Sunday, October 31, 2010
By Jon Moffett
Boardman
It’s been said that all good things must come to an end.
Unfortunately, for boys Coach Ted Rupe and the Maplewood High cross country team, that day came Saturday at the regional meet.
For the first time in 20 years, the Rockets failed to qualify as a team for the state meet in Columbus. An emotional Rupe said it was hard to swallow, but knew it would come someday.
“The guys ran very, very strong today,” he said. “They went out there and knew the odds were stacked against them. That [leader] board over there kind of shows it. I think this was state meet today.”
The Maplewood boys finished ninth overall in Div. III. The top four teams qualified for the state meet in Columbus next weekend.
“All eight schools on that board could go to state and finish in the top 10,” Rupe said. “I think that’s how good this regional [competition] was, and our guys knew that.”
Longtime running rival McDonald High qualified in second place. The history between the Rockets and the Blue Devils, which are coached by Rupe’s brother Chris, has been one of the more intriguing elements on high school cross country for years.
But Rupe said he knew it would be tough for his team to push McDonald, who will send seven runners.
“It was just going to be difficult, if not impossible, for them to qualify,” Rupe said. “But they just knew they had to go out and run as hard as they could. And they did.”
“Every time I saw them, and somebody was yelling for them, they would just put there heads down and just go to town and do everything they could. And I give them a lot of credit for all the work they’ve done this season, and all the races they’ve ran this season.”
Rupe said he was behind the eight ball early this year because of the youth of his team. Maplewood graduated four of its top five runners, Rupe said.
Sophomore Wyatt Hartmann was the only Rocket runner to qualify.
“You’d love to see something like the streak continue,” a teary-eyed Rupe said. “But what it’s all about is seeing these kids get better. And they did. It was fantastic to see that.”