Zaruba and Thomann earn all-conference honors

By Jeff Yoder
Posted 10/7/22

With a 14th-place finish of 23:56 at the Southeast Iowa Superconference championships, Erika Thomann earned a spot on the all-conference team, along with Lone Tree sophomore Vivian Zaruba, who finished eighth with a time of 23:00. 

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Zaruba and Thomann earn all-conference honors

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As Erika Thomann began to tire in the final mile of Thursday’s race, she ran past her coach, Angie Strobel, who confirmed that the Highland freshman was in position to claim one of the last two spots on the SEISC all-conference team. 

“It was a little tough,” Thomann said. “I just had to keep reminding myself that I’ve just got to fight.”

With a 14th-place finish of 23:56 at the Southeast Iowa Superconference championships, Thomann earned a spot on the all-conference team, along with Lone Tree sophomore Vivian Zaruba, who finished eighth with a time of 23:00. 

“She’s a hard worker,” Lone Tree coach Tiffany Regan said. “She’s been improving all season and she did well.”

It was the first time on the all-conference team for Zaruba, who was working her way back last season after a surgery. It was the first time running in a conference championship for Thomann.

Thomann enjoyed the loud music playing from the clubhouse as the runners traveled the 5,000 meters around the Twin Lakes golf course. 

“I thought it was pretty easy, honestly,” she said about the course. “Except the last stretch was pretty hard.  I started off not too fast, but at a good pace, and I just kind of kept that pace going through.”

Her fellow freshman Siena Stanerson also placed in the top third with a 20th place finish of 24:40. 

Hillcrest sophomore Micah Gerber led the Raven boys, finishing 22nd with a time of 19:23. Jesse Blossom was 42nd out of 87 runners with a finish of 20:26. 

Hillcrest coach Marty Gingerich said the plan for Gerber was to run even splits and move up throughout the race. 

“At one mile he was 41st and at the two mile he was 28th,” Gingerich said. “It’s harder to gain places during that last mile because everyone else is putting out their last push.

“The course is a little long, so his time will probably convert to be his best effort ever. Jesse did a great job too. He’s going to have his best effort as well as Kyle Neuschwander. Delaney (Shaw) also ran an even pace and equaled or bettered her best effort.”

Shaw finished 31st out of 60 runners in the girls varsity race with a time of 25:50. 

Highland senior Katelyn Waters edged her teammate Halle Hazelett by a second for 49th place with a time of 27:42. 

Sophomore Taylor Alberhasky led the Lone Tree boys with a time of 22:28.

“It’s a little hilly, but it’s pretty nice,” he said about the Winfield course. Alberhasky started near the back of the pack, but moved up to finish 65th. 

“I didn’t really have any strategy, just trying to get up there,” he said. 

He finished one place ahead of Highland junior Jackson Schneider, who led the Husky boys with a time of 22:31. 

Seniors Brendan Schnoebelen of Highland and Jadin Grieser of Lone Tree finished 69th and 70th with times of 23:11 and 23:35. Lone Tree’s Joey Bircher was 75th with a finish of 24:23. 

Highland freshmen Brayden Zywiec and Chase Boshart were 77th and 79th with finishes of 24:28 and 24:38. 

Hillcrest sophomores Jeremiah Danker and Neuschwander were 82nd and 85th with times of 25:54 and 26:23. Highland freshman Chase Hickenbottom was 86th with a time of 27:24. 

The second-ranked team in 2A, Danville/New London, won the boys SEISC championship with 35 points. No. 17 Mediapolis finished second with 53 points led by individual champion Solomon Zaugg with a time of 16:56.

Pekin, ranked No. 6 in 1A, was the winner of the girls championship led by SEISC champion Chloe Gosser. The Panther freshman finished nearly 30 seconds ahead of the field with a winning time of 20:12.

Lone Tree eighth grader Brock Nebergall finished eighth out of 76 boys in the middle school race. He finished the 2-mile course in 12:29. Addy Eiben, a Lone Tree seventh grader, also took eighth in the girls race with a time of 14:28.