Stutzman, Wallington qualify for M-P

Nick Moffitt
Posted 10/31/19

Nathan Wallington was on the verge of quitting cross country in seventh grade. Instead he put in the work to become a state-qualifier as a freshman. After running two miles in 17:09, he finished in …

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Stutzman, Wallington qualify for M-P

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Nathan Wallington was on the verge of quitting cross country in seventh grade. Instead he put in the work to become a state-qualifier as a freshman. 

After running two miles in 17:09, he finished in last place of 41 runners in his class and grade at the 2017 middle school state meet. 

“It was because I had friends and teammates that kept me in it,” Wallington said. 

After continuing to run, Wallington got better and better. It paid off on Thursday as he finished his qualifying 5k in 17:47, at a pace of 5:43 per mile.

“It felt great. It felt like everything I trained all summer for and I hope I can do well (at state),” Wallington said. 

Wallington was the second qualifier across the line for Mid-Prairie as Jamison Stutzman had crossed the finish line in 10th place. 

Stutzman said crossing the finish line knowing he was going to state was an emotional moment. 

“That was a really huge feeling; it was just like really sank in during that moment,” he said. “I had prepared for that and I knew I was capable of going to state, but it felt like a huge weight was off my shoulders.”

Stutzman ran a 17:37, his second fastest time this season and nearly 30 seconds faster than his previous race. 

He said he hung back behind the leading pack during the first mile, letting other kids go out fast. Then he started to make a move. 

Stutzman said he moved into around that 10th position in the second mile and held on to it the rest of the race. 

After the race, there was some conflicting feelings according to Stutzman. While he and Wallington had qualified, the Golden Hawks were fifth as a team, meaning their team season was over. 

“It was kind of also bittersweet because my teammates didn’t make it,” he said. 

Lucas Bontrager finished 16th, running three seconds behind Wallington to fall one spot short with a 17:50. 

Chandler Hershberger finished 25th in 18:14, Mose Yoder was 46th in 19:22, Robert Nagy was 69th in 20:13 and Jordan Stock was 73rd in 20:40. 

Four Mid-Prairie boys ran season bests in their district qualifier. Wallington, Yoder, Nagy and Stock all set new bests for their season. 

The Golden Hawks had a team score of 107. The three qualifying teams were Williamsburg at 65 points, Davis County at 75 and Danville-New London at 76. The individual race winner was Davis County runner Kenny Cronin in 16:36.