Cross country landscape going through changes as big names have graduated

Collegiate had to hold three separate cross country practices in 2017 on a regular basis.

The Spartans weren’t working out three times a day. Their talent was just that diverse, and it started at the top with Lakelin Conrad.

“When he was doing a workout, unless we brought over some college kids, there wasn’t going to be anybody who could run with him,” coach Clark Ensz said. “Then we had our really good runners, and then we had the rest of the team.”

Conrad has graduated from Collegiate and will compete for TCU in the fall. But his time as a Spartan helped him become one of the most well-known names in running in Wichita. That type of athlete is what Collegiate, and several other programs in the area, have to replace in 2018.

Conrad won three cross country state championships, three track and field titles and a team championship as a freshman. He graduated as one of the most decorated athletes in Collegiate history, and Ensz said he acted like one, too.

“Lakelin was a really good leader, not just a great runner,” he said. “He took that role very seriously. This year, we really don’t know who the leaders are going to be. That’s what is going to be fun about this year.”

Ensz said there is no replacing a talent like Conrad, but there are benefits to 2018’s team. For starters, the Spartans get to train together.

“We had 10 guys this morning that were pretty close in their abilities,” Ensz said. “But I can work with 10 guys now and have them push each other and work as a team. It’s funny. It’s a complete different environment.”

Collegiate wasn’t close to a team cross country title last year. In fact, only two Spartans qualified for state, including Conrad. But Collegiate did win its league championship and will have an opportunity to grow more holistically this season.

The Spartans aren’t alone.

At Circle, the Thunderbirds are coming off a rare state championship. The boys captured the school’s first cross country title since 1983.

Circle hasn’t had much team success in any sport in recent years. There is a boys bowling title in 2015, and that’s it. The cross country title in 2017 was the second state championship at Circle. It was a big deal.

“As a coach, you don’t get those opportunities very often; they just don’t happen every year,” coach Gary Wartick said. “To get a group of guys together that talented that love to compete, it just does not happen, and any cross country coach will tell you that. So it was a pretty special time for everybody.”

Avery Stuever led that charge. Stuever became one of the fixtures of Circle athletics over his career with his long, curly hair and knack for competing for state championships. Stuever finished fourth at the Class 4A state meet, only 18 seconds behind Conrad.

Wartick said not to worry. Stuever was great for Circle and the Thunderbirds’ cross country team. But they will still be right there come late October.

“Emmitt (Keller), Ryan Derry and Eli Jacobson —- those guys are phenomenal,” he said. “They are going to be front-runners in every meet. We lost one, but we still have a whole group of guys that can be just as good.”

Andover Central seems the team most likely to give Circle a push at a repeat. The Jaguars finished just five points behind the title-winners in second.

Andover Central has never won a team title and never had an individual finished atop the podium. But that could change — soon.

Matthew Maki was the Jaguars’ highest finisher at the 4A meet last year. He came in ninth, but he has graduated. That might not matter because junior Kale Flores is just behind him.

Flores finished 10th. He was the second highest-placing sophomore in the field. Coach Kevin Wiebe said the Jaguars won’t return everybody from last year’s state roster, and that has him a bit worried.

“On the guys’ side, I don’t know where our team sits right now,” he said. “We still have some really strong runners, and we’re bringing up a couple, so they might step up in there. I’d love to tell you that we’re looking to take that next step, but now I’m kind of hesitant to say that.”

Other key losses from the Wichita area include Maize’s Nathan Jones, who finished fourth in Class 5A; El Dorado’s Cale Carson, the 4A 800-meter state champion and third-place finisher in 4A cross country; and Maize South’s Bryce Merriman, a Wichita State-bound distance runner who got the Mavericks an 3,200-meter relay title and a 14th-place finish in 5A.

Wartick, the Circle coach, said the Wichita area will miss all the talent that was groomed over the years, but he won’t miss finishing behind many of those names.

“I believe there is talent in every school walking down the hallways,” Wartick said. “That just needs to be asked to run.”

This story was originally published August 16, 2018 at 6:37 PM.