Published on August 17, 2026 8:18 am
Last Updated on August 17, 2026 8:21 am
The Effingham Junior High School cross country team kicked off the season in impressive fashion at it’s home meet Saturday
Both the boys and girls teams ran away with the wins against Mattoon, Dieterich, and North Clay.
Girls Top 5:
7th grader A. Hoelscher — 1st place
8th grader B. Bierman — 2nd place
Madi Sparks (North Clay)- 4th place
5th 7th grader K. Jones — 5th place
6th 8th grader I. Schwerman — 6th place
8th 5th grader K. Kellams — 8th place
Boys Top 5:
7th grader E. Gordon — 2nd place
8th grader S. Glover — 3rd place
4th 6th grader D. Wyckoff — 4th place
5th 8th grader C. Jolly — 5th place
6th 7th grader B. Zumbahlen — 6th place
“Even more impressive, of the runners returning from last year’s team, 12 boys and 10 girls improved upon their times from this same meet last year,” said Coach Nancy Ervin.” Six runners went a step further and set personal bests, surpassing their best times from last season: sixth grader O. Wiedman, eighth grader S. Glover, seventh graders B. Zumbahlen and H. Rosen, and sixth graders L. Zerrusen and C. Althoff.
“What an incredible way to start the season. The hard work and dedication of these athletes are already paying off.”