Three of the four Division III champions from 2025 came back to Fortress Obetz on Saturday and left with the same result. Woodridge's boys won again. Oakwood's girls won again. Fairless junior Brice Fuller won again.
The one title that changed hands went to a runner who didn't finish the state meet a year ago.
Napoleon's Gwen Huddle got sick at the 2025 state meet and did not finish, according to the Northwest Signal. On Saturday she ran 17:35.6 and won the Division III girls race by 17.8 seconds.
Neither team champion had a runner in the top 13. Woodridge and Oakwood won the way they won last year, with five runners close together.
Woodridge, again
Woodridge scored 65 points to win the boys title by 50 over Fairless. It scored 65 a year ago, too.
Junior Remington Griffiths led the team in 14th. Senior John Brock was 18th, junior Eli White 30th, senior Nathan Adams 32nd and junior Devin Pietrowski 51st. In team scoring that came to 5, 7, 14, 15 and 24, with 59 seconds between the first and fifth runners.
By Podium Watch's count from the timing splits, Woodridge led the team race at 1,600 and 3,200 meters. Nobody got close.
The coaches saw it coming. Woodridge was No. 1 in 10 of the season's 11 OATCCC polls and drew all 12 first-place votes in each of the last eight, including the Pre-State poll. The one exception was Week 1, when Versailles edged Woodridge on points, 254 to 246, even though Woodridge had 10 of the 12 first-place votes. A week before state, Woodridge scored 37 at the Boardman regional and won by 187.
An Ohio House resolution honoring last year's team called the 2025 title the 11th state championship in program history. By that count, Saturday's was the 12th.
Fuller pulls away again
Fuller and Versailles senior Jackson Spitzer reached the 1,600-meter mark together in 4:43.6. At 3,200 meters Fuller was 0.7 seconds ahead.
Over the final 1,800 meters, Fuller ran 5:19.9 to Spitzer's 5:28.6. He won in 14:50.7, 9.4 seconds clear, and 2.1 seconds faster than the 14:52.8 he ran to win the title as a sophomore.
Fuller was fifth in Division II as a freshman. Last winter he was named the Gatorade Ohio Boys Cross Country Player of the Year. He has one more fall left.
His teammates made it a two-trophy day. Fairless was sixth in the team standings at 1,600 meters and second at 3,200. It finished runner-up with 115 points. Freshman Cohen Amos was 81st at 1,600 meters and finished 26th. Junior Rowan Askren (53rd), freshman Calvin Kegley (66th) and junior Nolan Kutz (83rd) rounded out the scoring.
Two years ago, Fairless qualified for state for the first time in 46 years, according to The Repository. This fall the coaches had it ninth in the preseason poll and third in the Pre-State poll. It finished second.
A senior-heavy chase
Spitzer's second-place finish led Versailles to third with 205 points. Versailles was No. 2 in the Pre-State poll.
Perkins senior Joel Smelcer was third in 15:02.6. Margaretta junior Cole Zang was fourth in 15:03.0. A week earlier the two went 1-2 at the Tiffin regional, both under 15 minutes.
Meadowbrook sophomore Vincent Campbell ran a personal best 15:10.9 for fifth. He was 123rd at state last year.
Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy senior Nathaniel Gockerman was sixth and Fairfield Union senior Connor Runkle was seventh. Runkle led Fairfield Union to fifth, one point behind West Liberty-Salem, 233 to 232. West Liberty-Salem was last year's runner-up.
The Troy regional sent five teams to state, and all five finished in the top 12: Versailles third, West Liberty-Salem fourth, Waynesville seventh, Madeira 11th and Wyoming 12th.
Huddle's day
Huddle has been near the front of Ohio cross country since she was a freshman, when she placed 10th in Division II, according to The Crescent-News. Last fall she won her league and district titles before the illness at state. In March she won the 1,600 and 3,200 at the OATCCC Division III indoor state meet.
This fall Napoleon missed the team cut at the Tiffin regional, so Huddle ran Saturday as an individual. She had won that regional by 1 minute, 17.6 seconds.
The state race stayed close through 1,600 meters. Huddle, Marlington senior Irelyn Johnson and West Holmes freshman Ava Reiheld reached that mark within 0.2 seconds of each other. By 3,200 meters Huddle was 12.1 seconds ahead. She won in 17:35.6.
The defending champion
The runner-up was last year's winner. Johnson took the 2025 title as a junior by 3.35 seconds. On Saturday she ran 17:53.4 for second and was Marlington's first runner as the team placed third with 191 points. Marlington was ninth last year.
Reiheld was third in a personal best 17:59.3. She won the Pickerington regional, but West Holmes missed the team cut there by two points, 228 to 226, so she and junior Iriel Mena came to state as individuals. Mena finished eighth.
Oakwood closes
The girls team race was decided in the last 1,800 meters.
Huron was No. 1 in nine of the season's 11 polls and drew 11 of the 12 first-place votes in the Pre-State poll. Defending champion Oakwood drew the other one. By Podium Watch's count from the timing splits, Huron led at 1,600 and 3,200 meters, where it was ahead 118 points to 135.
Over the last 1,800 meters, senior Sylvia Gallagher-Yerman went from 35th to 28th, sophomore Bella Fulton from 46th to 38th, senior Katherine Erwin from 53rd to 45th and freshman Ava McManamon from 81st to 69th. Huron's fourth and fifth runners slipped from 60th to 64th and from 72nd to 78th.
Oakwood won 119 to 125. Sophomore Evelyn Reinoehl led the team in 15th.
It is Oakwood's second straight title. The first, in 2025, was the first state title in program history, according to the Dayton Daily News. Huron was runner-up both years. Sophomore Laney Schlessman led Huron in 14th, with senior Rylie Towns 23rd and sophomore Andrea Lesnak 24th.
