The Classical Academy rules supreme at 3A state cross country

COLORADO SPRINGS – The legacy of The Classical Academy lives on after another stellar performance at the Class 3A boys cross country race.

Matthew Edwards wasn’t too concerned about not running with a pack, but that’s a problem someone who’s out in front of every other competitor needs to deal with. His 15:20.7 was good enough to set a 3A course record as he claimed the state title.

“It’s more mentally hard than anything,” Edwards said. “The physical challenge, you don’t have people pushing you, but you have to stay active in your mind the whole time. That’s the hardest part of running by yourself.”

Finishing in second place was Manitou Springs senior Cody Kelley, who just missed out on cracking the top 10 as a junior. The closest runner to Edwards, Kelley finished nearly 30 seconds behind the state champ.

The day belonged to the Titans as a hole. Edwards becomes the latest of a long line of TCA cross country champions, former teammates and legendary names within the program that he thought about in the run up to his win.

“All the graduates and former teammates are always cheering us on,” Edwards said. “It’s fun competing against the past legends of the team and creating my own path.”

To match that feat, the Titans claimed their third consecutive team title. It’s also the third year in a row that TCA has won the individual championship and the team title.

The girls matched the team trophy feat, but did so with just one runner finishing in the top 10. Joy Ahnfeldt officially took 10th but was matched in time with teammate Cassidy McDonald.

A team title was very much the goal for the Titans after they watched Alamosa end their streak of four straight titles last year. Since 2018, TCA had claimed every team championship, but a strong performance by the Mean Moose put the Titans in second place.

Liberty Common’s Isabel Allori took the individual title after apparently giving everything she had to the race. After cross the finish line, she spent a decent amount of time in the trainer’s tent and visibly struggled during the presentation of medals.

She was able to accept hers and stand for photos with the other finishers but needed additional recovery time afterward. Her finish helped the Eagles take seventh as a team.

In a rather unique situation, Peak to Peak finished as the team runner-up despite not having a single runner finish inside the top 10. In fact, the Pumas didn’t have a runner finish in the top 20, but the team was bunched up enough that they were able to hold off Holy Family by one point to take the second-place trophy.