MIDWAY CROSS COUNTRY A RUNNING TRADITION
Booster Club Coaches Contact Us Directions to meets FAQ History Home Kiwanis Midway Meet Midway Middle School NEWS Pictures Schedule Workout Schedule	Cross Country News

Panthers 6th, Pantherettes 7th at Regional Meet (posted 11-4-2007)

Pantherettes Win District 16-4A Title for 4th straight year, Panthers Second (posted 10-29-2007)

The Midway Pantherettes dominated the District 16-4A cross country championships at Killeen's Long Branch Park en route to their fourth consecutive district team championship.  This is Midway's 20th girls' district championship in 32 years of  cross country competition.  Five Midway girls (Nethika Ariyasinghe, Alex Hensel, Lindsey Low, Erica Caffey, and Dana Neeper) finished in the top 6, with Erin Kelbly (12th) and Dani Meyer (15th) completing the runaway.  This was Ariyasinghe's 3rd consecutive top-5 finish at district, and she was only 5 seconds behind the individual champion.  Freshman Alex Hensel ran her best race of the year, finishing just one second behind Ariyasinghe in third.  Sophomore Lindsey Low finished fourth for the second year in a row, and she led the race for the first mile and a half.  Low raced to a 6:04 first mile and held on at the end just 2 seconds behind Hensel.  Freshman Erica Caffey continued a strong season, finishing fifth only 22 seconds behind the winner.  Sophomore Dana Neeper finished 6th, 5 seconds behind Caffey.  Neeper, a member of the Midway basketball team, was second last year at district.  With only 22 seconds between Midway's first and fifth runners, the Pantherettes should be very competitive at regionals Saturday, November 3. 

Matt Upshaw's 2nd place finish was not enough to get the Panthers the district championship, as Killeen High held off the Panthers by 8 points.  Upshaw, who was 7th last year as a junior, ran a strong race, but fell 5 seconds short of the gold medal.  Juniors Billy Schmidt and Tyler Underwood also picked up medals, as they finished 7th and 8th respectively.  Schmidt improved from last year's 15th place finish, and Underwood raced very well in his debut at district for the Midway varsity.  Underwood also won the JV division at district on this same course as a freshman.  Juniors Greg Nagel (12th), Mitchell Myers (15th), and Jordan Bell (24th) raced well for the Panthers, also.  Senior Cooper Christie fought a valiant battle with a leg injury, finishing 31st for the Panthers.

The JV Pantherettes rolled to the team title even more convincingly than did the varsity Pantherettes, as the girls captured the top 7 places of the 42 runners.  Junior Brooke Winton captured the gold medal, with Courtney Dawson closing strong to take the silver medal.  Heather Haecker held on for bronze medal, with Katie Rose nabbing the 4th place medal.  Makala Paschal was fifth, Heidi Carroll 6th, and Hope Painter 7th as the Midway avalanche buried the competition for a perfect cross country score of 15.  Samantha Ricker was 17th, Alexis Harpole 31st, and Rachael Stanley 32nd.  Including the varsity, an incredible 15 of the 17 Midway Pantherette runners ran their best times of the year at the district meet, the most important meet of the year.  Of the other two, one tied their best time and the other missed their best time by 1 second.

Drew Boles and Dylan Washington finished 1-2 in the JV boys division for Midway, with Boles pulling out the victory this time.  The week before Washington had pulled away in the last mile, but Boles turned the tables on him this time, finishing strong to capture the gold medal in his best time of the year by 46 seconds.  Washington was second, 11 seconds behind Boles.  The JV Panthers were third as a team, with Robby Robbins (17th), Karl Lockhart (24th), and Bryce Conner (25th) rounding out the scoring.  Also running well for Midway were Grant Williams (26th), Matt Buzza (36th), Jackson West (42nd), Michael Arrington (45th), and Jared Skopik (52nd).   

Saturday, November 3, both Midway teams will compete in the Region II-4A Cross Country Championships at Arlington's Vandergriff Park.  The girls race at 12:05, and the boys follow at 12:30 in the last races of the day. Over 160 runners and 24 teams are scheduled to race in each division, with the top 10 individuals and top 3 teams advancing to the state meet the following Saturday.  An awards ceremony will be held at the Arlington Convention Center at 2:00 to announce the final 4A results.  In the 32 years that Midway has had cross country, the boys and girls have qualified for the regional meet as a team an amazing 30 times apiece.

