ROSEBURG – The Roseburg cross country team hosted its only home meet of the season on Wednesday at Stewart Park and the Indians had three runners finish in the top 10 of both the boys and girls races.

Both Roseburg teams finished second in the event, called the Umpqua Invite. Grants Pass swept the meet taking first in the boys and girls races. Runners taking part in the races came from Roseburg, Douglas, South Umpqua, Glide, Grants Pass, and Willamette.

Leading the way for the Roseurg boys was sophomores Hunter Agsten and Elijah Hansen, who finished third and fourth respectively. There was only one second separating the two long distance runners as they crossed the finish line in front of the half shell stage.

Agsten started the race hanging back around fifth or sixth place, but finished with a strong kick over the last 200 meters to cross with a time of 17:16. He said the team has practiced on the course throughout the season, which helped in his strategy. He added it was nice to run in front of a home crowd.

“It’s nice, because the families get to come out and see how everyone is doing,” explained Agsten.

The race was Agsten’s best this season. His teammate Elijah Hansen, who finished fourth, set a personal record with a time of 17:17. Roseburg junior Harrison Townsend placed eighth and was the third runner in the top ten for the Indians.

South Umpqua junior Damien Shockey placed 9th and was the only runner not from Roseburg or Grants Pass in the top 10.

In the girls’ race, South Umpqua sophomore Aneykah McCall continued her strong season by placing third behind two Grants Pass runners. It was McCall’s third top five finish this year and she reached the finish line with a time of 20:47.

McCall was the only runner in the top 10 to come from a school outside the 6A classification and she said the experience of competing against the high levels was special.

“It’s pretty cool for me,” said McCall. “Since we’re a 4A school, we’re littler and it’s a really cool experience to run with the bigger schools.”

The Roseburg team had three girls in the top 10, with sophomore Isabell Webber leading the way in fifth. She finished with a personal record of 20:52, which destroyed her record from her freshman season.

The Indians actually had 14 girls set new personal records during the meet.

Middle school runners also competed at the Umpqua Invite. Brandon Byrd from Glide won the boy’s race and Eliza Eckman from Jo Lane won the girl’s race.

FULL RACE RESULTS