Union’s Amilia ‘Millie’ Condon nears the finish line at the North Iowa Cedar League Cross Country Championships on Thursday, Oct. 17, at Jesup Golf and Country Club. Condon, a senior, won the conference title with a final time of 18 minutes, 43.2 seconds, beating her nearest competitor by nearly 24 seconds. PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

JESUP – Union senior cross country runner Amilia ‘Millie’ Condon crossed the finish line firmly in first – something she’s become quite adept at this season – last Thursday, Oct. 17, while competing at the North Iowa Cedar League Championships held on the grounds of the Jesup Golf and Country Club. Nearly 24 seconds later, her nearest competitor did the same.

In her final high school cross country season, Condon is certainly a girl on fire.

Condon finished the meet with a time of 18 minutes, 43.2 seconds, ahead of ninth-ranked Jesup senior Mackenzie Wilson who finished in second with a time of 19:07.0. Third place went to Hudson junior Mollie Hansen who crossed the finish in 19:33.9.

In addition to taking the conference title, Condon also earned first-team All-NICL honors. As of this past Monday, she was ranked fourth in Class 2A individual rankings.

Also at Jesup, Condon’s teammate, junior Sawyer Spence finished in 11th place with a time of 17:06.2 as the top-finisher for the Knights boys team, earning second-team All-NICL honors in the process.

Knights cross country runner Sawyer Spence, right, pushes past Oelwein’s Keshaun Williams while racing toward the finish at the North Iowa Cedar League Cross Country Championships at Jesup Golf and Country Club last Thursday. Spence, a junior, crossed the finish line in 11th place – beating Williams by a fraction of a second – and earning second-team All-NICL honors. PHOTO BY JAKE RYDER

Tonight, Thursday, Oct. 24, the Knights are scheduled to race at Monticello in a 2A state qualifier among several top-ranked girls teams including No. 5 Tipton, No. 8 Denver, No. 12 Waukon, and No. 13 Monticello.

Top individual girls runners scheduled to compete included Tipton senior Noelle Steines who is ranked third ahead of the qualifier and Osage junior Scarlett Byrnes who is ranked fifth.

North Iowa Cedar League Cross Country Championships

At Jesup Golf and Country Club

GIRLS

Team Standings — 1. Hudson 68, 2. Sumner-Fredericksburg 73, 3. Denver 85, 4. Jesup 111, 5. Grundy Center 141, 6. Wapsie Valley 152, 7. Union 167, 8. Dike-New Hartford 182, 9. Aplington-Parkersburg 235, 10. East Marshall 251, 11. Oelwein 271.

Top 10 individuals — 1. Amilia Condon, UNIO, 18:43; 2. Mackenzie Wilson, JES, 19:07; 3. Mollie Hansen, HUD, 19:33; 4. Grace Storjohann, GC, 19:50; 5. Desarae Lang, HUD, 20:01; 6. Ashlynn Sauser, OEL, 20:02; 7. Reeve Ristau, DEN, 20:06; 8. Avery Trunkhill, DEN, 20:06; 9. Ella Steele, HUD, 20:18; 10. Adalynn Kane, WV, 20:24.

BOYS

Team Standings — 1. Oelwein 52, 2. Denver 55, 3. Jesup 77, 4. Dike-New Hartford 175, 5. South Hardin 175, 6. Sumner-Fredericksburg 186, 7. Columbus Catholic 201, 8. Union 233, 9. Hudson 258, 10. East Marshall 267, 11. Wapsie Valley 276, 12. Grundy Center 282, 13. Aplington-Parkersburg 303, 14. Gladbrook-Reinbeck 314.

Top 10 individuals — 1. Emerson Vokes, GC, 15:34; 2. Conall Sauser, OEL, 16:14; 3. Jesse Gomez, DEN, 16:22; 4. Myles Matthias, DEN, 16:26; 5. Aidan Brady, WV, 16:30; 6. Nathan Pint, JES, 16:34; 7. Karsten Nuehring, JES, 16:47; 8. Jace Matern, WC, 16:49; 9. Caden Knoblock, DEN, 16:52; 10. Caleb Schunk, OEL, 16:59.