Panthers, Upshaw Claim Titles at Priddy (posted Oct. 19, 2007)

Midway won three of the four team titles, and individual runners came away with 20 medals at the Priddy Cross Country Invitational, held Wednesday, October 17, at the Goldthwaite Golf Course.  In their final tune-up before district, Midway won the team title in the varsity boys, junior varsity boys, and junior varsity girls divisions, while the varsity girls were second to a very strong Stephenville team. 

Matt Upshaw captured the individual title in a very competitive race.  Upshaw, Matthew Heers of Priddy, and Andrew Gordon of Evant broke away from the pack in the first mile, with Upshaw coming through the mile mark in 5:10.  Upshaw led the trio for most of the second mile but the third mile was neck and neck, with the 3.1 mile race coming down to the last 300 yards.  Heers took the lead at that point, pushing hard past Upshaw.  Upshaw kept his composure and waited until the last 150 yards to begin his move.  He surged past Heers, who faded to third, and held off Gordon by a mere second in a very dramatic finish to capture the gold medal.  Billy Schmidt, Mitchell Myers, Greg Nagel, and Tyler Underwood all picked up medals, finishing in the top 15, and leading the Panthers to the team championship.  Jordan Bell added a 21^st place finish to round out the team.

Nethika Ariyasinghe and Dana Neeper led the Pantherettes once again, with Ariyasinghe leading the way with her best race of the season on a hot, windy day.  Ariyasinghe was 6^th in 13:23, and Neeper held on for 15^th. Freshman Erica Caffey ran another solid race for 16^th.  Lindsey Low was 21^st in only her second race of the season, running well despite nagging injuries.  Erin Kelbly and Dani Meyer ran very well also, finishing right behind Low in 22^nd and 23^rd places.  Lydia Lockhart ran another good race, finishing 51^st out of the 100 runners.

The JV Panthers ran away with the team championship, with Dylan Washington, Drew Boles, Robby Robbins, and Jarrod Mathis sweeping the first four places.  Washington and Boles ran side by side for the first two miles of the race, with Washington pulling away for a convincing win in the last mile.  Boles ran his best time by over a minute in capturing the silver medal.  Robbins overcame a hard fall at the beginning of the race and still was able to race well enough to win the bronze medal.  Karl Lockhart and Bryce Conner also picked up medals for the young Panthers.  Jackson West ran his best race of the year, just missing a medal in 16^th place.  Grant Williams and Jared Skopik ran their best times of the year, and David Martinez and Matt Buzza ran well, also.

The JV Pantherettes captured 7 of the top 12 places in winning the team championship, led by Alex Hensel’s individual championship.  Hensel had not raced in almost a month and ran a good race on the rolling hills.  Heather Haecker (5^th), Brooke Winton (6^th), Katie Rose (8^th), Courtney Dawson (9^th), Heidi Carroll (10^th), and Makala Paschal (12^th) all brought home medals from the meet.  Samantha Ricker, Hope Painter, Alexis Harpole, and Rachael Stanley all raced well for the Pantherettes.

On Wednesday, October 24, Midway travels to Killeen’s Long Branch Park for the 2007 District 16-4A Cross Country Championships.  Races begin at 10:00 am with the varsity girls, followed by the varsity boys at 10:30.  The JV girls and boys run at 11:00 and 11:30, with the award presentation to follow.  The top 10 varsity individuals and top 3 varsity teams will advance to the Region II-4A championships to be held at Arlington’s Vandergriff Park on Saturday, November 3.  The Pantherettes are the favorite to win the district title, with challenges expected from Copperas Cove, Killeen, and Waco High.  Sophomore Dana Neeper and junior Nethika Ariyasinghe will challenge for the individual title.  Last year Neeper was second and Ariyasinghe fifth in the district meet.  Dani Meyer was 17^th last year, running her best race of the year to be Midway’s fifth runner and cement the district title for the girls, their third consecutive title.  Erica Caffey and Erin Kelbly will race in their first district meet, but both have been solid all year.  Lindsey Low and Alex Hensel have battled injuries this year, but both are hoping to race at Killeen.  For the Panthers, winning district will be very tough, as Waco High and Killeen are both very strong this year, and Copperas Cove and University will challenge for one of the 3 top spots, as well.  Senior Matt Upshaw is one of the top runners in the district and will be in the hunt for the individual title.  Also running for the Panthers will be juniors Billy Schmidt, Greg Nagel, Tyler Underwood, Jordan Bell, and Mitchell Myers.  Senior Cooper Christie is scheduled to race for the first time in a while, also.

