Andrew McKalips (GOS) 16:48, 2. Jon McKalips (GOS) 17:03, 3. Rob Chalfant (WAW) 17:12, 4. Thomas Wolfe (FF) 17:14, 5. Jacob Wolfe (FF) 17:15, 6. Brady Gibney (EM) 17:16, 7. James Myers (CON) 17:17, 8. Aaron Hoover (NW) 17:19, 9. David Owens (EC) 17:24, 10. Jeff Moerchen (WAW) 17:26, 11. Andrew Balthes (EM) 17:40, 12. Jamie Ellis (FF) 17:47, 13. Daniel Montiel (EC) 17:50, 14. Mark Davidhizar (NW) 17:52, 15. Jerid Stoffel (WAW) 17:52
Other Wawasee results -Ê17. Pete Melendez 17:59, 37. Curtis Farrell 18:36
Other NorthWood results - 19. Jason Meyers 18:02, 44. Andrew Rummel 18:52, 57. Eric Shepherd 19:42
Other Warsaw results -Ê21. Justin Rice 18:04, 31. Don Kennedy 18:22, 32. Chris Gackenheimer 18:22, 39. Mike Jenks 18:41, 42. David Robertson 18:48
The top five teams and top 15 individuals advance to Saturday's 10:45 a.m. regional at Ox Bow Park in Dunlap.
