The Bluffton High School boys cross country team will be returning to the OHSAA finals at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, November 5 at Fortress Obetz, south of Columbus.

Cross country coach Bill Theisen told the Icon that team is ready to run its best times. “We really plan for peaking at regionals and holding that to state.”

Twenty teams with seven runners and many individuals will compete, creating a field of 300 or more runners. Theisen explained, “If you want to do well, you’ve got to get out pretty fast. It’s a lot like regionals because that has 200 runners.”

The Bluffton team includes four seniors and one freshman:

Armstrong, Landon - 12

Derstine, Sam - 12

Jordan, Liam - 11

Nygaard, Erik - 12

Rehm, Jonah - 12

Sehlhorst, Landon - 9

Yoder, John Paul - 11

Regarding the this year’s roster, Theisen noted, “We’ve got a great team, they’ve worked together really hard and get along really well. It’s been a fun team to work with.” He added, “If somebody’s down, somebody else runs real well and they pull each other up. Even though there’s an individual aspect to it, there’s a lot of teamwork that goes on.”

Tickets for the event are available at https://www.ohsaa.org/tickets

OHSAA Live results will be posted on http://live.finishtiming.com/meets/501208/events