Pantherettes Win at Connally, Boys 2nd (posted Oct. 13, 2007)

Panthers 1st at Temple, Girls 2nd (posted Oct. 7, 2007)

Midway rained out at Corpus Christi (posted Oct. 2, 2007)

The Midway cross country teams were rained out of their scheduled meet in Corpus Christi on Saturday, September 29.  Lightning officially ended any chance they had of running.  Their next meet will be this Saturday, October 6, in Temple.  The varsity girls will race about 9:05, with the varsity boys following about 9:45.  The JV girls immediately follow the varsity boys, with the JV boys right after that.  All races will be held at Lions'  Park in Temple.

Panthers, Pantherettes race well at Baylor  (posted Sept. 23, 2007)

The Midway Panthers cross country team raced to a fifth place finish at the Baylor Invitational, beating all but one 4A team in the race.  More importantly, they beat Waco High by a little and Copperas Cove by a lot, two competitors in Midway’s district.  Waco won district last year, with Midway second, and Cove third, so it was an encouraging outing for the boys.  Matt Upshaw ran a smart and strong race, finishing 13^th, after starting out in the back of the pack.  The hills of the Baylor course and the heat of the morning took their toll on other runners, and Upshaw passed numerous faltering runners to take the 13^th place.  Billy Schmidt ran a very good race, also, as he came in 21^st for the Panthers.  Mitchell Myers was only 13 seconds behind Schmidt, in 26^th place.  Tyler Underwood (43^rd) and Jordan Bell (44^th) rounded out the five for the Panthers, as Greg Nagel and Cooper Christie sat out the race with nagging injuries.

The Midway Pantherettes were 5^th of 10 teams, as they packed well.  They also defeated Copperas Cove and Waco High in the meet, and did so quite handily.   The Midway girls are looking for their fourth straight district championship, and Cove and Waco were second and third, respectively, last year.  Nethika Ariyasinghe was the first Midway runner this meet, the third different girl to lead the Pantherettes this year.  She was four seconds in front of Dana Neeper, who has led the girls twice this year.  Another 7 seconds back was Alex Hensel, who led the Panthers two weeks ago at the Midway meet.  Erica Caffey was ten seconds behind Hensel, and sophomore Erin Kelbly was the fifth Midway runner, thirty seconds behind Caffey.  Brooke Winton tried valiantly to race through an illness, but had to stop after a mile and a half. 

The JV Pantherettes were led by Dani Meyer’s 7^th place finish, as she ran a great race as the sun got hotter during the later morning.  The girls captured 3^rd place overall, beating all but 5A Belton and Temple.  Katie Rose ran another good race, garnering 15^th, and Hope Campos ran her best race of the year, finishing just 2 seconds behind Rose in 16^th place.  Heather Haecker was 28^th, with Heidi Carroll just one spot behind her.  Makala Paschal was 34^th, Samantha Ricker was 44^th, and Hope Painter was 49^th.  Courtney Dawson turned an ankle in the first half-mile, but ran through the pain for 60^th place.  Alexis Harpole ran well, also, as she was 105^th out of the 147 runners.

Junior Robbie Robbins led the JV Panthers for the second week in a row, capturing a 9^th place medal.  The team was 7^th overall out of 12 teams.  Other scoring members of the young Panthers were Jarrod Mathis (23^rd), Jackson West (41^st), Bryce Conner (60^th), and Grant Williams (75^th).  This was West’s best race of the year, despite the hot conditions.  Also running well for Midway were Michael Arrington, Matt Buzza, Karl Lockhart, David Martinez, Philip Shepherd, and Jared Skopik.

