TERRE HAUTE — Columbus North went into Saturday’s Boys Cross Country State Finals expecting a close battle for the team championship.
What they didn’t foresee was to win in dominating fashion.
The top-ranked Bull Dogs put five runners in the top 26 and ran away with the title. They scored 63 points to 112 for runner-up Carmel and 126 for third-place Brebeuf Jesuit.
“Not in our wildest dreams,” North boys coach Danny Fisher said of the margin of victory. “We came over here expecting to get a battle, and we did. The other teams ran pretty well. We just exceeded our expectations today.”
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The 63 points scored by the Bull Dogs ties the lowest winning score since North scored that many in winning the 2003 title. The Bull Dogs also won state titles in 2002 and from 2009-11.
Saturday, North left no doubt.
“That was the best team race we’ve had that I can remember ever,” junior Reese Kilbarger-Stumpff said. “It’s fantastic. I’m still kind of processing it.”
Kilbarger-Stumpff was one of a few Bull Dogs to run their best races ever. He finished fourth in 15 minutes, 44.3 seconds on the 5,000-meter (3.1-mile) LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course.
“The past couple weeks, I was like, “I’m going to try to go for top five,’” Kilbarger-Stumpff said. “It was kind of like a ‘maybe’ type thing or ‘hopefully.’ I didn’t honestly know if it was going to happen, and it worked out.”
Senior Austin Pulkowski, who has been the Bull Dogs’ No. 4 or 5 runner for most of the season, was their second finisher at state. He came in 16th in 16:03.0.
Pulkowski’s final kilometer was the second-fastest in the entire race behind winner Izaiah Steury of Angola.
“Coach put my ‘A’ goal as finishing in the top 30, and I finished in the top 20,” Pulkowski said. “I never would have thought all my hard work would come to this. For the past week, I’ve been stretching more, and I cut quite a bit of sugar out. I’m glad to see it paid off.”
North’s 3, 4 and 5 runners came in within 2.3 seconds of each other. Senior Andy Stohr took 22nd in 16:05.2.
“I’m really proud of my team,” Stohr said. “I fell off a little bit, but they were all there for me. Everyone ran so well.”
Junior Matt Newell was 23rd in 16:05.5 to earn All-State honors for the second year in a row. Newell, who finished 14th last year, missed most of this season with a strained hamstring.
Newell returned for the regional meet, and has seen an increase in health through the semistate and state meets.
“It’s been a process,” Newell said. “Maybe I’m not where I would have been, but I’m definitely healthy here today, and I feel like I definitely did my job. This is what we’ve been working for. This is what we’ve been dreaming of. I couldn’t ask for more.”
Junior Evan Carr missed the final All-State spot by four-tenths of a second. He finished 26th in 16:07.5.
“Getting in that top 25 was definitely one of my individual goals for this race,” Carr said. “I would have loved to have gotten 25th and been our third guy, but it’s awesome to have been up in that pack and be our No. 5. I’m glad that our team stepped up.”
Junior Will Kiel finished 46th in 16:27.8. Senior Collin Pruitt was 51st in 16:31.0.
“I never would have thought seven guys would have run as a team and run that well together, and at the end of the day, that’s what you’re most proud of,” Fisher said. “They ran as one unit and not as seven individuals. To generalize our race plan, we want to be the smartest team that first mile; the second mile, try to get into position and the third mile, we talk about just running for your teammates.”
Meanwhile, Jennings County senior Gavin Hendrix competed as an individual. He finished 88th in 16:50.9.