The Northeast's depth
Four of the top six girls teams came out of the Northeast regional at Boardman: Marlington third, Crestwood fourth, Woodridge fifth and Berkshire sixth. All eight Boardman qualifiers finished in the top 16.
Marlington and Crestwood tied at Boardman with 127 points, and Marlington won the regional title on the sixth-runner tiebreaker. At state they finished seven points apart.
Crestwood wasn't ranked in the preseason poll. Freshman Luci Maschek ran 18:27.6 for seventh. Berkshire, also unranked in the preseason, got 12th from freshman Claire Passow. Woodridge's girls were 12th in the Pre-State poll and finished fifth.
What the polls got right, and what they didn't
The coaches nailed the top of the boys race. The Pre-State top four were the top four on Saturday, with Fairless and Versailles trading places. Canal Fulton Northwest climbed from 18th to 10th. Berkshire, seventh in the Pre-State poll, finished 17th. Bryan, fifth in the poll, was third in the team standings at 1,600 meters and finished eighth.
In the girls race the top two flipped. Ottawa-Glandorf was No. 4 in 10 straight polls and finished 10th. Minerva went from third to eighth. Salem went from 18th to ninth.
Boys: polls vs. finish
| Team | Preseason | Pre-State | State finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodridge | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Fairless | 9 | 3 | 2 |
| Versailles | 7 | 2 | 3 |
| West Liberty-Salem | 6 | 4 | 4 |
| Fairfield Union | 2 | 6 | 5 |
| Chagrin Falls | 5 | 8 | 6 |
| Waynesville | 14 | 9 | 7 |
| Bryan | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| Van Wert | 17 | 10 | 9 |
| Canal Fulton Northwest | 30 | 18 | 10 |
Girls: polls vs. finish
| Team | Preseason | Pre-State | State finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oakwood | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Huron | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Marlington | 7 | 5 | 3 |
| Crestwood | NR | 6 | 4 |
| Woodridge | 4 | 12 | 5 |
| Berkshire | NR | 10 | 6 |
| Madeira | 8 | 7 | 7 |
| Minerva | 3 | 3 | 8 |
| Salem | 5 | 18 | 9 |
| Ottawa-Glandorf | 6 | 4 | 10 |
NR: not ranked. Source: OATCCC Division 3 coaches' polls, Preseason (Aug. 27) and Pre-State (Nov. 5).
The last race
Five of the top eight boys were seniors: Spitzer, Smelcer, Gockerman, Runkle and Portsmouth's Ian Putnam, who was eighth. Woodridge seniors Brock and Adams scored in their final state meet and went out as state champions.
On the girls side, Johnson finished her high school cross country career with a state title and a runner-up finish. Claymont senior Kali Wallace was ninth. Ironton's Marlena McCown was 10th. Crestwood seniors Madiegrace Gonczy and Piper Seibold finished 20th and 21st, less than a second apart. Oakwood seniors Gallagher-Yerman and Erwin both scored in their final state meet.
Who's back
Fuller will be a senior next fall with a chance at a third straight title. Zang, Keystone's Jamie Yuronich (ninth) and Canton South's Logan Howard (10th) are juniors, and Campbell is a sophomore. Woodridge returns three of its five scorers in Griffiths, White and Pietrowski.
Huddle is a junior. Reiheld and Maschek are freshmen. Hathaway Brown's Caroline Valentino (fourth) and Chagrin Falls' Gabby Byrne (fifth) are juniors, and Fairfield Union's Sadie Schultz (sixth) is a sophomore. Oakwood brings back Reinoehl, Fulton and McManamon from its scoring five. Huron brings back Schlessman and Lesnak.
Division III results
Boys teams: 1. Woodridge 65; 2. Fairless 115; 3. Versailles 205; 4. West Liberty-Salem 232; 5. Fairfield Union 233; 6. Chagrin Falls 241; 7. Waynesville 254; 8. Bryan 258; 9. Van Wert 292; 10. Canal Fulton Northwest 296.
Boys individuals: 1. Brice Fuller (Fairless) 14:50.7; 2. Jackson Spitzer (Versailles) 15:00.1; 3. Joel Smelcer (Perkins) 15:02.6; 4. Cole Zang (Margaretta) 15:03.0; 5. Vincent Campbell (Meadowbrook) 15:10.9; 6. Nathaniel Gockerman (Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy) 15:20.4; 7. Connor Runkle (Fairfield Union) 15:22.0; 8. Ian Putnam (Portsmouth) 15:23.3; 9. Jamie Yuronich (Keystone) 15:25.2; 10. Logan Howard (Canton South) 15:25.3.
Girls teams: 1. Oakwood 119; 2. Huron 125; 3. Marlington 191; 4. Crestwood 198; 5. Woodridge 215; 6. Berkshire 220; 7. Madeira 229; 8. Minerva 243; 9. Salem 264; 10. Ottawa-Glandorf 265.
Girls individuals: 1. Gwen Huddle (Napoleon) 17:35.6; 2. Irelyn Johnson (Marlington) 17:53.4; 3. Ava Reiheld (West Holmes) 17:59.3; 4. Caroline Valentino (Hathaway Brown) 18:14.2; 5. Gabby Byrne (Chagrin Falls) 18:17.6; 6. Sadie Schultz (Fairfield Union) 18:26.9; 7. Luci Maschek (Crestwood) 18:27.6; 8. Iriel Mena (West Holmes) 18:28.6; 9. Kali Wallace (Claymont) 18:30.2; 10. Marlena McCown (Ironton) 18:31.6.
Full results and splits for every Division III runner are at podiumwatch.org.
