By Cort Reynolds

SPENCERVILLE__The Bluffton High School cross country teams competed at the annual Northwest Conference championship meet in Spencerville on a wet and 53-degree Saturday, October 14.

GIRLS
Junior June Essinger finished a strong sixth in the 45-runner girls field to record the top Lady Pirate showing.

Lincolnview captured the four-team girls league title easily, with Columbus Grove a distant second. Bluffton came in third, one point ahead of Crestview.

Sophomore Brynleigh Moody of Lincolnview won the girls NWC title in a time of 19:22.2.

Bluffton High School girls finishes

Place Runner Class Time

6 June Essinger 11  21:39.6

10 Ella Armstrong 12 22:03.1

19 Amairi Painter 12 24:20.1

32 Kaelin Weissling 12 26:12.1

39 Alayna Mueller 10 28:41.2 

40 Faith Combs 11 29:11.5

Girls NWC team results

1) Lincolnview - 22 points

2) Columbus Grove - 54 

3) Bluffton - 81 

Total time: 2:02:56.10   Average Pirate time: 24:35.22 

4) Crestview - 82

BOYS
In the boys competition, Grove edged Lincolnview 28-33 to claim the league title.

Senior Luke Ellerbrock of Columbus Grove won the boys race in 16:05.2.  

The Pirate boys had three runners compete, two shy of the five required for a team score.

Junior Levi Fenzil finished 11th out of 63 runners in 17:29.7 to post the top Pirate showing.

Bluffton freshman Owen Shoemaker came home 40th in 20:18.3.

Freshman Adam Fritsch ended up 48th in a time of 21:48.0.

Boys NWC team results

1) Columbus Grove - 28 points

2) Lincolnview - 33 

3) Crestview - 81 

4) Leipsic - 112 

5) Spencerville - 144 

6) Allen East - 168