Next week, the varsities will be competing in the Islander Splash Invitational at West Guth Park in Corpus Christi, hosted by Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Saturday, September 29.  The girls will race at 9:20 am, and the boys to follow at 9:40.  The junior varsities will have the weekend off, and they will return to action on Saturday, October 6, in Temple.

Panthers, Pantherettes Second at Midway Invitational (posted Sept. 8, 2007)

Panthers, Both JV's Win Third Place at Temple Early Bird (posted Sept. 1, 2007)

First Meet - Temple, Friday, August 31  (Posted Aug. 27, 2007)

The Midway High School cross country teams will begin the 2007 campaign, as they travel to Sammons Park Golf Course for the Temple Early Bird Invitational.  The first gun will go off at 8:00 am for the varsity girls, with the varsity boys, junior varsity girls, and junior varsity boys to follow.  Sophomores Dana Neeper and Lindsey Low and junior Nethika Ariyasinghe will lead the Pantherettes,  while seniors Matt Upshaw and Cooper Christie, and juniors Billy Schmidt and Greg Nagel, will do the same for the Panthers.  The Pantherettes are looking for their 4th consecutive district championship (and 20th overall in 32 years of competition) this year, and the Panthers are looking to reclaim the title they last won in 2004.

Meet the Panthers Thursday, August 16 (Posted Aug. 20, 2007)

The Midway cross country teams will be introduced at the annual "Meet the Panthers", to be held Thursday, August 23, at Panther Stadium at 6:00 pm.  The teams have been working since August 1, as they are preparing for their first meet of the year, the Temple Early Bird meet on August 31. 
        Coach Farmer is looking forward to another good year for the Panthers and Pantherettes.  Returning Pantherettes Dana Neeper, Lindsey Low, and Nethika Ariyasinghe were all top-5 finishers for the district champs last year, and Coach Bill Farmer hopes they can lead Midway to another championship.  Matt Upshaw, Cooper Christie, Billy Schmidt, and Greg Nagel are returning varsity members from last year's district runner-ups, and they are taking dead aim on reclaiming the district crown that has eluded them since 2004.  
         Over 40 Midway runners have worked out with the team so far, and it is not too late to join the team.  Coach Farmer (662-6355) or Coach Ronny Boles (666-7094) would be happy to provide further information for any prospective athlete or parent.  No previous experience is required.

Parent Meeting Thursday, August 16 (Posted Aug. 17, 2007)

Fall workouts begin August 1, 2007 (Posted July 26, 2007)

Fall workouts begin August 1, 2007 (Posted July 17, 2007)

The Midway High School cross country teams will begin the fall 2007 workouts on Wednesday, August 1, at Hewitt Park at 6:25 am.  Coach Bill Farmer and Coach Ronny Boles are looking forward to another successful season this year, as the Pantherettes are looking for their 4^th consecutive district title, and the Panthers are looking to recapture the championship after finishing second the last two years.  Both programs are starting their 32^nd year of UIL competition, with each having won 19 district titles and 7 regional titles over the years.  The girls picked up a state title in 1982, as well. 

All athletes must have their physical turned in before they will be allowed to work out with the team.  Experience is not necessary, and all interested Midway students are encouraged to participate.  Participating in another sport is not a problem, either.  For more information, call Coach Farmer (662-6355) or Coach Boles (666-7094).  This is Farmer’s 27^th year coaching cross country at Midway, while Boles is in his 12^th season.

Physicals May 12.
Physicals will be administered at the high school on Saturday, May 12, from 8:00 am until 12:00 noon.  Complete the form as much as you can before you get there.  Make checks out to Jim Randle Scholarship in the amount of $15.

Fall workouts begin August 1, 2007.
Cross country workouts will begin for the 2007 season on 6:25 am, Wednesday, August 1, at Hewitt Park.  Physical forms must be on file in order to participate in team workouts.

2006 DISTRICT CC MEET RESULTS

For complete results, click here

Above:  2006 District 16-4A Individual Champions:  Kelsey Sloan, Copperas Cove, & Jeff Sadler, Waco Midway

Above:  2006 District 16-4A Champion Waco Midway Pantherettes