NEW PALESTINE — As she has been throughout the course of her cross country career, New Palestine senior Courtney Study should be among those toward the head of the pack this season.
The senior standout, who doubles in the spring with track and field and softball, has just one sport to concentrate on in the fall.
She was the team’s top runners in 2022 and is expected to do that again for coach Chuck Myers’ group this year.
“I think she’ll definitely be in the top group in the conference. She’s a top five, top 10 runner,” Myers said. “She’s a little bit ahead of everybody else (on the team), but I think the others are improving. Hopefully they can close that gap up a little bit and make for a more competitive team.”
A year ago, Study was third in the Hancock County meet and one of two Dragons to earn all-county honors, along with graduate Lexi Baynes.
In addition, Study earned All-Hoosier Heritage Conference honors by placing eighth in the meet held at Shelbyville’s Blue River Park Cross Country Course. She placed ninth at the sectional with a season-best time of 20:27.5. As a team the Dragons were sixth.
New Palestine placed fourth in the sectional and had its season end by finishing eighth at the regional. Baynes, 33rd, and Study, 34th, were the top finishers at the regional meet held in Rushville. Baynes was one of four seniors on last year’s roster.
Myers is hoping a group of returnees and some newcomers can help Study to lead to a better year in 2023.
After finishing uncommonly sixth in last year’s HHC meet, Myers is hopeful this year’s group will improve on that placing.
“Hopefully we’ll be a little better than we were last year around conference time,” Myers said. “Last year we were sixth. I want to get back in that top three.”
The Dragons won consecutive conference titles from 2018-2020. In 2021, they placed third, one point behind second-place Pendleton Heights and only 10 points behind champion Mt. Vernon.
Seniors Cami Massari and Amelia Stone, sophomore Heidi Bloomer and junior Evelyn Kell all ran in either one or both of the two postseason races. Massari was consistently the team’s No. 3 runner a year ago. She was 28th at the sectional and 43rd at the regional. Bloomer was just a couple spots and a few seconds behind Massari at the sectional.
Myers said he also has hopes for a couple of incoming freshmen that could be in the team’s varsity lineup, Ainsley Tucker and Addison Uhl.
“I think one through seven, we should be alright,” Myers said. “Hopefully we can get some others up there. We should be fairly competitive, but we’ll see what happens. A couple of the freshmen I haven’t seen race, so I’m not sure what they’re going to do. I’ve seen them in practice and think they can do some things, but you’re not really sure until you get them out there racing.”
The racing starts for the Dragons on Aug. 19 at the John Cleland Invitational in Carmel.
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2023 New Palestine girls cross country schedule
Date;Opponent;Time
Aug. 19;at John Cleland Invitational (Carmel);8:30 a.m.
Aug. 23;at Arabian Roundup (Pendleton);6 p.m.
Aug. 26;at Mt. Vernon Invitational;9 a.m.
Sept. 2;at Marion Invitational (IWU);8:30 a.m.
Sept. 9;at Whiteland Invitational;9 a.m.
Sept. 16;at Golden Bear Invitational (Shelbyville);8:30 a.m.
Sept. 23;Hoosier Heritage Conference (Shelbyville);9 a.m.
Sept. 30;at Nike Valley Twilight (Terre Haute);TBD
Oct. 7;Dragon Invitational;10 a.m.
